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First and Second Generation

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First and Second Generation

A person who is a first-generation immigrant is defined as one who is born outside of the United States. 1.5-generation immigrants are individuals who came to the United States as children. Second-generation immigrants are born in the United States but have parents who are born abroad.

The immigrant-origin child population has grown to nearly 20 million and now make up approximately 27% of the U.S. child population.

Notably, the vast majority of immigrant children in the United States are second-generation birthright citizens.

immigrants by generation
Source: Migration Policy Institute

Learn more

Migration Policy Institute: CHILDREN IN U.S. IMMIGRANT FAMILIES

Annie Casey Foundation: WHO ARE CHILDREN IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES?

Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count: CHILDREN IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES IN THE UNITED STATES

W.T. Grant: INTERSECTING INEQUALITIES

TO UNDERSTAND WHY GENERATIONS MATTER, SEE:

  • Rumbaut, R. G. (2004). Ages, life stages, and generational cohorts: Decomposing the immigrant first and second generations in the United States 1. International Migration Review, 38(3), 1160-1205.