TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01 - TRADOC - U.S. Army

TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01Demographics and ImmigrationOne effect of globalization andthe proliferation of informationtechnologies is the awareness by theoppressed and poverty stricken thattheir plight is not universal.Globally, this ignites largemigrations from depressed areas ofthe world to those areas perceived tooffer greater economic opportunityand social justice. While the U.Sreputation as the world’s leadingdemocracy may have suffered fromrecent events, it remains a favoreddestination for immigrants, legal andillegal. Though the U.S.acknowledges its character as anation of immigrants, unchecked anduncontrolled illegal immigration has a negative impact on U.S. social, legal, medical, andeducational systems. With an additional 400,000 to 700,000 immigrants illegally entering theU.S. every year, the stress on these systems will continue to grow. 39 Minorities comprise aboutone-third of the U.S. population. With 54 percent of immigrants coming from Mexico, Central,and South America, Hispanics have become the largest single group. 40 Increasingly, immigrantsare forming ghettos where assimilation into the larger U.S. society is unnecessary, and, for some,undesirable.The Hispanic immigrant population, once centered in the border states of the Southwest U.S.,has begun to migrate across the country for the same reason that motivates global migration:economic opportunity. The U.S. Hispanic population will disperse more than is currently thecase, even as several states in the Southwest region of the U.S. might possibly have a Hispanicmajority by the 2015-2024 timeframe. 41The U.S. has also seen a flow of people from rural areas into the urban environment. Thereasons for this shift are many and diverse, but can ultimately be attributed to the same bottomline—the perception that urban centers offer greater opportunity for economic well-being and amore favorable social climate.People born between 1980 and 2000 will have the greatest influence on the nature of theArmy in 2015-2024, either as experienced Soldiers or new recruits. These learners belong to ageneration known by several names including the Millennials. 42 Although each millennial is anindividual with unique characteristics, when viewed collectively certain broad conclusions can bedrawn about them as a generation. Ethnically and culturally, they are a diverse generation.According to the Washington Post, “Forty-five percent of the nation's children under age 5 areracial or ethnic minorities. The percentage is increasing mainly because the Hispanic populationis growing so rapidly. The country as a whole is 33 percent minority.” 43 Due to these and other40