THE QUESTION

Rich countries need a steady supply of new immigrants to keep up their growth rates and welfare systems. But everywhere immigration is causing a backlash. What to do? Amnesty? Higher fences?

Posted by David Ignatius & Fareed Zakaria on May 24, 2007 9:02 AM

FROM THE PANEL

Leon Krauze is a Mexican blogger and a founder of letraslibres.com.

Invest in Mexico, Give Migrants Choice

There is no pleasure in migration. Migrants -- or at least Mexican migrants -- leave their countries of origin because they have no real choice. Naturally, this is primarily that country’s fault. I agree with Daoud that the answer is development: the U.S. should invest, but the Mexican government should be held accountable.

Leon Krauze Mexico | 72 COMMENTS
May 25, 2007 at 2:43 PM
Thomas Kleine-Brockhoff is a Senior Director at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, a transatlantic public policy and grant-making foundation. He overseas the fund's policy programs. He was previously the Washington bureau chief of the German newsweekly, Die Zeit.

Accepting Difference in Our Workforce

Globalization and immigration are twins. Germany exported more goods than anybody else last year, with globalization at the heart of its economic recovery. As Germany begins to import labor again, it will show that it has learned. In the 1960s the country invited many Eastern Europeans and Turks in as "guest workers" -- but over time realized it had received human beings.

Thomas Kleine-Brockhoff Germany | 275 COMMENTS
May 24, 2007 at 9:00 AM
Daoud Kuttab is a Palestinian journalist. He was born in Jerusalem in 1955. Presently he is a visiting professor at Princeton University in the United States. Mr. Kuttab is the former director of the Institute of Modern Media at Al Quds University in Ramallah, Palestine and the founder of AmmanNet, the Arab world's first internet radio station. His personal web page is www.daoudkuttab.com

Fund Jobs in Migrants' Homelands

The discussion on immigration (including this question) focuses too much on issues like amnesty and high walls. We need to change the debate to include the need for rich countries to invest in poorer countries, so that people will find jobs at home and not have to risk life and limb to reach the first world.

Daoud Kuttab Jerusalem/Amman, Jordan | 25 COMMENTS
May 24, 2007 at 8:54 AM
Miklós Vámos is a Hungarian novelist, screenwriter and talk show host. He is one of the most read and respected writers in his native Hungary. He has taught at Yale University on a Fulbright fellowship, served as The Nation’s East European correspondent, worked as consultant on the Oscar-winning film Mephisto, and presented Hungary’s most-watched cultural television show. Vámos has received numerous awards for his plays, screenplays, novels and short stories, including the Hungarian Merit Award for lifetime achievement. The Book of Fathers is considered his most accomplished novel and has sold 200,000 copies in Hungary.

Ignore Politicians' Fear Tactics

In my experience, the only people who talk about the backlash of immigration are the politicians who like any issue that can be construed as a threat. Immigrants have made countries richer, they have become some of America's greatest scientists, as well as providing everyday services. Lower the fences.

Miklos Vamos Budapest, Hungary | 22 COMMENTS
May 24, 2007 at 8:52 AM

READER RESPONSE

» Chris S. | MikeB, I'm sorry that foreigners are taking your jobs. After all, being born in Houston, TX automatically entitles you to a cushy job, whereas being ...
» MikeB | The very way ths question is posed demonstrates the prejudice of the moderators. Since the inception of the H1B visa program more than 4 million Ameri...
» berry, ecuador | Why is this question worded on rich-countries terms? What about: "People from poor countries keep leaving their homelands by the millions, looking fo...
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