On Feb. 16, cities around the country saw varying levels of participation in what one observer called a dry run for a "day without immigrants" planned for later in the year.
Spread via word-of-mouth, flyers and social media, the initiative asked foreign-born workers (regardless of legal status) to stay home from work and avoid shopping to show the impact immigrants have on the nation's economy.
The organization Cosecha (the Spanish word for harvest), is planning its day without immigrants on May 1. The Cleveland metro area did not see a major impact on Feb. 16, but with local Cosecha organizers already preparing, May 1 could look very different.
Cleveland newcomers: Then
Immigrants have been choosing to call Cleveland home since the 1700s, with waves of new arrivals coming primarily from Europe and Russia through early in the 20th Century, according to the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History.
African-Americans from the south arrived in what some historians call "the Great Migration," after World War I. While not foreign-born, the influx of these new arrivals swelled the city's black population.
The 1940s through 1960s saw immigrants from Puerto Rico, Mexico, China, Korea, India and Vietnam.
Cleveland newcomers: Now
According to data from the US Census bureau, today's foreign-born Clevelanders hail primarily from the following countries:
- India
- Mexico
- China
- Bhutan
- Somalia
- Guinea
The numbers have been impacted by refugees settling in Cleveland. According to Global Cleveland, the top five countries of origin for refugees coming to the city are:
- Iraq
- Congo
- Bhutan
- Burma (Myanmar)
- Somalia
Immigrant or refugee?
Refugees usually do not have a choice of where to live when they first arrive in the US. To be considered a refugee by the US, a person must meet the following criteria:
"Any person who is outside any country of such person’s nationality or, in the case of a person having no nationality, is outside any country in which such person last habitually resided, and who is unable or unwilling to return to, and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of, that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.” --GlobalCleveland.org
The federal government defines an immigrant as a "permanent resident alien" or "lawful permanent resident:"
"Lawful permanent residents are legally accorded the privilege of residing permanently in the United States. They may be issued immigrant visas by the Department of State overseas or adjusted to permanent resident status by the Department of Homeland Security in the United States." --DHS.gov
Click on each of the "home" icons in the map to learn more about countries of origin:
