In the coming decades America will become increasingly dependent on immigrants. The demographic profile of the American society will change dramatically too. In 2050, white people will no longer constitute the majority in the United States, though they will remain the country’s largest ethnic minority.

Such conclusions can be drawn from the latest research conducted by the Pew Research Center, an independent think tank. The Center’s projections confirm other predictions made by demographers and economists.

The American society is growing old

In order to continue living on the same economic level, the United States will have to open the door to immigrants. The foreign-born and their children will be the engine behind the American economy in the coming decades – the Pew Research Center forecasts. By 2030, all the baby boomers will have turned 65, making a total of 79 million retirees dependent on the younger generations empowered by immigrant working forces. Such a scenario will considerably transform social structures, with the white population decreasing in number, while the Latino and Asian populations become more numerous. Latinos and Asians not only willingly immigrate to this country, but are also characterized by a higher reproductive rate than groups. The Center’s projections also indicate that soon we will surpass the historic peak for immigrants as a share of the U.S. population – in the 19th century the foreign-born accounted for about 15 percent of the American society, now the ratio of immigrants is expected to grow from the current 12 percent to 19 percent by 2050.

From the economic point of view, the report indicates, the United States is forced to maintain the number of immigrants at least at the current level, with about a million new legal immigrants being allowed to settle in the country each year. Otherwise, there will not be enough people to generate pension funds for the older generation of Americans. Even if the United States were to limit legal immigration into the country, given a considerably higher rate of birth of Hispanic groups, their numbers will grow faster than whites; therefore, regardless of the administration’s immigration policy, the United States is sentenced to a gradual “Latinization.”

The Pew Research Center Report

Its release during the presidential election campaigns should remind politicians that immigration issues will have to be dealt with in a relatively swift manner and that the mindless “tightening of the screws” will inevitably lead to more damage than advantage, in spite of it being a popular strategy among certain groups of voters.

Luckily, each of the three leading candidates to the White House (Hillary Clinton, John McCain and Barack Obama) has exhibited a fairly friendly approach to immigration reform. It leaves us with hope that the new president – no matter who that turns out to be – will secure congressional support for an immigrant-friendly reform, given that the prosperity of America in the future lies in the hands of foreign-born.