The National Stage

In the past decade, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives have been gridlocked on immigration. When the Senate is on board, the House isn’t — and vise-versa.

In 2013, a super-star team of Senate Democrats and Republicans drafted the promising Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013. The team included Charles Schumer (D-NY), John McCain (R-AZ), and current presidential hopeful Marco Rubio (R-FL). Despite the bill’s success in the Senate, Speaker of the House John Boehner refused to allow the bill to come to a House floor vote.

America can’t agree on immigration, but what about Urban America? City leaders and researchers are on the same page: Immigration is good for the economy.

‘It’s the Economy, Stupid.’

As Adam Davidson wrote for the New York Times, the economic benefits of immigration is the ­most ­settled fact in economics.

Immigrants are more than twice as likely to start a business as native born Americans. When immigrants and their children do start companies, they are incredibly successful —accounting for 40% of the Fortune 500 list and over 10 million jobs created. And those are just corporate jobs — immigrants start local businesses too. Researcher David Kallick found that immigrant business owners account for 28 percent of all the Main Street businesses in America, employing an additional 4.7 million workers.

According to Global Detroit, immigrants make up half of all new engineering Ph.Ds in the U.S. and a quarter of all practicing doctors in the states. Immigrants dominate the STEM fields.

It’s the New American Economy.

America is suffering from ‘reverse brain drain’ by admitting students from around the globe to study in the United States, but making it nearly impossible for those students to stay and begin their careers here.

The most talented and ambitious migrants are often lost in the lottery system. Companies like Amazon and Facebook are opening offices in Canada in order to continue to employ the best and brightest. Chile is welcoming new start-ups with $40,000 and a one-year visa.

Even when national policies aren’t welcoming, cities like Nashville, Detroit, Los Angeles, and NYC refuse to miss out.

How to Integrate a New Population

Today, cities are competing to attract immigrants. Everyone wants an economic boost and Rust Belt cities like Detroit are seeking population growth. The problem is that until recently, cities lacked a model for welcoming immigrant communities.

Our modern model comes from Nashville, Tennessee. It all started in 2009 when a city-council member proposed that all government business be done in English. People started asking questions about how the city would serve all of its inhabitants fairly and voters rejected the proposal. Welcoming Tennessee began as a campaign that celebrated immigrants’ contributions to Tennessee (yes, the South), making it a national beacon of tolerance and integration.

As a result, Welcoming Communities started popping up nationwide and are now an organized network of city governments. From Beaverton, Oregon to New York City, cities are vowing to support integration, help new American community leaders coordinate with established residents, and spread messages of unity.

A recent White House Task Force on integration of immigrants and refugees recommends starting ‘welcoming communities’ programs, strengthening existing pathways to citizenship, identifying undocumented migrants who qualify for naturalization, teaching small business skills in cities with a high proportion of migrants, and encouraging English language acquisition.

The key to success is assisting with English language acquisition and promoting community tolerance. The rest will fall into place.

Bringing it Home

Making your city a good home for immigrants might mean wrestling with discomfort and empathizing with intolerance, as organizers did tactfully in Shelbyville. Great cities will understand the fears of established residents and the anxieties of New Americans. However, we must invite both of them to the same table.

If you’re just starting out, there are now dozens of great new models to integrate your city. If you’re well-established, there are resources (most linked within this article) to help you grow.

Opening the doors to New Americans will make a good city into a great one.

Looking to learn more about the composition of your city? Speak with someone today to learn more about the people you want to engage.

About the Author: Michelle Stockwell is a proud Kansan, honorary Arkansan, and a dual-citizen. She has grown up with a small glimpse into her mother’s immigrant experience. Very special thanks to Riddhiman Das — mySidewalk’s data team leader and immigration policy expert.