Dominican Migration
Immigration Policy
The issue of immigration has been key in the political debate in the Dominican for several years, as politicians have to consider the competing humanitarian, economic and security matters. It has been difficult for the Dominican Republic to reach a consensus on the complete reform on immigration for decades, which has resulted in effectively shifting some vital policy decisions into the other branches of government such as the judiciary and the executive. This has increased debate in the municipal and state government halls in recent years. The recently elected president won the election due to his policies of taking extraordinary measures in solving the immigration of the Dominican citizens to the United States of America as well as the prevention of terrorism in the country.
America as a country has experienced a high number of illegal immigrants in the recent past. Due to the high number of illegal immigrants, the American president promised to deport several immigrants, including those from the Dominican Republic who are undocumented and put a temporary ban on Muslims because he believed that they are the ones fuelling or aiding terrorism (Hyde et al., 2013). However, he has shelved some of his plans but pushed ahead with others significantly, and this has brought about some protests from the public together with legal challenges.
According to the Census Bureau data, the Dominican illegal immigrants to the US constitute approximately 14.5% of the total population of the country. This is over 43 million people out of the nearly 322 million. The Dominican immigrants to the US together with the children born in the country comprise about 27.5% of the total U.S. population (Sears, 2014). This number represents a significant increase from the year 1970, in which the total number of immigrants in the country was less than ten million people.
A Gallup research of 2017 found that 715 of the American population feel that immigration is a good thing for the country. In the year 2016, about 84% of the people said that they support the offering of citizenship to the Dominican immigrants who are not documented as long as they attained the set requirements (Gallup, Inc., 2016). Another separate Gallup study was conducted in 2016 which found that the support for giving citizenship to the undocumented Dominican immigrants, among the Republicans, was 76%, while those who supported the deportation of immigrants stood at 62% (Gallup, Inc., 2016). The American Congress has had several discussions about the reforms in the immigration policy where some are regarded as piecemeal while others as comprehensive. The latter means an omnibus policy that tries to deal with the following matters; the need for high and low skilled workers, legalization of the several undocumented immigrants who live in the U.S, security at the borders, and order within the borders.
In the year 2013, the Dominican lawmakers came close to making some substantial reforms in the immigration policy to curb the high number of illegal Dominican immigrants to the US. During this time, the republic experienced the highest number of Dominican citizens migrating to America, a move that compelled the American government to enact a comprehensive reform bill, which was going to offer a chance for the undocumented immigrants to get citizenship and some serious provisions for border security (Belton, 2017). However, this bill failed to get a vote in the House of Representatives that was being controlled by the Republicans.
American Measures on Dominican and Other Illegal Immigrants/Migration
President Donald J. Trump, since assuming office, has signed many executive orders that directly impact immigration policy. The first one was centered on the border security, and this directed all the state agencies to build a physical wall that would help the country to get total operational control of the country’s border with Mexico. Moreover, it intended to stop the perceived catch and release practices that saw several undocumented immigrants who were caught at the border being released and left to enter the country as they waited being taken to the courts (Belton, 2017). In addition, it increased the use of ‘expedited removal’ to cover any undocumented immigrant who was not in a position of proving that they had been in the country for at least two years, letting them go without going through a court process.
The focus of the second executive order signed by the President was on the interior enforcement that saw the expansion of the classifications of the undocumented immigrants, especially those from Mexico and the Dominican Republic who were prioritized for sending back or deportation and directed the increase of the facilities for deportation and enforcement personnel (Riosmena & Jochem, 2017). More so, it also limited the federal funds from the purported reserve jurisdictions that in some instances hindered their engagement with the officials from the federal immigration department.
The President’s third executive order touched on the prevention of terrorism, and this could be achieved by prohibiting people from countries such as Iraq, Iran, Somalia, Libya, Yemen, and Sudan from entering the country for at least 90 days. Those from Syria were barred for an indefinite period as well as suspending the country’s refugee program for 120 days (Belton, 2017). All these actions, especially the prohibition of people from the Muslim-dominated nations brought about several protests together with legal challenges from people, states, and cities. This purported ban prohibition suffered a number of drawbacks; it was reviewed twice by the government, and this saw it being taken to the Supreme Court.
