Seeking common sense on immigration

Research suggests that the long-term benefits of immigration are overwhelmingly positive. If the real issue is cultural, the question becomes how to build an effective and humane migration system.

Virtually every country in the Western world is struggling with migration. It is arguably the biggest political issue today. 

In June's European elections, it fueled strong gains in France and Germany for parties that want tighter rules. In the United States, it could yet decide the presidential election, with President Joe Biden taking a tougher line to compete with former President Donald Trump. 

In this week's cover story, Sarah Matusek shares the stories of six immigrants to the U.S. They provide a portrait of the American dream – from a Vietnamese shopkeeper to the granddaughter of a Hungarian Jew who escaped the Holocaust. 

As with most culture war issues, the public conversation about immigration often feels at best unhelpful, and at worst dangerously warped. Polarized talking points overwhelm facts and common sense. We descend into visceral sides as opposed to thinking rationally. 

So let's think rationally for a few minutes. 

Living in Europe for the past year has driven home a key point for me. Immigration is inevitable. Whether it is migration from the Middle East and Africa to Europe or from Latin America and Asia to the U.S., humans will flow toward opportunity and safety. The idea of stopping immigration is not practical. It won't work. 

So the main questions are, Is that a problem, and what should be done about it?

The economic challenges of migration center around acute pressures on local services from first-generation immigrants. These pressures require careful consideration. But they shouldn't overshadow the fact that the long-term effects of immigration are overwhelmingly positive. Especially in countries with low birth rates (increasingly including the U.S.), immigration is not only beneficial but also essential, providing the new workforce that a growing economy needs. 

One study by the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania concludes: "The available evidence suggests that immigration leads to more innovation, a better educated workforce, greater occupational specialization, better matching of skills with jobs, and higher overall economic productivity."

The vast majority of studies agree.   

The real issue is and always has been cultural. Immigration causes changes. The backlash can absolutely include a racist element. But there are also legitimate conversations to have. Communities want to maintain their traditions and character.    

The thing is, the answer to these questions really isn't all that mysterious. First, immigration through all channels needs some appropriate degree of order or else it overwhelms the system. Second, the more inclusive it is, the more benefits it creates.  

I think about the Italian neighborhood near where I used to live outside Boston. The center stripe of the main street is the red-white-green of the Italian flag. Is that un-American? Centuries ago, many Americans would have said yes. Italian immigrants absolutely changed America. But today, Italians are so integrated that that center stripe feels like a statement of Italian American pride. It reminds us that none of this is new. And it reminds us not to lose sight of common sense and history amid debates often intended to make us forget both.