Study finds immigration to the American South is far outpacing migrant movement into other U.S. regions

07/08/2024 / By Laura Harris

A recent study by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) reveals that both legal and illegal mass immigration in the American South has grown more than twice as fast compared with rising migration rates in the rest of the United States.

The study, conducted by CIS Director of Research Steven Camarota, utilized data from the 1990 and 2000 censuses, the American Community Survey (ACS) from 2010 and 2022 and the 2024 Current Population Survey (CPS). The ACS is often used due to its large sample size, while the 2024 CPS provides the most up-to-date information to capture the recent surge in immigration more accurately.

Based on the accumulated data, Camarota noted that as of 2024, the total foreign-born population in the South reached 19 million, a figure that eclipses the entire foreign-born population of the United States in 1990, which was 19.7 million. This remarkable increase of 317 percent since 1990 far exceeds the growth seen in other regions: 172 percent in the Midwest, 104 percent in the West, and 97 percent in the Northeast.

The transformation is starkly visible in states like North Carolina and Georgia, where the foreign-born population has increased by 966 percent and 754 percent, respectively, since 1990. Other Southern states have also seen significant increases: Virginia (329 percent), Texas (317 percent), Maryland (262 percent) and Florida (211 percent).

By 2024, the South accounted for 37.3 percent of the total foreign-born population in the United States, up from 23.2 percent in 1990 and 31.9 percent as recently as 2010. The share of foreign-born residents in the South has nearly tripled from 5.4 percent in 1990 to almost 15 percent today, a growth rate unprecedented in the region’s history.

This demographic shift is particularly striking considering that historically, the South was largely overlooked during previous waves of mass immigration in the 18th and early 20th centuries.

The rapid influx of immigrants has led to significant demographic changes in several Southern states.

More and more Southern states have growing immigrant populations

In 1990, only Texas and Florida had more than 500,000 foreign-born residents. But today, six states – Texas, Florida, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia – each have foreign-born populations exceeding one million. Additionally, one out of 10 residents in seven Southern states and the District of Columbia are now foreign-born, compared to just one state (Florida) in 1990.

However, this trend has not affected all Southern states equally. Alabama, Mississippi and West Virginia have seen minimal changes, with their foreign-born populations remaining below five percent of the total population in 2024.

According to Camarota, this rapid surge in foreign-born population is a product of the current “immigration policies” in the American South.

The administration of President Joe Biden admits over a million foreign nationals annually on green cards, with about 70 percent entering through “chain migration,” allowing newly naturalized citizens to sponsor numerous foreign relatives for green cards. Additionally, another million foreign nationals receive temporary work visas each year. This is compounded by the arrival of potentially millions of illegal aliens every few years, aiming to settle permanently without deportation.

But then, the study also concluded that these demographic and political transformations in the region could influence its political landscape. (Related: COMMUNIST ELECTION STRATEGY: Illegal immigration is a major tool to allow the communist Democrats in Washington DC to remain in power.)

Visit OpenBorder.news for more stories about the migrant crisis.

Watch this report that says 70 percent of registered American voters favor mass deportation of illegal immigrants.

This report is from the Right Edition channel on Brighteon.com.