Immigration Law and Policy: Before and After

M igration has always been a significant part of human life. For millennia, humans have traveled from place to place, slowly populating the entire world. The tendency to migrate in search for a better life existed then, and it still exists today. Human migration in ancient times was mostly due to starvation, lack of cultivation, or war. On the other hand, human migra-tion in modern times serves the purpose of uniting families, escaping persecution, or more importantly, finding better employ-ment opportunities. Migration has affected many countries throughout the world in both positive and negative ways. The problems it has created in the modern world can be traced to the cheap labor demand in growing economies. The movement of cheap labor from undeveloped countries quickly became a liability as a recession began during the early 1970s. The reces-sion of 1973 ultimately led to political, economic, social, and cultural issues in many regions around the globe; however, most notably in the United States (US). Many countries have benefited from immigration in the past; however, modern immigration is not always perceived as a possibility of economic growth for the receiving country. In fact, at times the rate of immigration grew so rapidly that it threatened the US with many issues. The rapid growth of immigration has occurred more noticeably in the US with the entrance of several thousand immigrants each year, specifically the growth of undocumented immigrants. Undocumented immigrants, also known as illegal aliens, have brought much attention to the US government, who have bee