Thread by @Noahpinion

1/I'm so exasperated by the idea that low immigration produces social and cultural cohesion that I'm going to write a thread about how nuts this idea is.

When was the foreign-born population at an all-time low?

The 1960s and 1970s.

How cohesive were they?

2/In a single 18-month period between 1971 and 1972, there were about FIVE terrorist bombings in America EVERY SINGLE GODDAMN DAY.

time.com/4501670/bombin…

3/In the summer of 1967 there were race riots in 159 AMERICAN CITIES.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long,_hot…

4/After the assassination of MLK in 1968 there were riots in 110 AMERICAN CITIES.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_assa…

5/At Kent State in 1970, the year the foreign-born population hit its all-time low, National Guardsmen shot unarmed student protesters.

6/The worst prison riot in American history was at Attica in 1971. At least 43 people were killed.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attica_Pr…

7/The whole country was rocked by massive anti-war protests in which millions upon millions of Americans marched against the Vietnam War.

8/The U.S. homicide rate DOUBLED.

9/The late 60s and early 70s saw presidential elections grow increasingly bitter. It was the start of the Culture War.

amazon.com/Nixonland-Rise…

10/To this day, conservatives refer to "the 60s", meaning the late 60s, as a shorthand for the fracturing and fragmenting of American culture.

That was precisely when the foreign-born population was at its all-time low point!!

11/Every single person on the right who claims that a high foreign-born population produces social and cultural discord needs to reckon with the fact that our greatest period of discord since the Civil War came at a time when we had record low numbers of immigrants.

12/If someone tells you immigration produces social discord, throw 1967-1972 right in their face.

(end)