美国移民政策动因分析

Motivation of the American immigration policy

在200多年的历史进程中,外来移民对美国政治、经济、文化等方面产生了深远影响,移民政策因而成为美国社会机制的一个重要层面。美国移民政策的制定与不同时期的政治、经济、文化背景相关,政策动因各具特色。基于提供平等人权与促进经济发展两个根本动因,美国确立了鼓励移民的立国思想。此后,美国的移民政策经历了自由开放、限制与选择、限制松动、全面改革几个时期以及21世纪初的局势突变阶段,其动因特点分别为经济动因至高无上、种族主义兴风作浪、政治动因十分突出、政治与经济动因并重、国家安全成为重中之重。这一演变反映了美国移民政策的实质。

A history of more than 200 years' development of the United States has witnessed the profound influences of immigrants on politics, economy, culture etc. Immigration policy has constituted an important part of the American social development mechanism. The formation of the American immigration policy has been depending heavily on the historical situations, with various motives from time to time. Motivated by the doctrine of democracy and equality as well as a badly need in economic development, the United States started with a very positive immigration policy as one of its national development strategies. Later periods saw the new motivations being characterized respectively with utmost economic need, nativism, political interest, pragmatism and national security and interest, representing the nature of American immigration policy.