Immigration Impact Quotes
He was referring to the fact that the Spaniards had not only explored but settled much of America before the English settlers ever came. When Americans came to Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado and California, the Hispanics were already there and had been for some time. Spanish was the language of all these states before they were states and of many of the residents after they had become states. When the United States bought New Mexico and Arizona from Mexico, Spanish was the principle language in those territories. Those that would argue that immigrants should not bring new languages to America have little knowledge of history. Spanish was spoken in much of America long before anyone ever said a word in English.
For another of his immigration quotes and that of another labor leader, see {639891} and {639896}.
Input on the question of immigration, said while a scholar at Princeton
Although a very learned man, Walker was paranoid about Immigration. In this quotation he actually tried to argue that Americans would actually be more reluctant to have children if those children have to grow up and compete with immigrants. It seems funny to us today, but at the time, with few Americans educated, men like Walker had credibility even when they were absurd. No one else, even the most paranoid nativists ever suggested that immigration reduced the fertility rate of the existing American population. The lower fertility rates have always been associated with more affluence and the existence of a social safety net, where for most immigrants, conditions in their countries of origin realistically made their children the only social security and social safety net that they had.
He was referring to North African and other third world immigrants. France’s second largest ethnic group had become Muslims from North Africa. But they were only 10 percent of the population.
