(Page 3 of 37) - Understanding Latinos' Attitudes toward U.S. Immigration authored by Garand, James., Rouse, Stella. and Wilkinson, Betina.

The issue of immigration has dominated the political landscape of Western European countries

for many decades. Countries such as Germany, France, and Great Britain have continually struggled
with anti-immigrant sentiments that have been strong enough to control the platforms of legitimate
political parties (Fetzer 2000). In the last few years, the United States has, in earnest, joined the battle
over residency entitlement, both legal and illegal, sparking a controversial debate about who is worthy
of the American dream. Unlike other countries that may view themselves as “organic” nations, there
is little argument that the United States is a country of immigrants (Segura 2006). From the time of
its founding, American society has been ethnically pluralistic. Recent anti-immigration sentiments,
however, borne out of such concerns as border security in the wake of 9/11 and the influx of
undocumented workers in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, have sounded a familiar chorus
usually heard elsewhere—that the United States has a core makeup that is threatened by the
amalgamation of people migrating from other countries.

Latinos have become the major focus of the immigration debate in the United States. This focus

is understandable considering that Hispanics are now the largest overall minority group in the
country, and that their growth has occurred mainly as a result of immigration from Latin America
(both legal and illegal) over the past three decades (de la Garza 2004; Pew Hispanic Center 2005).

Hispanics make up 14% of the total U.S. population or roughly 33 million people (U.S. Census
Bureau 2000). The tremendous growth of the Latino population has presented new challenges in the
way immigration policy is framed. A wide range of proposed policy reforms have led to protests in
the streets and have turned some congressional races into barometers for public opinion on
immigration and the power of Latino preferences (Shore 2006).

In general, public opinion research tends to concentrate on mass preferences (see Citrin,

Reingold, Walters and Green 1990; Jacoby 1994; Funk 2000), with less attention directed at the
choices of specific ethnic minority groups. The growing presence and influence of the Hispanic
population in the U.S. makes it prudent for scholars to examine the preferences of Latinos more
closely. The saliency of the immigration issue provides a rich opportunity to probe into the differing
preferences of Latinos and the determinants of such choices. Exploring Hispanic sentiment on
immigration is important for at least three reasons. First, as alluded to above, Latinos are both a
significant cause and effect of the current immigration debate. Second, Latinos have increased their
ability to affect public policy (if in no other way than by sheer numbers). Third, exploring Latino
attitudes toward immigration provides an opportunity to build upon general public opinion theories
that have previously helped explain political attitudes of the U.S. population as a whole.

Due to the saliency of the immigration debate and the visceral response it has generated in all

parts of American society, one can easily assume that Latinos and non-Latinos have different
opinions about immigration. Less obvious, however, may be the idea that opinions on immigration
may also differ within the Latino community. Given the heterogeneity of the Hispanic population, as
well as previous work that has cited divergent opinions among Latinos (see for example, Martinez-
Ebers, Fraga, Lopez and Vega 2000; Bolks, Evans, Polinard and Wrinkle 2000; Leal 2002), it is
reasonable to assume that preferences among Latinos on the issue of immigration will also vary.
These differences may be attributed to a number of factors including symbolic politics (e.g., party
identification, opinions on the economy, feelings about the role of big government), demographic
characteristics and self interest (e.g., education, income, urban/rural residency), contextual factors
(e.g., Hispanic population, unemployment rates), and cultural identity factors (national origin, native
or foreign born, use of Spanish language, contact with undocumented workers, and percent Hispanic
in state of residency).

In order to develop a broader understanding of Latino attitudes toward immigration, we use data

from the 2004 Pew Hispanic Center Survey that taps into Latino opinions about a wide range of
issues, including immigration. These survey data are supplemented by contextual data obtained from