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Emigrating to America
Contemplating California? Fancy florida? Tempted by Texas? Ben lewis looks at what emigrating to America might mean for the modern-day pioneer chasing the emigration dream
America, more than any other country in the world, is a nation built on the dreams of immigrants to make a better life. Australia, New Zealand and Canada can all make similar claims, but as the United States now has close to three times the population of these three rivals combined, there's no disputing who's the big daddy. And when it comes to modern-day migration, the quest for the American Dream obviously still inspires because America regularly gains ten times more permanent residents per annum than any other country in the world.
Mexico is currently the biggest source of new American citizens with 175,000 of the 946,000 legal immigrants who arrived in the US in 2004 simply popping over the border. In comparison, 14,915 Brits followed in the footsteps of the or original European pioneers, with the majority heading for California, Texas and Florida.
Why emigrating to America is popular
So why are these states so popular? Well, the answer is fairly obvious if you think about it. It is all about the sun, the sand and the lifestyle opportunities that they present. Florida and California are the seaboard states with stunning beaches, palm trees and the highest average temperatures, whilst Texas, although not necessarily renowned for its beaches, does have plenty of them as well as a fantastic climate and a plethora of job opportunities. However, they are not the only states to receive a significant influx of Blighty residents. In recent years Illinois, New York and Massachussetts have also attracted their fair share and places like Connecticut, New Jersey, North Carolina and Pennsylvania are also starting to show up on the emigration radar for UK residents.
One of the big draws of America is that its sheer size and natural diversity means that there is a massive variety of options and different lifestyles on offer to any intending migrant. By considering a place like Pennsylvania's Philadelphia as the location of your new life you are opening up an entirely different world of opportunities to those that might be available if you chose a beachside location in California's San Diego. For a streetwise Londoner used to the ways of the big city, adapting to the frantic pace, shops, traffic and cost of New York might be easier than buying a lawn mowing business in Florida's Sarasota and slowing down to a life of long, quiet evenings and leisurely barbecue get-togethers. It is not just the lifestyle that will vary; depending on the location you choose so will the attitudes, religion, politics and ethnicity of the people you live amongst. In 2004 the Presidential elections exposed the political and ideological divide in the country, with much of the eastern and western seaboards voting for John Kerry and his 'liberal' Democrat Party whilst all of the states in the centre of the country opted for Bush and his 'neo-conservative' Republican Party. Directly or indirectly linked to this political divide is the fact that the country accommodates a wide mixture of religious beliefs. So, a move to Atlanta, Georgia, will see you living right in the centre of the country's 'Bible Belt' where there is a good chance that your nextdoor neighbour will be an Evangelical Protestant Christian. Conversely, if you are planning on settling down in California's San Francisco your neighbour is just as likely to be Buddhist as they are an atheist, Christian or even a Jedi Knight.
The racial make-up of the country is also weighted depending on where you live. In Los Angeles 46 per cent of the population are of Latino or Hispanic origin, whereas 54 per cent of the country's African American population live in the country's southern regions and white people of European origin make up 97 per cent of the population in Maine. America's landscape reflects the diversity of its people and is the only country to comprise all six of the major climatic zones. With such majestic beauty as the frigid polar reaches of Alaska, the scorching deserts of the Wild West, the mangrove swamps of the evergreen Everglades and the autumnal forests and fields of New England, the US offers something for everyone.
The fourth biggest country in the world
America is, after all, the fourth-biggest country in the world so it is fairly unsurprising that it offers such variation within its borders. Yet it's not just the diversity and the myriad of opportunities that make America such a migrant magnet. Lured by the power of the American Dream that anyone, from any place, race, religion, culture or background can make it in the land of the free, people from around the world continue to move to the States in search of their own personal piece of the American pie. After all, this is the land of the all-you-can-eat meal so there's still plenty left to go round.
The question is, are you brave enough to demand a portion by emigrating to America?
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