In Borjas’ book the very complex subject of immigration is immensely covered. Both the positive and negative effects of mass immigration on different aspects of American society are equally discussed. The benefits and negative effects can both be argued for due to the fact that they influence different parts of American society. Mass immigration can pose major issues regarding economy while also offering major benefits for certain groups. Immigration offers complementaries between natives and immigrants that affect natives in a positive way. They can often make natives more productive, increase the demand for whatever natives produce, and create new job opportunities when immigrants eventually open up their own firms, among others (Borjas, 153). A main group that benefits from immigrantion are the people looking to hire these low skilled immigrants for cheap labor. This can be anywhere from hotel chain owners (elite class) looking to hire cheap laborers to a normal middle class family looking to hire an immigrant for extra help around the house. This economic gain caused by immigrants low wages and productivity is one that a wide range of groups in American society can benefit from.
While there are many benefits for part of America’s population to reap from mass immigration, there are also some negative effects. A main issue with immigration has to do with the fact that America is a welfare state, and immigrants are not just robots that can work on a factory line all day without any lives outside of work. Immigrants have kids, pay taxes, go to the hospital, can not pay rent, and retire (Borjas, 171). The usual low wages of new immigrants is not usually enough to pay for some of the outside work issues they have to deal with. This problem often begins before any immigrant actually arrives in the country. They hear of the safety net that a welfare state like the United States offers and come here for a more comfortable lifestyle. A lot of immigrants come to America to use the welfare state to their advantage despite the fact they have not contributed to it. In most cases new immigrants low wages make them more likely candidates for welfare programs. This fact takes away welfare opportunities from native citizens that might often need them almost as much.
A topic that can help to balance out these negative effects on a welfare state is the culture and attitude immigrants often bring to America. Immigrants often will more willingly take on low income labor intensive jobs. This willingness to take these jobs will help to even out some of America’s deadweight, or people offering little to nothing to society. The magnet surrounding America that attracts immigrants often attracts a very vast population of immigrants. Immigrants from different countries often offer different skill sets and work ethics (Borjas, 67). These skills are ones that have been developed from a young age that will eventually add to the countries they migrate to economy. Borjas also points to the fact that immigrants are self selected. They are the ones who chose to leave their lives behind to start new ones. The brighter part of populations around the world realize they are wanted in America, for the most part, and decide to migrate adding to America’s labor force in a positive fashion.
There is no exact way to answer the question regarding mass immigration having a more positive or negative effect on America due to the fact that both sides of the argument both have ample amount of reasoning given in Borjas book. In my opinion the benefits of mass immigration on different parts of American society, like different parts of the population, economy, and culture and attitude especially in the labor force, outweigh the negatives. Despite the fact that immigrants can often take away opportunities of a welfare state from natives, the low wages they work for can help to balance out this negative. These points given by Borjas could help to change a large part of America’s populations mind on their willingness to allow immigrants into America.
13 replies on “Short Essay 5”
This was a very good short essay, as you make a great argument and support it well with the use of Borjas’ ideas as well as your own. In the second paragraph, you make an interesting point about how immigrants are not robots and need to take care of themselves and their families which is certainly true and I agree with this argument. Another interesting point you make is that the negative effects can be balanced from the positives the immigrants bring, such as their culture and values. After giving strong arguments for both sides, you do a good job concluding your thoughts in the final paragraph.
I find myself agreeing with all of your statements in this essay. It is very well written and clearly shows both sides of the argument. You do a great job stating your beliefs on the topic and continue to support those beliefs until the end of you essay. There was a great deal of supporting evidence used in your essay only making it stronger. I particularly liked the part of your essay where you say that immigration balances itself out. You make a very strong point that immigration affects parts of America very differently. Which in turn makes it hard for there to be an overall decision on the issue that will make everyone happy.
This essay was clearly well thought out and makes a solid argument. Xander effectively incorporates Borjas’ ideas throughout his essay in order to make various points. I also found it beneficial that he presented both sides of the argument and compared them to each other. Additionally, I think it is advantageous to point out that there is no perfect answer to this question, there are many factors that must be considered and weighed. Everyone’s opinion is going to differ based on what aspect of society they value the most. The only critique I had was the organization of the essay. While I liked that Xander split the opposing views up by paragraph, I think it may be more effective to present your argument or thesis at the beginning of the essay rather than at the end. That way your body paragraphs and evidence could be used to prove your argument, or at least back it up. Otherwise I feel like your opinion is not necessarily backed by sufficient evidence at the end. I think it is also necessary to know what question you are responding to throughout your essay, which could be embedded in a claim at the beginning. Overall, however, this essay was very well written and thought provoking.
