USA Flashcards
White Population
64%
Hispanic Population
16%
Black Population
12%
API Population
5%
Native Population
0.1%
Male Population
48%
Female Population
52%
Push Factor - Poverty
More than 30% of those in Mexico live on less than $5 a day. This, combined with a lack of opportunity cause many to leave
Push Factor - War
More than 3.2 million people have left Syria since the war there began
Push Factor - Lack of Freedom
In some countries there are few democratic rights. For example, in China people have little freedom of speech
Pull Factor - Higher Wages
Minimum wage in USA is $7.25/hour whereas the minimum wage in Mexico is $0.58
Pull Factor - Safety
US has a murder rate of 4.5/100,000 which is far lower than countries like Panama with a murder rate 53/100,000
Pull Factor - Democracy
Presidential elections every 4 years and congressional elections every 2 years. Eg. Trump elected in 2016
Federal Government
The President + Congress
The President
Current US president is Donald Trump of the Republican party. President leads government and suggests new ideas for laws. President can sign bills passed by congress or block them through his power of veto
Congress
There to pass bills in to law. Two houses - House of Representatives (435 members) and the Senate (100 members). Laws made here apply to the entire USA
State Government
Governor + State Legislature
Governor
Each state has their own governor who acts like the president for that state. Andrew Cuomo is the governor of New York. Governors sign bills and are responsible for leading their state
State Legislature
Each state has its own legislature that acts like congress. Laws made here apply to the state only. Eg. in Colorado marijuana is partially legal whilst in Florida possession can lead to 5 years
Party Make-Up - Representatives
247 Republicans 188 Democrats
Party Make-Up - Senate
54 Republicans 44 Democrats
Representation in Senate
80% men 2 African American (Cory Baker - New Jersey) 3 Hispanic (Marco Rubio - Florida) 94% White
White Representation
64% of Pop 94% of Senate
Hispanic Representation
16% in pop 3% in Senate
Black Representation
12% in Pop 2% in Senate
API Representation
5% in Pop 1% in Senate
Native American Representation
0.1% in Pop 0% in Senate
Male Representation
48% in Pop 80% in Senate
Female Representation
52% in Pop 20% in Senate
E-Verify
Free program which checks the legitimacy of workers using information like Date of Birth and Social Security Number
Patriot Act
Initially tripled border security budget which paid for extra staff, investigators and lots of technology Makes it easier to arrest, detain and deport terrorists Response to 9/11
Border Security Act
Improved resources, training and technology available to border control guards Increased their training and pay Makes it harder to get in by plane/train/boat Allows government to arrest people with expired visas and deport them
Secure Fence Act
700 mile long fence built Allows Department of Homeland Security to use extra equipment such as thermal imaging and drones Additional vehicle barriers, checkpoints and lighting Congress allocated $1.2 billion towards this
Amnesty
In 2009 Obama pledged to offer amnesty to illegal immigrants; changing their status to legal immigrants. Stopped by Congress
Trump’s Wall
In 2016 Trump was elected on his promise to build a wall across the entire 1,700 - mile long US and Mexico border and have Mexico pay for it
Illegal Immigration
Many people from South and Central America cross the US border illegally. Of the estimated 11.5 million illegal immigrants 7 million are from Mexico. Others come from Honduras, Ecuador, Korea, India and China
Suburbs
On the outskirts of cities there are suburbs where mostly wealthy people live in nice houses. Most facilities and services are better. Become known as ‘vanilla suburbs’ because minorities can’t afford to live in them. Eg. Bel Air in LA
Ghettos (Housing)
Found in inner-city areas. Unemployment, poverty and dilapidated homes are common. Gangs, violence and poor schools with few facilities are common. Hard to leave due to problems such as low pay and unemployment. Eg. Compton in LA
Gated Communites
The very rich can afford to insulate themselves from other Americans. gated communities are homes built behind high walls that have lots of private security. Many live in these communities because they fear crime. There are around 30,000 gated communities including Bradbury, California
Barrios
The nickname given to ghettos with a majority Hispanic population. Have similar problems to ghettos and Spanish can be the main language. An example is Spanish Harlem in Manhattan, New York
Home Ownership - White
2000 - 71% 2010 - 73%
Home Ownership - Black
2000 - 45% 2010 - 47%
Home Ownership - Hispanic
2000 - 52% 2010 - 46%
Home Ownership - API
2000 - 45% 2010 - 54%
Education
Primary and secondary education is funded through local taxation. Rich communities can afford to pay more tax whilst poor communities cannot, leaving their schools under-funded. Schools in ghettos typically have out of date equipment and poor resources. 20% of ghetto teachers have less than 3 years experience
Education Completion - White
High School - 87% University - 30%
Education Completion - Black
High School - 73% University - 17%
Education Completion - Hispanic
High School - 75% University - 12%
Education Completion - API
High School - 90% University - 50%
Cost of University
University in the USA has to be paid for and on average costs $30, 000 a year. Many ethnic minorities can’t afford this
Insurance
85% of Americans pay for health insurance. Companies like Blue Cross and Blue Shield provide this service but it isn’t cheap; average American pays around $400 a month
Pay Medical Bill
Patients in the USA are presented with a bill for their hospital stay. This is usually covered by insurance, medicare or medicaid. It can cost between $9000 to $15000 to deliver a baby
Healthcare - White People
Medicaid/Medicare - 15% Uninsured - 13% Life Expectancy - 79
Healthcare - Black People
Medicare/ Medicaid - 32% Uninsured - 21% Life Expectancy - 74
Crime
Gang and drug violence are much more common in the ghettos than in the suburbs. Black people are over-represented in prison
Racism (Crime)
Black man has a 1 in 3 chance of going to jail in his life while a white man has a 1 in 17 chance. Black who kills a white man is 22 x more likely to be given death sentence than a white who kills a black man
Crime - Populations: White
Population - 64% Prison Population - 48% Death Row Population - 43%
Crime - Populations: Black
Population - 12% Prison Population - 40% Death Row Population - 42%
Legal Fees
Black Americans earn less on average than whites and are less likely to be able to afford a good lawyer that might help them avoid prison. Average cost of a lawyer is $700 an hour
White Police Force
In many areas the police force is made up of mostly white people, even in mostly black areas. Example is Ferguson, Missouri were 70% of the people are black but only 3 of the 53 officers are black
White Justice System
Only 4% of lawyers are black. 665 of around 11,000 state judges are black. this means that once accused of a crime black people often come up against judges, juries and lawyers who may be unsympathetic to their circumstances or even racist
