Fresh Blood: The New American Immigrants

Today's immigrants ``are transforming-and constantly improving-America,'' declares former All Things Considered host Ungar with measured optimism in this readable potpourri of reportage and analysis. He offers sketches of individuals and of crises like that in a California town overrun by Border Patrol agents. In contrast to the newly conventional wisdom, Ungar argues that today's immigrants of color are not significantly different from previous arrivals, though some of his reportage is thin-no, he reports, New York schools have not quite been rejuvenated by immigrants. Ungar thoughtfully untangles why Californians are far more nativist than Texans and offers intriguing snapshots of groups such as the Poles in Chicago and the often unhappy Koreans in Los Angeles. Warning against short-term political expediency, he recommends Mexican border controls that fluctuate with economic cycles, because most immigrants don't want to stay; a revamping of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, including a better-trained Border Patrol; and a recognition that most illegal immigrants merely overstay their visas. Not a full response to Peter Brimelow's Alien Nation, but at least Ungar has actually talked with his subjects. (Oct.)