Mass Migration

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Causes of mass migration to Western nations

• Economic differentials. Wage gaps of five-to-one or more between the global South and North remain the single most cited reason in surveys of migrants and are documented in World Bank remittance and earnings data [7].
• Demographic pull. Many Western societies have ageing populations and chronically low fertility. Governments therefore look to immigration to support labour-force size, pension systems and tax bases [4][5].
• Political instability and conflict in sending regions. UN DESA counts a tripling of forcibly displaced persons since 2010, with most seeking refuge in richer states that can process asylum claims [8].
• Liberalisation of immigration law. The U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 abolished national-origin quotas, opening the country to new source regions [4]; Canada’s 1976 Act created a points system that explicitly encouraged family unification and economic migrants [5]; Australia dismantled the White Australia Policy between 1966 and 1973, ending racial exclusions [6].
• Cheaper transport and instant communication allow would-be migrants to organise journeys and receive real-time labour-market information [8].
• Post-colonial and language ties. Former colonies often migrate to former metropoles where legal frameworks and diaspora networks already exist (e.g., Francophone Africa to France, South Asia to the UK) [8].
• Policy advocacy and economic modelling. Since the 1990s most mainstream economists have portrayed immigration as a net positive for GDP, influencing governments; critics such as Not On Your Team argue that these models downplayed distributional costs and cultural friction [1].

Consequences of mass migration and demographic change

Labour markets. Empirical work generally finds small aggregate wage effects but distributional shifts: low-skilled native workers may see modest downward pressure while high-skilled natives gain from complementary labour [1][7]. Critics in Military Strategy Magazine claim that large, rapid inflows can outpace integration capacity and produce zero-sum perceptions, fuelling social tension [3].

Fiscal balances. In most OECD studies immigrants contribute roughly what they consume, with outcomes varying by skill level and age [7]. Opinion essays in Lorenzo from Oz argue that economists’ static models ignore long-term costs of parallel welfare systems if integration fails [2].

Urban infrastructure and housing. Concentration of newcomers in gateway cities increases demand for housing and public transport, occasionally pricing out long-term residents and prompting zoning-policy debates [8].

Cultural and political effects. Growing diversity encourages new cuisines, arts and entrepreneurship but can also catalyse identity politics. Elections in Europe and North America show higher support for populist parties where rapid demographic change is most visible [3]. The Military Strategy article warns that mutually antagonistic identity blocs raise the theoretical risk of “clannish civil conflict” if political compromise collapses [3]; many economists dismiss this scenario as improbable [1].

Demographics. Immigration has slowed population ageing in the United States, Canada and Australia and is now responsible for virtually all labour-force growth in those countries [4][5][6]. Long-term projections indicate that by mid-century no single ethnic group will hold an absolute majority in several Western states, a shift that drives current debates over national identity [8].

Security and crime. Aggregate crime rates in the U.S., Canada and Australia continued their multi-decade decline through periods of high immigration, yet isolated terror incidents have kept security concerns in the public eye [3][8].

Did changing views of race influence policy?

Yes. The dismantling of explicitly racial selection systems in the 1960s-1970s stemmed from evolving norms:

• Civil-rights era ethics. The 1965 U.S. Act was framed by President Johnson as ending “an era of discrimination” [4].
• Multicultural ideology. Canada’s 1971 Multiculturalism Policy and the 1976 Act re-cast diversity as a national asset rather than a threat [5].
• Post-colonial self-image. Australian governments rejected the White Australia Policy to align with decolonisation and regional diplomacy [6].

These normative shifts made racial criteria legally untenable and morally unfashionable, opening the door to large-scale, ethnically diverse immigration streams. Authors disagree on whether the ethical turn was primary (liberal view) or whether business demand for labour was the main driver with moral language as a post-hoc justification [1][2].

Public discourse

Debate is polarised. Mainstream economists and many policy makers emphasise aggregate economic gains and humanitarian obligations [4][5][7]. Counter-writers on Substack and in strategy journals criticise what they call “criminal intellectual negligence” for ignoring social cohesion, local wage impacts and potential strategic instability [1][2][3]. Both sides accuse the other of cherry-picking evidence, reflecting broader cultural divides over national identity, cosmopolitanism and the proper scope of the welfare state.

Sources

[1] The Failure of Economists… On Migration Has Been So Bad, It May Amount to Criminal Intellectual Negligence – Not On Your Team (Substack, 2025). [2] Economics: A Discipline Committing Suicide? Science, Reality and Social Decay – Lorenzo from Oz (Substack, 2025). [3] Civil War Comes to the West – Military Strategy Magazine (2023). [4] Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 – Wikipedia. [5] Canadian Immigration and Refugee Law, section “Immigration Act, 1976” – Wikipedia. [6] White Australia Policy – Wikipedia. [7] World Bank. “Migration and Remittances Data,” 2023 edition. [8] United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. International Migration 2020 Highlights.

Sources

1. The Failure of Economists… On Migration Has Been So Bad, It May Amount to Criminal Intellectual Negligence – Not On Your Team, But Always Fair (Substack) (2025 commentary essay / Opinion)
2. Economics: A Discipline Committing Suicide? Science, Reality and Social Decay – Lorenzo from Oz (Substack) (2025 commentary essay / Opinion)
3. Civil War Comes to the West – Military Strategy Magazine (2023 strategy-studies article)
4. Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 – Wikipedia (Encyclopedia article on U.S. immigration-reform law)
5. Canadian Immigration and Refugee Law – section “Immigration Act, 1976” – Wikipedia (Encyclopedia article / Canadian immigration-law history)
6. White Australia Policy – Wikipedia (Encyclopedia article on Australia’s former restrictive-immigration policy)

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Question

What are the causes of mass migration to Western nations? What are the consequences of mass migration and demographic change? Did the changing views of race have any influence?