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Asian American Support for Immigration Reform Is Critical
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Asian American Support for Immigration Reform Is Critical

Asian Americans are currently our fastest-growing immigrant population, and they are a growing political force.

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Asian Americans are the fastest-growing immigrant population in the United States today. According to 2011 Census data, almost half of all immigrants in the United States—18.2 million—came from Asia. This group overwhelmingly supported President Barack Obama for re-election—by 68 percent—and cares deeply about fixing the immigration system.

This support for immigration reform is critical as the Senate moves to take up an immigration reform bill, S. 744, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013. Currently, family sponsorship is the most common way that Asian immigrants arrive in the United States, with 55 percent of Asian immigrants coming through the family-visa system in 2012. However, while S. 744 creates new legal pathways for immigrants to enter the country, it also threatens family reunification by removing entirely the allocation for siblings of U.S. citizens.

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