> As far as flows of human beings across national borders are concerned,
> the world today is radically less fluid than a century ago.
>
> ***** From 1860 to 1920, more than 13 percent of the population was
> foreign-born. In 1990, roughly 8.5 percent of the population--about 1
> person in 12 in the United States--was born abroad, considerably smaller
> proportionally than during much of U.S. history.
Ten dollars says that's been on the increase since 1990. Are there any current estimates?
Wait, here it is:
About 10 percent of Americans are foreign born — less than the highest share during the last century (15 percent in 1910), but more than the lowest share (5 percent in 1970).
(...)
The foreign-born population in the United States grew from 10 million in 1970, the lowest total in the 20th century, to 14 million in 1980, and 20 million in 1990. By March 2000, the estimated foreign-born population in the United States was 28 million, according to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
(...)
Since 1970, the composition of the foreign-born population has changed dramatically. Between 1970 and 2000, the share of foreign-born U.S. residents from Europe dropped from 62 percent to 15 percent. Over the same period, the share of the foreign-born from Asia grew from 9 percent to 25 percent, and the share from Latin America increased from 19 percent to 51 percent. In 2000, two-thirds of foreign-born Latin Americans were from Central America (including Mexico).
http://www.census.gov/population/pop-profile/2000/chap17.pdf
--
/ dave /