Civics Topic #1 PDF

T6 Citizenship Overview Before You Read Main Idea: “Throughout history, immigrants have brought their languages, ideas, beliefs, hopes, and customs to the United States. Their ways of life ae constantly mixing with and influencing the culture of the Americans who came before.” Reading Fo...

T6 Citizenship Overview Before You Read Main Idea: “Throughout history, immigrants have brought their languages, ideas, beliefs, hopes, and customs to the United States. Their ways of life ae constantly mixing with and influencing the culture of the Americans who came before.” Reading Focus Who are “Americans,” and from where did they come? What changes have occurred in US immigration policy since the early 1800s? How does a person become a US citizen? Key Terms immigrants quota aliens native-born naturalization refugees Americans Are from Everywhere With the exception of Native Americans, all of us trace our family roots to another country. Groups from various parts of the world have settled here. From their countries, people have brought their different languages, ideas, beliefs, customs, hopes, and dreams. Americans Are from Everywhere Traditional melting pot-immigrants are people who come from another country and adopted American customs and blended into American society. Many immigrants practice their traditional customs after they move to the United States – SFO/NYC Chinatown, Little Italy, Little Korea Salad Bowl A More Accurate Picture So which is correct? Some people come as adults and their customs are something with which they grew up. Their children and grandchildren, raised in the US, often tend to blend Early Americans Immigrants Immigration Policy From late 1400s, different people began to explore 1400-1500s Spanish-Columbus, Cortez, de Leon, Pizarro 1600-1700s British colonies Chinese 1800s 1800s Europeans 1880s – Congress established laws limiting immigration Immigration Policy 1882 – Chinese Exclusion Act 1920s – laws established a quota, or specific number, of immigrants from certain countries or regions who were allowed to enter the country EACH YEAR Immigration Act of 1990 sets a total annual quota of immigrants at 675,000 started in 1995 Law gives preferences to three groups Husbands, wives, and children of US citizens People with valuable job skills Aliens – Aliens are permanent residents of the US, but are still citizens of another country Becoming a Citizen Native-born – born IN the US, any state or territory If one or both of your parents is a US citizen, you are also a citizen Citizenship by Birth If you are not a citizen by birth, there is still a process to gain US citizenship. The legal procedure is called naturalization. When a parent becomes naturalized, his or her children become naturalized, as well Naturalized citizens can not become president or vice- president Legal Aliens In 2009, about 21.7 million legal aliens in the US Most come to attend school Aliens enjoy many benefits of American citizenship, however: May not vote May not serve on juries May not hold public office Must carry Green Card at all times Illegal Immigrants Some people come to the country illegally, seeking jobs or better education and health care for their children Illegal aliens are called undocumented residents No one knows exactly how many undocumented residents are living in the US Could be as high as 8-12 million Refugees Today’s quotas do not include refugees, people who are trying to escape dangers in their own countries. Refugees come from all over the world. Refugees are usually fleeing from persecution, wars, political conflicts, and other crisis situations in their own countries. The president works with Congress to set yearly quotas for the number of refugees allowed to enter into the US. Taking a Census Can Tell Some of Our Story The Main Idea The US population continues to grow and change today. Reading Focus Why is the census important? In what ways does population grow and change? What has changed about the American population over the years? For what reasons have Americans moved and settled in new areas over the course of US history? Key Terms census demographics birthrate death rate migration Census A census is an official, periodic count of a population. A census is conducted every 10 years in the United States. Between 2000 and 2010, the US population grew about 9%. Why is the census important? The Census Counts People We need to know how many people we have in the United States. Population determines how many representatives each state gets to send to Congress. The census tracks the number of people living in an area. We can make predictions about the population based on census results. The population s expected to increase by 50 million people by 2025. Why is this important? The Census Tracks Characteristics The census also collects demographic information. Demographics is the study of the characteristics of human populations. Ethnic backgrounds Number of children in each family How many pets Why is THESE important? US Census information is posted on the Internet so that everyone may see it. Population Growth In 2000, the US census measured the population at 281,400,000 – up 13.2% from 1990 – largest increase in population ever By 2010, the population had grown to 307,000,000. BY 2050, could be as high as 360,000,000 Natural Increase in Population A population increases naturally when the birthrate is higher than the death rate. Birthrate – annual number of live births per 1000 people Death rate – annual number of deaths per 1000 people Adding Territory From 1600-1700, the US expanded across the continent. The new territory had new and abundant resources. In the 1800s, the US gained more territory from Mexico, including present-day Texas and