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Latinos will assimilate, history shows, and strengthen America
REGISTER EDITORIAL BOARD


April 6, 2006


Part of the controversy over immigration stems from the fear that Latinos will not assimilate, as past waves of immigrants have.

All of American history suggests that fear is groundless.

Moreover, as in the past, whatever short-term distress is caused by immigration in the present will be more than offset by long-term gains in national strength.

That has been the American story from the beginning. It sets us apart.

In Western Europe and Japan, population is declining, and economies are stagnating. Immigration is keeping the United States from a similar fate. Without immigration, an aging U.S. population would be at about zero growth, and the economy probably would be, too.

Alone among the highly developed nations, the United States remains growing and vibrant, partly due to immigration. It helps us stay ahead in the economic race with fast-growing India and China.

In Iowa, demographics point to a shortage of workers in the next few decades that will stunt economic growth. So immigration is vital. Politicians like U.S. Rep. Steve King who want to clamp down on immigration are working against Iowa's self-interest.

Some stress in settling strangers is inevitable, but if Iowa is to have any expectation of growth, it must be an immigrant-friendly state.

Another element in the fear of immigration is the realization that newcomers, legal and illegal, are arriving at a record level. That is true in raw numbers. But in proportion to the population, immigration was greater at the turn of the 20th century.

In 1890, nearly 15 percent of the U.S. population was foreign-born. Today, about 12 percent is. Proportionately, there were more foreigners to assimilate then than there are now. And they assimilated just fine. They helped America win two world wars and become the most prosperous country in the world.

The numbers reveal something else: Immigration tends to occur in waves. It ebbs and flows. We're at a peak now, but history suggests this wave, too, will subside as the economy of Mexico improves. Some futurists even speculate that the flow will reverse someday: Americans will move into Mexico as they did into the U.S. Sun Belt.

In Iowa, the foreign-born population in 1890 was more than triple what it is now. English was a second language in entire communities.

All those Germans, Swedes, Norwegians, Danes, Irish, Dutch, Bohemians, Italians and others who came to Iowa back then have descendants who are now pure Iowan and 100 percent American.

The same thing will happen to the descendants of the Latino-Americans arriving now. It should be a joy to watch it happen.