Immigration may be Michigan's future

The United States was founded by immigrants, who created prosperity. Now "immigrant" is a bad word. Well, if you look closely (or just read this report), you'll see that immigrants actually improve areas by diversifying the economy and opening up businesses.

Excerpt:

In the beginning of the last century, when Detroit was the Silicon Valley of its time, more than one-third of its population was foreign-born.

"What the Global Detroit report reveals," says Tobocman, "is that there is nothing more powerful to remaking Detroit as a center of innovation, entrepreneurship and population growth than embracing and increasing immigrant populations and the entrepreneurial culture and global connections that they bring and deliver."

The foreign-born share of Michigan's population rose from 3.8 percent in 1990 to 5.3 percent in 2000, to 6.1 percent in 2007, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2007, Michigan was home to more than 600,000 immigrants. And roughly 47 percent of them are naturalized U.S. citizens who are eligible to vote, notes the Immigration Policy Center in its September 2009 report, "New Immigrants in the Great Lakes State."

Read the entire article here.
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