Irrestible Forces

The politics and social, and cultural impacts of Latin American migration to the United States are often studied by historians and political scientists, but the regional focus is typically the Southwest and California. This study examines the impact of Latin American migration on the southeastern United States, a region that now has the nation's fastest growing immigrant population.

Because of the dismal state of the U.S. economy after 2008, economists predicted that out-of-work migrants would return to their home countries in Latin America. In fact, however, most migrants have chosen to stay. The ebb and flow of migration is subject to many more influences than a simple economic model would suggest, and conventional wisdom too often fails to take demography and politics into account.

The authors of this book use political demography to clarify the complex dynamics of migration, with particular emphasis on the unique demographic fit between the United States and Latin America. At the turn of the twenty-first century, they point out, the United States had an aging population and was hence in need of young workers, while Latin America had more young people than its economy could absorb. As migrants settled in the United States, the U.S. demographic profile changed, and the increased emphasis on border enforcement since 2001 has increased the risk and cost of leaving the country. In short, the Weekses point out, many factors affect immigration, and a bad economy is only one of them. Their study argues convincingly for the use of such demographic analyses to understand immigration and its ramifications.