Study rebuts 'family values' argument that favors immigration

An immigration reform organization has released a study which it says refutes the premise that immigrants entering the U.S. bring along with them a commitment to traditional family values that is stronger than that found among the native-born population. The group points to a dramatic rise in illegitimate birth rates among Hispanic immigrants since 1980 as a prime example.

During a January 2005 news conference, President Bush -- in discussing his proposals for immigration reform -- stated he wanted to remind people that "family values do not stop at the Rio Grande River." The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) in Washington, DC, cites other sources who argue that immigrants to America bring with them "strong family structures and strong morals" as well as a "stronger sense of family" than Anglo-Americans.

In investigating those claims, CIS has examined one aspect of traditional family values: out-of-wedlock births. The group looked at those birth rates among immigrants and native-born Americans in 1980, and compared those figures with the illegitimate birth rates in 2003. Those rates among the native U.S. population rose from 19 percent in 1980 to 35 percent in 2003; during the same time period, the rate among immigrants -- both legal and illegal -- rose from 13 to 32 percent.

But CIS spokesman John Keeley says the illegitimacy rate of among Hispanic immigrants is even higher. "There the figure is 42 percent," he shares. "So 42 percent of Hispanic immigrants have out-of-wedlock births ... and that's a concern." Illegitimacy among that group in 1980 was at 19 percent.

The higher rate of illegitimate births among Hispanics is important, says Keeley, because births to Hispanic women now account for 59 percent of all births to foreign-born mothers. And even that high percentage, he notes, is often lower than it is in those immigrants' native countries. In countries like El Salvador and Guatemala, for example, the out-of-wedlock birth rates are in the 60-to-70 percent range, he says.

"In Mexico, the 'official' figure is 38 percent, but [that report comes] from the government -- and most people think that it's considerably higher," the CIS spokesman adds. "So you can see, if the problem is so prevalent there in the source countries, why should we be shocked that there is a comparable concern here in the United States with these very nationals?"

Keeley says high illegitimate birth rates bring other problems such as higher welfare rates, higher crime rates, and lower education levels -- all of which, he says, ought to be "troubling" to policymakers on Capitol Hill. And because illegitimate children are at a higher risk for such problems, those with immigrant parents may be at even greater risk because they need strong families to adjust to a new life in America.

CIS director of research Steven Camarota makes that argument in a column for ConservativeTimes.org. He writes that while some people view immigrants as "paragons of virtue" and others view them as "morally deficient" in some way, neither view is correct when it comes to family values.

"Immigrants are subject to the same social forces as everyone else," says Camarota. "Thus, the idea that immigration will reinvigorate traditional values is unrealistic."

Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register.

Go Rosemary!
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. ******* for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren’t being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.
Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. ****** why today’s American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer.
Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home. They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture.
Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany , Italy, France and Japan . None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan . They were defending the United States of America as one people.
When we liberated France, no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country’s flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here.
These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I’m sorry, that’s not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900’s deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life.
I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags. And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn’t start talking about dismantling the United States just yet.
(signed) Rosemary LaBonte

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