{"id":1419,"date":"2018-01-10T08:00:17","date_gmt":"2018-01-10T14:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/?p=1419"},"modified":"2018-02-20T15:31:29","modified_gmt":"2018-02-20T21:31:29","slug":"the-immigration-crime-paradox","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/2018\/01\/10\/the-immigration-crime-paradox\/","title":{"rendered":"Best of 2017: The Immigration-Crime Paradox"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo by Minnesota Historical Society, Flickr CC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Originally posted April 10, 2017.<\/em><\/p>\n

From Trump\u2019s <\/span>attempted restriction on immigration<\/span><\/a>\u00a0to his talk of <\/span>building a wall<\/span><\/a> on the country\u2019s southern border, immigration policy has received renewed attention among both politicians and the public. A common reason for restricting immigration flows is association between\u00a0immigration and crimes, which was <\/span>explicitly mentioned<\/span><\/a> by Trump along the campaign trail. \u00a0Social science agrees that immigration and crime are interconnected, but not in the way Trump and others claim.<\/span><\/p>\n

Individual level data show that immigrants are actually less likely to engage in\u00a0violent behavior than non-immigrants, with first generation immigrants being the least likely to commit crime as compared to second or third generation immigrants. Similarly, studies also find that areas with high proportions of immigrant residents are associated with lower levels of neighborhood violence and drug-crime when compared to similar neighborhoods with fewer immigrants. This association is best explained by the increases in social organization — culturally-based buffers like strong familial and neighborhood ties — and the associated economic gains stimulated by the influx of immigrants.<\/h5>\n