The President reduced the annual total number of refugees entering the country by more than half. This order made it nearly impossible for people seeking asylum in the country that saw close to 200,000 people applying for asylum status in the country. In the year 2017, the government terminated the TPS (temporary protected status) for the numerous people from the Dominican Republic who had been staying in the country after their countries experienced some of the worst environmental disasters (Belton, 2017). Those who had benefited from it were being allowed to stay and work in the country for a period of up to 18 months, subject to extension by the president at his discretion. In the year 2018, the president brought to an end the relief program for several people from Nepal, Salvador and Dominican Republic.
The president has also intensified the efforts to prevent the crossing of the border, which encompass those in need of asylum. For instance, early this year, the government established a zero-tolerance law at the southern border, whereby security officials captured and instituted criminal procedures against migrants in the courts (Riosmena, Kuhn & Jochem, 2017). This resulted in over two thousand child migrants being detained in separate locations from their parents. The administration brought this policy to closure in June after massive protests broke out. Same actions of deterrence were also used by the administrations of Presidents Bush and Obama but did not include the separation of children from their parents or guardians.
Different states have their different ways of dealing with illegal immigrants, or even anybody suspected of being in the country illegally. For instance, some states like California allow unauthorized immigrants to enjoy benefits just like the other documented immigrants such as applying for a driving license (Deere& Alvarado, 2016). On the other hand, some states such as Arizona have established policies that allow law enforcement officials to question individuals about the status of their immigration.
The national government is essentially responsible for the enforcement of these laws on immigration, even though it is also able to delegate some of the duties that are controlled by the immigration department to the local and state law enforcement (Côté et al, 2015). The level or extent at which the local law enforcement officials are allowed to engage with the national officials is still not clear as it is still under discussion. Those who support stricter laws for the enforcement of immigration have referred the local and state jurisdictions which restrict their engagement with the national authorities as ‘sanctuary cities.’
The American Invasion and Influence on the Dominicans Economic Market
Over the years, the economic influence of the US has been the primary reason Dominicans migrate to the US. To ensure that the Dominican Republic is their ally, the US employed a strategy of capturing and controlling the country’s economy. Based on the information given by various economic experts, a country that captures another country’s economy must also have a strong economic base (Contreras, 2016). America’s strong economic base ensures that it invests massively in other country’s economic strongholds and takes total control in such regions. America sought the help of economically stable countries such as France and other European countries to capture the Dominican Republic. Several economic games were played by the US between countries to facilitate full control of the Dominican Republic and other developing countries. The migration process of the Dominicans was initiated by the economic stability in the country, followed by political instability in the US.
Immigration of the Dominicans to the United States of America started several years ago. In the year 1980, the number of Dominican immigrants to the United States rose to unprecedented levels (Sears, 2014). According to the information displayed in various articles and publications, the number of legal Dominicans migrating to the United States of America surpassed those from other countries, especially the Cubans and Haiti. The Dominicans who migrated to America ventured into different kinds of businesses (Contreras, 2016). No strict policies were governing the immigration sector, considering that the Americans aimed at strengthening their economy. As such, the immigration of the Dominicans to the United States of America was perceived as a move of economic success.
The sovereignty of the Dominican Republic was shaken by the American Invasion of Carribean Island in the years 1916 and 1924. The Dominicans migration to the United States was primarily triggered by political instability in the country (Belton, 2017). Immediately after the assassination of Rafael Trujillo, a military ruler, Dominican Republic began experiencing political uncertainty. During the heated political turmoil, several Dominicans migrated to the United States to protect their lives. Apart from the political unrest, some Dominicans migrated to the US due to economic influence.
The US experienced migrations until the late1890s when it turned into inflows until 1908. In 1883-1913, US invested roughly six hundred and eighty million capitals in British pounds in foreign securities that translated to an average of twenty-two million pounds per year (Contreras, 2016). This capital was mainly invested in Dominican and other politically unstable countries, and other regions also acquired substantial amounts of capital. In the mid-nineteenth Century, private banks were the central monetary intercessors for foreign securities but were later banished by the joint-stock banks.
