Notes from The Cultural LandscapeChapter 3

Reasons for Migrating

1. Economic push and pull factors
a. The U.S. and Canada have been and are seen as promised lands.
b. More recent economic destinations include Ireland and Scotland. Why?
2. Cultural push and pull factors
a. Examples of forced migration, historically and more recently include
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.

Definition of refugees
There were 35 million refugees in 2001 alone, according to U.S. Committee for Refugees.
International refugees examples: See map, p. 87
Internal refugees example: See map, p. 87
Effect of Communism in the 20th Century

Why was the Berlin Wall built?

Since the fall of Communism, Eastern Europeans visit Western Europe but dont necessarily emigrate.

3.

Environmental push and pull factors

a. Factors include weather, scenery, better infrastructure, health reasons, too much water, too little water, weather and
economics combined
b. Examples of above, p 87

Dust Bowl, 1930s

Add to the list: Katrina evacuees, 2005

4.

Intervening obstacles
a. Historically these were primarily environmental.
Discussion: One reason the Panama Canal was builtto cut down distance _________.
b.

Intervening obstacles can include political [ex.: Berlin Wall, quota systems], economic [
or cultural [
] stumbling blocks.

Types of Migration
1. Ravenstein and distance theory
a. Regarding migrants: Most migrate a ________ distance and stay within the ______________.
b. Regarding emigrants: Long-distance emigrants seek centers of ________________ activity.
2. Internal migration
in MDCs
in LDCs
a. Interregional migration
city to _____
rural to _________ looking for _____
b. Intraregional migration
urban to _________
3. Migration transition according to Zelinsky as paired with the Demographic Transition Model
a. International migration happened/happens more in Stage 2 of the DTM. [See p. 61 to review the DTM.]; why?
b. Internal migration happens more in countries in Stages 3 and 4; mobility is easier.
4.

5.

International migration and gender status/ family status (also according to Ravenstein)
a. Why was the status mostly male during the 1800s to 1990s?
b.

Chain migration is still a major force for the majority of todays immigrants, but they are less likely to be elderly and
families more likely to include children.

c.

Again the DTM: With Mexico being in Stage 2 of the DTM, of immigrants are from rural areas.

d.

Why are fewer Mexicans emigrating from Mexicos Border States?

Illegal immigration
a. Who are they?
b. Why do they come here and why do they stay?

Global Migration Patterns: See map on p. 90; why is the pattern from LDCs to MDCs?
1. 30 million Americans were born elsewhere (1/10th of our population)
2. 1/2 of these emigrants were from Latin America, from Europe, from Asia.
3. Europe mostly has fewer immigrants, except for France.
4. of the Middle East pop. is immigrant. Why?
U.S. Immigration Patterns and History: Create a time-line using pages 91-95.
Colonial era

Early 19th Century

20th Century (to 1920s)

Civil War
20th Century, 1950s to 1970s

Latter half of the 19th Century

After 1980

Notes regarding when Europe was in Stage 2 of the DTM: (High population growth and lack of opportunities.)
a. Primogeniture and entail limited land ownership, so
b. What was the purpose of the Enclosure movement?
Enclosure movement forced farmers to migrate to crowded cities, but there often werent enough jobs.
c. How did this migration affect emigration to the U.S.?
Then, when Western Europe fully entered Stage 3 of the DTM (late 1800s with plenty of jobs) the U.S. no longer was a safety valve; so
fewer Western Europeans moved here.
Of course, now Europe is in Stage 4, so even fewer Europeans move here.
Undocumented Immigration
1. 7 to 20 million; depends on whom you ask.
2. What is the BCIS?
3. How do undocumented immigrants get here?
4. Read in text about the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, p. 97.
5. Note intervening obstacle pictured on p. 98.
6. Role of chain migration for undocumented immigrants
7. Economic role taken on by undocumented immigrants

What did it do?

Obstacles
1. Quota Act in 1921 and the National Origins Act in 1924 set what quota?
2. And favored which countries?
3. Immigration Act of 1986 substituted what other kind of quota?
4. What is the current law: ______________ per country out of a global quota of _____________________.
5. Exceptions would be for whom? ______________________.
Brain drain benefits the U.S., and contrary to popular perception: Most immigrants today are LEGAL and likely followed family here (chain
migration).
Other workers:
1. guest workers
2. seasonal workers
3. time-contract workers (ex.: Chinese railroad workers)
Refugees from these countries have come to the U.S. in sizeable numbers;
1. Cubans after Castro overthrew Batista in 1959.
a. Mariel Boatlift 1980: Castro let out 125,000 including many____________________________________.
b. 1987: U.S. set quota of 20,000 per year
2. Haitians
a. Papa Doc and Baby Doc were dictators, 1957 to 1986.
b. 1991, military coup de etat; many Haitians sought asylum, but most came for economic pull.
3. Vietnam
a. Since 1975 and the fall of Saigon [now Ho Chi Minh City], 800,000 Vietnamese have emigrated to the U.S.
b. Why did Boat People not get picked up immediately?
Attitudes
1. Why has there been nativist and ethnocentric attitudes regarding immigrants?
2.

Why are guest workers often looked down upon, here, in Europe, and in the Middle East?

Migration within the U.S.

1. Where is the population center of the U.S.? [Fig. 3-12]
2. When did African Americans migrate north?
3. Why has the population center drifted in recent years to the south?
Migration in other countries
1. Describe the interregional migration patterns in Russia?
2.

Why did government encouragement of interregional migration fail?

3.

What happened after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991?

4.

How did Brazil encourage interregional migration? They built _________________, in the interior.

5.

Fact from World Geography book: How does the European Union encourage migration?

Intraregional migration
1. Most common kind before 1920s was rural to urban in the U.S., but it still is in most Stage 2 and 3 countries.
2. This is a major problem in countries like Brazil. What is a favela?
3. Migration to suburbs: Why do people move to the suburbs?
When did this movement start in the U.S.?
4.

What causes counterurbanization?