As the number of illegal immigrants in the United States reached 11 million

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The number of illegal immigrants in the United States, according to rough estimates, reaches 11 million people.

The story of how the size of this group of American society has grown to such proportions, told the publication NPR.

Before the 1920s, the US had few restrictions regarding immigration, and people could cross the border quite easily and not have to hide very much in the US. Immigration to the States from Mexico was economically beneficial for residents of the Latin American country - salaries in the United States were several times higher than in Mexico.

Over time, the Mexicans became the largest group in the US labor force.

During World War II, the US government created a program that allowed Mexican farmers to legally come to work in the States. It was called the Bracero program, it was lobbied by American farmers in need of labor. In the peak year of the program, 400 of thousands of legal workers from Mexico arrived in the USA. At the same time, the life of the employees was completely controlled by the employer, to which they were attached by the program, and this led to rather unfair relations and infringement of Mexicans.

In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson closed the Bracero program. But the hiring of workers from Mexico did not stop, it was not difficult at that time to cross the border illegally, and American employers actively hired illegal immigrants, since this was in no way punished. Criminal responsibility came for helping them in illegal border crossing, but not in finding employment for those who had already illegally entered the States.

By 1980, the number of illegal immigrants in the United States has grown to 1,5 million.

The Mexican economic crisis forced many young Mexicans to look for work, while the booming US economy showed that young Americans were in no hurry to join the ranks of the labor force. By 1986, there were 3,2 million illegal immigrants in the United States, which led to restrictive measures by Congress.

The Simpson-Mazzoli Act was passed. It consisted of 3 parts: amnesty to illegal immigrants who had been in the country for at least 5 years; punishment of employers for hiring illegal immigrants; increased border controls.

Under this law, 3 a million illegal immigrants received an amnesty, but by 1990, the number of those who were in the United States without relevant documents, again reached 3,5 million.

This was due to the fact that the border control was still working rather gently and gave many loopholes for those who wanted to cross the Mexican-American border.

The growth of the US economy in 1990, led to a new influx of immigrants, and by 1995, their number reached 5,7 million.

Control at the border was strengthened, which led to the fact that many immigrants who traveled to the United States to work, and then returned to Mexico, moved to the States definitively. By 2000, the number of illegal immigrants was 8,6 million.

Due to the economic downturn in 2001-2003, the influx of immigrants fell slightly, but it resumed with a new force in 2006-2007, when the American economy began to grow again. By the end of 2007, the number of illegal immigrants in the USA was 12 million.

Then there was the recession 2008 of the year, some illegal immigrants lost their jobs and left the United States, in 2009, their number was about 11 million, and remains at the same level for 8 years.

In 2017, 52% of undocumented immigrants are from Mexico, most of them living in cities. If previously the lion's share of illegal immigrants was male, now the gender indicators are almost equal. About 40% of illegal immigrants entered the country legally and remained in the United States after their visa expired, while the rest crossed the border illegally.

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