Double Standards

Abstract

Over the centuries America has proved to be a welcoming country and the United States is regarded to be a nation of immigrants. This means that (with the exception of Native Americans) everyone is either a recent immigrant or a descendant of earlier immigrants. These people have shown that Americans are able to welcome and assimilate newcomers which, according to some, would be the goal today as well. Immigrants have contributed to the development and emergence of basic values of the country including hard work, faith and the entrepreneurial spirit.1 Successive immigrant waves made America’s economy stronger, enriched its culture, and improved its productivity as a nation. Immigration is not an undermining feature of America as some would claim; to the contrary, it is an essential part of it.2 Contemporary immigration raises many questions; in the following, we scrutinize some of the allegations and debates concerning it.