I agree with much that was said in this essay. The countless positive effects on both the country immigrants move to and the better quality of life an immigrant will often experience when they come to America clearly outweigh the losses that some of the native population in America will experience. There are two sides to the immigration argument and I liked how you explained both positions using the evidence from Borjas’ book.
I think you bring up a lot of good and relevant evidence in this paper. It would be good, however, if you put your quotations in quotes just so that readers know where in the sentence Borjas’ words begin. You also cover a lot of ground in your paragraphs and I think having topic sentences that briefly show where you are going to go content-wise throughout the rest of the paragraph would make your ideas much more comprehensible for readers.
I enjoyed reading your essay. You structured your essay well. I liked your introductory paragraph as you started broad, but began to narrow it down as you stated your thesis. A grammar check could help strengthen your essay as I came across some grammatical errors. You address both sides of the essay topic and explain why your position is better. Immigrants are up-and-coming that provide effort and the drive to live a better life, while the natives who are working these cheap jobs aren’t as driven and focused as the immigrants. I think that is why immigration outweighs the negatives.
I found that you did a great job with this essay. You provided a strong thesis in the introductory paragraph which was supported by great evidence throughout your paper. Borjas’s statements are strongly used to support your argument, although it may have been beneficial to provide some quotations to understand his exact beliefs. Further, you addressed both sides of the argument, which was helpful as it must be necessary as immigration has both pros and cons on both sides of the argument which must be recognized. I found a few grammatical errors in the paper that could easily be fixed.
This is a very well written essay. I really like the angle you took on this short essay topic and how you attacked it vaguely and then narrowed it down throughout the essay. You use evidence from Borjas sufficiently and it makes your argument understandable. You attacked this as a social scientist and it shows. But, when you talk about the points that Borjas uses at the very end of your argument, maybe you should identify exactly what those our so the reader can understand where you’re coming from more precisely and so your conclusion can be wrapped around tighter. It is interesting how you could have chosen one side of the argument and argued it, rather you stated that there isn’t an exact way to argue mass immigration. Maybe you meant “correct” rather than “exact”? Overall, this was a good essay and I enjoyed reading it.
I really like the flow and structure of this essay, and you provide a really good argument. I find it interesting that you chose to stay fairly neutral on the essay topic, but I feel as though the way that you wrote this essay works well and your argument is strong. Your usage of direct evidence from Borjas’s book without directly quoting the text works well, especially because of the short length of these essays. One way that the essay could be strengthened is by addressing your stance earlier on, because up until the conclusion it is hard to tell that you find that the benefits outweigh the negatives. Overall, I enjoyed reading this essay and agree with many of your points.
This essay was expansive and very well-written.Your argument is clearly defined and your thesis is reinforced throughout the paper. Additionally, Borjas is used well to support most of the short essay, giving credence to many of your points. I think having a slightly more expansive roadmap in your introduction could play to your advantage in this essay. Outlining the path your essay is going to take at the onset would allow the reader to more closely follow your arguments and thought process to a greater extent.
In this essay, you bring up many points I agree with. I think that the idea of helping immigrants find a better life for sure outweighs the cost of some negative effects on natives. while we can’t ignore these effects, I don’t think we can always put natives that far before non natives, and should look to do overall what is best for the most people. I like how you have a counter argument, and I think your essay is well organized.
After reading through your essay today in class I wanted to restate some of the comments I made. Overall, I think that your essay has some really strong evidence and points, and it was very well thought out. I think that it could be beneficial in your second paragraph to expand on how the needs of immigrants may affect the culture of America in general and the American economy specifically. Borjas explains some of these points and I think that would strengthen this section of the essay. Also, as I said in my previous post, I think it would be helpful to include your own opinion/claim at the beginning of the essay. That way you can use your body paragraphs to back your claim. If you do decide to do this, I think it would be beneficial to include all of the disadvantages in one paragraph and all of the benefits in another. I would put the benefits paragraph last so that you can show how the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. Also, you talk about how Borjas expresses the advantages and disadvantages equally throughout his book. While I do concede that he addresses both sides, I sense that he does lean in a specific way. However, this could just be my opinion. I really enjoyed reading your essay and think it is very well written.
To reiterate what was said in class I thought this essay was very well written and well organized. You presented both sides of the argument well and made a solid point at the end of the essay that tied the whole thing together very well.