[R-G] Fewer People Entering U.S. Illegally, Report Says

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

Some foreign proletarians are beginning to lose confidence in the
subprime states of America.  Will the foreign bourgeoisie? -- Yoshie

<http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/us/03immig.html>
October 3, 2008
Fewer People Entering U.S. Illegally, Report Says
By GINGER THOMPSON

A report released Thursday by the Pew Hispanic Center indicates that
fewer people are trying to enter the United States illegally and that
there has been no growth over the last year in the number of illegal
immigrants living here.

The Pew center report, which is based on census data, showed that for
the first time in nearly a decade, the number of people entering the
country illegally was lower than the number arriving through legal
channels.

Experts said the loss of low-wage jobs in the American economy,
combined with intensified enforcement at the border and at workplaces
across the country, had caused those who might be considering an
illegal border crossing to think twice before risking what has become
an increasingly dangerous journey. The result has been a significant
reversal after a decade of rapid growth in illegal immigration.

Central banks from Mexico to Brazil have projected the biggest
declines in remittances from the United States in more than 10 years.

The Pew report found that illegal immigration to the United States had
dropped to about 500,000 annually since 2005 from an average yearly
rate of 800,000 from 2000 to 2004. Since 2000, the average number of
legal immigrants entering the United States each year has remained
steady at about 600,000 to 700,000.

At a news conference on Thursday, the report's authors said some 58
percent of the illegal immigrants living in the United States are from
Mexico, more than any other country by far.

Migrant flows from Mexico have been erratic over much of the past
decade, said Jeffrey S. Passel of the Pew center, peaking in 2000,
dropping in 2002, and surging strongly since 2004.