Immigration : le laboratoire américain

Immigration: the American Laboratory
The two articles which we are publishing here report on the debate already under way in the United States on immigration, its melting pot experience and its ability to integrate socially minorities and foreigners.
First, Nicole Morgan outlines the point of view of David N. Kennedy and George J. Borjas as they stated it in two recent articles published in the magazine The Atlantic Monthly. These articles emphasize the influence of socio economic factors (the advantages and costs of immigration) as against the cultural issue and each in their own way raises the issue of the ability of American society and the economy to achieve integration given the quality of the immigrants.
Rémy Oudghiri reports on the book by Dale Maharidge The Coming White Minority which shows the fear of whites in the process of becoming a minority in California and underlines the risk of seeing society disrupted by stronger segregation. R. Oudghiri also shows how much the economic dynamism of California favours the process of integration.
These two papers put into perspective the importance of the ethnic and cultural differences always brought up in numerous debates. They underline on the other hand the role of social and economic factors which are often underestimated in Europe.