Gary Endelman practices immigration law at BP Amoco Corporation. The opinions expressed in this column are purely personal and do not represent the views or beliefs of BP Amoco Corporation in any way. Of all the reasons why nativists decry the influx of immigrants to these shores, perhaps none is more specious than the charge that such migration adds to the already heavy woes of America s major cities where most of us live.
Facts are stubborn things and they show just the opposite.
As more native-born Americans flee urban life for the benefits, real and illusory, of suburbia and the Sun Belt, newcomers are flocking in, reviving old inner city neighborhoods, creating jobs, starting businesses, and serving as perhaps the most effective strategy for urban renewal that the US government has. While it cannot be said that immigration is the sole, or even primary, reason for America s urban renaissance, it can no longer be associated with urban decline. Those cities that have welcomed large numbers of immigrants in the past two decades are the same ones who have prospered the most and improved the quality of life for all their citizens. America s No.1 city has the most immigrants. Without immigration, New York would have shrunk in size.