How Migration Really Works: The Facts About the Most Divisive Issue in Politics

Migration scholar de Haas (sociology, Univ. of Amsterdam; coauthor, The Age of Migration) seeks to dispel the most common myths about immigration, starting with the idea that it is at an all-time high. Throughout time, people have moved from one location to another. Internal migration, specifically from rural to urban locales, is the most common form of movement. The Great Migration in the United States is only one of many examples. Concerns about certain populations being unassimilable is nothing new, a prejudice that was directed toward eastern and southern European populations in the early 20th century. De Haas asserts that the main source of illegal immigration is overstaying visas, making immigrants who have arrived legally become undocumented. Meanwhile, worksite enforcement is low in both the States and Europe, primarily because businesses want cheap labor. De Haas argues here that immigration systems are broken, which has forced migrants underground, allowing for their exploitation. Fundamentally, he believes that migration is not a problem to be solved; instead, it is an intrinsic human urge to deliberately go where one can have a better future.