The Policies and Racial Discrimination of Immigrants, Research Paper Example

The policies and racial discrimination of immigrants have contributed to their economic marginalization in the USA. The USA government and civil rights movements have come up with efforts to ensure these inequalities are minimized. The government should remove policies protecting and promoting white supremacy to ensure economic equality. The federal and local governments should advocate for inclusive policies.

One of the areas to be addressed is the generational policy in housing. In 1968 the Congress passed an act directing the executive branch of government to implement ways to minimize housing discrimination. The executive never implemented the Fair Housing Act until the year 2015. It is the Obama administration that revived this Act by introducing a rule. The rule directed the housing department to take appropriate actions that will stop discrimination. The department was charged with ensuring the communities are inclusive and there are no restrictions in accessing opportunities. The discriminatory living patterns have to be replaced with inclusive patterns (Stromquist and Nelly, 2012, pg. 195-221). The immigrants should also have access to better mortgage packages to enable them own homes.

The authorities should also check modern racial residential discrimination. Immigrants in the USA face segregation on acquiring residential properties (Fetzer and Joel, 2000, pg. 5-23). The bias in the purchase and sale of real estate property amongst people of color and other immigrants should not prevail. The government should increase resources for proper house testing. Through proper house testing, discrimination to purchase and rent homes will be unearthed. Testers work by posing as buyers or renters to gather information concerning violations of the Fair Housing Act. The other goal of a tester is to expose all types of discrimination. A study was done by a section of lawyers in Chicago to test the earnings and racial segregation in seventy real estate properties. The study covered six areas neighboring Chicago. In the study, thirty properties showed there was one or all kinds of discrimination. The housing department in America is also funding initiatives promoting housing inclusivity (Canaleta et al., 2004). It should also all go ahead and provide more resources in programs such as house testing. Without enough resources discrimination, will not reduce.

The issue of contemporary income segregation needs to be addressed. The housing department will address the issue if the Economic Fair Housing Act places orders for discriminatory zoning punishment. Also, to stop segregation regulations, restricting exclusionary zoning should be financed. Inclusive zoning rules that advocate for setting aside an area for developing new houses will also address economic inequalities. The authorities should adopt laws regarding the source of income for public residents. The adoption of mobile programs advocating for public residents to have a chance to live in neighborhoods with many opportunities. The moves above will ensure economic discrimination is reduced in the USA.

The other policy that the government should revise is the minimum wage policy. Poverty levels are high among the immigrants in the USA because of the low wages they get. Different states in the USA are moving towards raising the minimum wage to an hourly rate of $15. Recently, the House of Representatives passed the Act pushing for the rise in wages. The Act outlined that by 2025 should be $15 for every hour. States like Florida and Arkansas have started implementing the raise wage rule. According to studies raising wages will be beneficial to all groups in America. However, not all groups will benefit in the same proportion; the immigrants will benefit more. The reason for this is because immigrants are getting low wages compared to the whites. In terms of economic growth increase in average income translates to a developed economy.

Immigrants should ensure they have strong unions pushing for their economic rights. The reason for better terms of manufacturing workers is because of their representation in the unions. The work of unions is to ensure workers are paid and their rights are not infringed. However, in the recent past, the immigrants’ welfare has been declining due to the diminishing numbers of unions. Besides, most of the jobs done by people of color have no legal rights to be represented by the unions. This exclusion has also resulted in economic difficulty among blacks and other immigrants (Ness and Immanuel, 2010). Many unions should be in place to take care of the low wages offered to the immigrants. Increasing the power of blacks in their working stations will also lead to better income. Organisations and institutions such as religious groups, non-governmental organizations, and unions should partner with immigrants to enforce proper labor rules. The leadership should include workers in NLRA to ensure that their working rights are protected. The Organizing Act is an example of Act that needs protection; protecting an Act like this will ensure businesses do not exploit workers.

