Who are todays immigrants?
Immigrants come to the U.S. from a variety of circumstances and contexts. Some come for economic reasons while others are fleeing political, religious or ethnic persecution. Nearly 80 percent come from Latin America, Asia and the Afro-Caribbean basin (Rumbaut, 1997). • Latino immigrants from Central and South America, make up the largest group, while those from Asia, especially the countries of Southeast Asia, constitute the second-largest group. • Caribbean immigrants make up the third-largest group of the foreign-born population coming to the U.S. (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1997). What Challenges Are Facing Immigrant Youth? Naturally, youth from different regions of origin face different types of challenges, and there is often as much variation within each group as between them. Nonetheless, many immigrant groups share the stress associated with migration to a new country. They also share often-intense discrimination and related challenges to achieving high levels of education and e