California, and most of the Southwest. Immigration Since 1820, more than 60 million immigrants from all over the world have come to the US. Those immigrants and their descendants make up the population of the US today. Population Changes Structure of American families, the roles of men, women, and children continue to change. Information gathered in a census helps track these changing demographics. Changing Households American households have changed in many ways: Divorce rates have increased Single-parent homes Couples deciding to have fewer children Some people not marrying at all People live longer Size of US households has shrunk since 1970 Changing Women’s Roles Career choices have changed Majority of women work outside the home More women than men now enter college and graduate After graduation, more women are entering the workforce An Older Population America’s population is living longer In 2010 – 70,000 centenarians (people over 100 years old) Expected to rise to 380,000 by 2030 Why is this important? A More Diverse Population Population is not only older, but more diverse Number of Americans with mixed heritage has grown A Population on the Move The rise of industry in the early 1800s brought thousands of new factory workers to fill jobs in growing cities. Farm workers and their families began a migration, a movement of large numbers of people from one region to another…in this case, the cities 1830 census shows urban areas growing faster than rural areas. The Drive to the Suburbs The invention of the automobile in the early 1900s changed the way people could travel Sales of cars soared in the 1920s What do you predict happened? Migration to the Sunbelt In the 1950s, people began to move from the colder Northeast and Midwest climates to the warmer climates of the South and Southwest – known collectively as the Sunbelt What could have contributed to this? Taking a Census Can Tell Some of Our Story The Main Idea The US population continues to grow and change today. Reading Focus Why is the census important? In what ways does population grow and change? What has changed about the American population over the years? For what reasons have Americans moved and settled in new areas over the course of US history? Key Terms census demographics birthrate death rate migration Census A census is an official, periodic count of a population. A census is conducted every 10 years in the United States. Between 2000 and 2010, the US population grew about 9%. Why is the census important? The Census Counts People We need to know how many people we have in the United States. Population determines how many representatives each state gets to send to Congress. The census tracks the number of people living in an area. We can make predictions about the population based on census results. The population s expected to increase by 50 million people by 2025. Why is this important? The Census Tracks Characteristics The census also collects demographic information. Demographics is the study of the characteristics of human populations. Ethnic backgrounds Number of children in each family How many pets Why is THESE important? US Census information is posted on the Internet so that everyone may see it. Population Growth In 2000, the US census measured the population at 281,400,000 – up 13.2% from 1990 – largest increase in population ever By 2010, the population had grown to 307,000,000. BY 2050, could be as high as 360,000,000 Natural Increase in Population A population increases naturally when the birthrate is higher than the death rate. Birthrate – annual number of live births per 1000 people Death rate – annual number of deaths per 1000 people Adding Territory From 1600-1700, the US expanded across the continent. The new territory had new and abundant resources. In the 1800s, the US gained more territory from Mexico, including present-day Texas and California, and most of the Southwest. Immigration Since 1820, more than 60 million immigrants from all over the world have come to the US. Those immigrants and their descendants make up the population of the US today. Population Changes Structure of American families, the roles of men, women, and children continue to change. Information gathered in a census helps track these changing demographics. Changing Households American households have changed in many ways: Divorce rates have increased Single-parent homes Couples deciding to have fewer children Some people not marrying at all People live longer Size of US households has shrunk since 1970 Changing Women’s Roles Career choices have changed Majority of women work outside the home More women than men now enter college and graduate After graduation, more women are entering the workforce An Older Population America’s population is living longer In 2010 – 70,000 centenarians (people over 100 years old) Expected to rise to 380,000 by 2030 Why is this important? A More Diverse Population Population is not only older, but more diverse Number of Americans with mixed heritage has grown A Population on the Move The rise of industry in the early 1800s brought thousands of new factory workers to fill jobs in growing cities. Farm workers and their families began a migration, a movement of large numbers of people from one region to another…in this case, the cities 1830 census shows urban areas growing faster than rural areas. The Drive to the Suburbs The invention of the automobile in the early 1900s changed the way people could travel Sales of cars soared in the 1920s What do you predict happened? Migration to the Sunbelt In the 1950s, people began to move from the colder Northeast and Midwest climates to the warmer climates of the South and Southwest – known collectively as the Sunbelt What could have contributed to this?