The voting participation of immigrants also needs to be increased. This need is one of the major milestones in ensuring economic disparities among blacks and whites is reduced. The authorities should eliminate structures barring immigrants from voting, especially in the Southern part of America. Lack of better representation of the immigrants in Congress and local authorities has largely contributed to their miseries. Representation of the blacks will ensure policies such as Medicare are passed. The passing of anti-poverty policies to a large extent will benefit the immigrants. Lawmakers should adopt policies advocating for fairness in voting. These policies include Registering on the same day, automation in registration, and early voting. A move like this will ensure there is democracy in voting. Adopting the policies will empower the discriminated people in the USA. An Act like the People Act, if amended, will provide room for African Americans and Latinos to air their grievances.

In ensuring the economic segregation between the whites and people of color is fixed, one of the moves was the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The Obama administration adopted this program in 2012. This program provides unauthorized people in the USA with a temporary and renewable certificate of protection. The certificate enables them to stay in the USA without the fear of deportation. It also ensures they secure job opportunities in America. Despite the efforts done to protect the immigrants, the Trump administration restricted this program. They proposed that the legislature should do relief on the deportation of immigrants. The administration went ahead and provided a list of the immigrants’ conditions to be granted relief.

Rules and regulations ensuring there is no discrimination will increase the chances of immigrant women’s employability. In terms of gender, black women have been facing more discrimination than black men. Education plays a major role in immigrant economic status. A person without better education is hard for him to be economically positioned. According to statistics, white women are more privileged than immigrant women when it comes to education accessibility. In terms of employment, black women’s unemployment rate was 7.8%, Latin women at 6.3%, and 4.2% for white women. The statistics also confirmed that black women’s poverty levels were at 25.7%, 24% for Latin women, and whites were at 11.7%. The matters of economic discrimination from the given statistics indicate a correlation. The judiciary should revise public policies in place to counter the disparities experienced.

The executive should implement strategies to reduce the wealth gap between immigrants and whites. According to research, this gap increased from around $100,000 in 1992 to $ 154 000 in 2016. The widening of this gap is a disadvantage to the immigrants. Wealth creation should start at the family. Moves such as saving and investments should be encouraged starting at the family level. Despite the efforts to reduce the economic disparities among the whites and the immigrants, other issues such as globalization, winners taking it all in the economy, and discriminatory culture widen the economic gap.

Globalization is a situation that occurs when world economies are integrated. An economist by the name of Milanovic, in his analysis, confirmed the economic integration between the USA and other countries resulted in income unfairness in the USA. The people who were affected greatly were the immigrants. The countries that benefit from the integration were Asian countries. For example, the households in China in the year 2016 increased their income from $11,500 to $43,000. Integration of economies has also facilitated importation. Through importation, job opportunities to some extent get reduced. Countries like the USA have faced the challenge of importing goods from other countries. This issue has also contributed to low income among the immigrants. Surowiecki’s report on economic inequalities confirmed American sectors that offer jobs to immigrants get low profits. The fact that these sectors are the ones offering employment to the blacks, they are not capable of offering better pay. A situation like this continues to increase the economic gap between whites and immigrants. Some economists argue that trade globalization has been one factor that has contributed to the loss of jobs in America. In this case, the most affected being the people of color.

Education is another factor facilitating economic inequalities. Industries in the USA are demanding professionals with better academic papers; the immigrants, due to their limited access to better education, find themselves in this fix. The growth of technology has also facilitated less demand for people’s labor. Firms now prefer technological-based labor to human labor. The argument behind this move is services provided by technological equipment are efficient compared to human labor. More skilled employees are needed to work with machines. Most of the immigrants are less skilled, preventing them from getting jobs.

Studies have shown that the number of immigrant women in the USA is more than that of immigrant men. The high number of immigrant women confirms their relevance in the labor market of the USA. Little has been done on the work experience possessed by immigrant women. The labor environment has discriminated against these women, which has facilitated the economic marginalization of the immigrant. These women have been neglected based on gender roles assumed on them; the labor market has assumed that women should stay at home and do the jobs at home. Men have higher chances to be absorbed in the labor market than women. Women are discriminated against in the work industry; this scenario should stop for economic growth to happen.