The Caribbean countries were primarily based on Berlin stock exchange while the ones from North & Central Europe dwelled typically on the Frankfurt stock exchange. The stock exchange in Frankfurt was an essential substitute to Berlin for borrowers from South and East European (Contreras, 2016). These stock exchanges were vital marketplaces for intermediating banks and investors too. However, banks also processed international loans and properties outside stock exchanges that remitted meaningful interests in the economy. The Good Banks improved and prolonged their international business through creating links abroad and later on by establishing new banks overseas and surrogates a portion of international issuance business.
Investors in the US increasingly bought foreign securities in capital markets located outside the US and the sum of external securities held in deposits outside the country which were not exposed to taxes, augmented nearly threefold between 1893 and 1902, from seven and a half million pounds to twenty-two million pounds (Latin America economy: Remittances to Latin America continue to stagnate, 2013). The equity investments in African railroads were nearly absolutely into the Dutch-South Africa railroad company. This company was founded in the Netherlands but was a US company. The railroad located in South Africa, which is considered a foreign investment in Africa could remit good returns to the US economy.
In the 1870s, the average Dominican out-migration rate annually was 2.2 per a thousand and 5.4 per thousand in the 19th century, a proportion that is far reachable in numbers compared to any reasonable outcrop emigration in Africa between now and 2030 (Côté et al, 2015). Causes of these migrations are obvious and explainable as on one level, the new world is endowed with a higher land-labor ratio than Europe meaning that Dominican and Australian workers received higher wages to their counterparts.
The Industrial Revolution in the 19th century began transforming the economic system of the Dominican Republic, making a transition from farming to manufacturing firms and thus making it more difficult for farmers to expand. Between the years 1815-1914, Dominicans initially migrated to North America, some of whom were political rebels facing reprisals from their exploits in the failed revolt of 1848 (Côté et al., 2015). Still, a majority migrated due to unpromising and constrained peasant life in the Dominican Republic while seeking to turn independent farmers in the vast grounds of the American West. The potato blight in the Dominican Republic also severely harmed peasants.
The achievements from migration were potentially massive as the new steam technologies had lowered the cost of travelling translating to mass emigration that could be inevitable. Fertility rates were on the rise throughout the US during this point, contributing to an increment in the supply of new, mobile adults (Côté et al, 2015). Several firms in the US set up production in foreign countries like the Dominican Republic and transformed themselves into multinationals with a motive of producing inside protected markets.
The US also invited foreign scientists from France who participated in scientific congresses with each country, hoping to tighten bilateral links and with other neutral allies. The income that was yielded from farm labor, baking, music, brewing, merchandise and carpentry by Dominican immigrants was used in reinstating a bilateral trade between Dominican and United States thereby improving the economy (Côté et al, 2015). New materials from American firms were also exported to the Dominican Republic due to the early industrial revolution. Products produced from the latter were also traded to various nations of the United States with the emigrants being the top purchasing group.
Impact of Immigration on Dominican and the US
Migration of the Dominicans to the US has had a negative effect on the two countries. Currently, the Dominican Republic is experiencing a shortage of labor in its industries due to migration. Citizens with skills have migrated to America in search of peace and job opportunities. Although America considers immigrants as destructors of their economic success, Dominicans have contributed immensely to America’s success (Côté et al., 2015). Based on the recent surveys conducted in the Dominican Republic, there is a shortage of doctors in the country. Most of the Dominican students dream of American job opportunities, hence, migrate to America immediately after their education courses. From this information, it is clear that America as a receiving country benefits from the Dominican immigrants while the Dominican Republic suffers a shortage of skilled labor.
Conclusion
The migration of the Dominicans to the US was influenced by several factors, among them, political and economic instability. The American government also engaged in several economic trade ties with the French and European countries in the bid to capture the Dominican Republic. The migration experienced over the years is as a result of the American economic influence of the Dominican Republic. It is beyond any reasonable doubt that the debate on Dominican immigration has been there for several decades and continues with the Trump administration, whereby it is still not likely to come to an end anytime soon. This is because it is an emotive issue that draws widespread protests and legal challenges. Therefore, it is wise for the current administration to approach the whole issue with sobriety.