Illegal Chinese Immigrants in the United States

9311114 CHIN This project will examine the social and economic networks that underlie illegal Chinese immigration to the United States. The research will describe the migratory processes (from initiation in China to entering the United States), and the problems faced by illegal immigrants after their arrival. The social and economic networks make the immigration possible and also support the illegal aliens in this country. Some of this support is by otherwise legal groups and families, and some is by illegal groups and enterprises. The research will describe the ways in which illegal immigrants cope with their illegal status, including their economic and criminal activities, and identify those factors in the legal, social and economic environment that facilitate or inhibit their success. The study will analyze these data in the historical context of previous waves of immigration by other ethnic groups over the past 100 years or more. This research will make an important empirical contribution to scientific knowledge about immigration processes as well as to policy analysis focused on current illegal immigration. In order to examine the legal, social and economic aspects of illegal immigration among the Chinese, the investigators will conduct in-depth interviews with 200-300 illegal Chinese immigrants who are now living in New York City and its vicinity. In addition, social workers, business leaders and community leaders in Chinatown will be interviewed. These interviews will make it possible for the investigators to trace the various immigration networks within the Chinese community and document the ways in which these networks also provide the economic and social bases for illegal immigration. The study will also explore comparisons between current (legal and illegal) Chinese immigration and earlier waves of immigration by other ethnic groups through an examination of the historical literature on immigration to the United States. ***