Women face gender imbalance in almost every aspect of life (Boye et al., 2009). The reduced income that immigrant women get has affected their ability to possess assets. Economic equity cannot be realized if a section of people like women is underpaid. Scholars argue that employment plays a major part in promoting economic growth. The quality of work should also be considered. Immigrant women find themselves working low-quality and underpaid jobs compared to the male counterparts. Underpaying and employing women in insecure jobs are also factors contributing to economic disparities in the USA. A person who has limited access to income is faced with the challenge of bargaining in the economy.

The living cost in the different states of America also contributes to wage disparities. Employees in a state like California are paid higher than those in Kansas. For example, California’s police are paid around $65000, and in Kansas are paid $50000 annually. The skills and the experience of an employee have also dictated the amount of income earned. Workers with a high level of experience will attract higher pay than those with limited experience.

On the other hand, skilled people receive raised salaries than unskilled persons. Credentials also affect the salary a person gets. People with advanced certification demand more pay than those with elementary qualifications. Matters of responsibilities impact salary levels. Employees with more responsibilities will be paid higher than those will fewer duties. The industry a person works in also determines the amount of salary. For example, managers working in banking institutions receive less than managers working in high-end service firms like boutiques. The factors discussed above explain some of the reasons contributing to economic inequalities.

Industries that men dominate pay higher wages compared to those that are female-dominated. The researchers behind this scenario argue that male jobs are more involving than female jobs. Research done in 2017 confirmed that similar occupations showed disparities in payments based on men or women. However, some scholars dispute this claim; they confirmed that they are occupations where women receive the same payment as men. They claim that in occupations in fields such as medicine and engineering, the pay gap is trivial.

Efforts to encourage women to demand better wages have begun in the USA. In recent years great changes have happened on wage disparities among women and men. Women have changed their views on work. Employment is not seen as something reserved for men, but everybody qualifies. Increased participation of women in income-generating activities will facilitate the reduction of economic marginalization.

Annotated Bibliography

Boye, Katarina. “Relatively different? How do gender differences in well-being depend on paid and unpaid work in Europe?” Social Indicators Research 93.3 (2009): 509-525.

The study in this book investigates if women’s well-being is affected by their hours when they are at home or the hours when they are at work. The hour comparison is between men and women. It also tries to investigate if gender attitudes contribute and social values contribute to gender inequality.

Canaleta, Carlos Gil, Pedro Pascual Arzoz, and Manuel Rapun Garate. “Regional economic disparities and decentralisation.” Urban studies 41.1 (2004): 71-94.

This paper investigates the public policies in place. The political authorities and their contribution to economic disparities. Decentralization has been discussed as a factor contributing to economic gaps.

Fetzer, Joel S. “Economic, personal interest or cultural marginalization? Anti-immigration sentiment and nativist political movements in France, Germany and the USA.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 26.1 (2000): 5-23.

The article elaborates on the theories of economic self-centeredness and marginalization. The discrimination that happens to immigrants is mostly a result of economic selfishness and cultural differences. The countries surveyed included Germany, France, and the USA.  https://www.bu.edu/bulawreview/files/2015/05/WRIGHT.pdf

https://www.amacad.org/publication/race-gender-economic-inequality-united-states

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-and-social-sector/our-insights/the-economic-impact-of-closing-the-racial-wealth-gap#

https://www.law.georgetown.edu/immigration-law-journal/wp content/uploads/sites/19/2020/05/GT-GILJ200006.pdf

https://www.careerprofiles.info/occupational-wage-differences.html

Ness, Immanuel. Immigrants Unions & The New Us Labor Mkt. Temple University Press, 2010.

The writers of this book explain the conditions immigrants’ workers’ experience in New York City. They argue previous immigrants and American natives had decent jobs and better wages. However, the situation has changed, and the employers no longer follow the labor rules. The immigrants are now employed in underground jobs and paid low wages. The book also talks about the essence of unions in safeguarding the rights of immigrant workers.

Stromquist, Nelly P. “The educational experience of Hispanic immigrants in the United States: Integration through marginalization.” Race Ethnicity and Education 15.2 (2012): 195-221.

The article talks about the educational challenges Latinos experience in the USA. The Latino students face the problem of limited access to English academic teachings. They also have reduced access to university education. Most Latinos are employed in seasonal jobs; the agricultural and fishing sector. Latino students report cases of racism in their institutions. A scenario like this leads to economic marginalization.