The United States is a country built on immigration. The first settlers, Native Americans, represent less than 2% of the total population; the remaining 98% of the population is made up of immigrants or descendants of immigrants. Today, the United States still has the highest immigration rate in the world, with 757,434 naturalizations in fiscal year 2012 alone (US Naturalizations 2012, Department of Homeland Security). People seek to immigrate to the United States for many reasons. Some people immigrate because they have obtained refugee or asylum status and other people immigrate to fulfill their dreams. Immigration has an effect on American society and the economy. The United States cannot survive without immigrants. Every year many people immigrate to the United States for various reasons. There are those who come looking for a safe place to stay because their countries are at war. Some immigrants have left their home countries to escape war or for fear of persecution. They are refugees and have the legal right to remain in the United States. Others come to the United States to seek protection; they are granted asylum and are also legal residents. Besides that, most immigrants leave their countries and come to the United States to fulfill their dreams. Furthermore, most immigrants are unauthorized immigrants, all foreign-born and non-residents. According to population estimates, Office of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland Security (2011): 4. The number of unauthorized immigrants in the United States has been estimated at 11,510,000. Considering only this large number of unauthorized immigrants we can think about a possible impact of immigration in the United States. First of all, immigration has a huge impact on demographics and social change because it increases the population of the United States. M...... middle of document ......date: January 2010." Population Estimates, Bureau of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland Security (2011): 4.Kica, Matos. "13 It's too many years for people to wait." USA Today nd: Academic Search Complete. Web. November 20, 2013. Laura Parker "The United States Wouldn't Work Without Immigrant Labor" USATODAY" 7/22/2001 updated at 11:21 pm EThttp: //usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/july01/2001-07-23-immigrant.htmMelanie Oubre Population ''Immigration-fueled growth puts US on fast track to natural resource depletion'' Issue USA Friday, December 28, 2012, 11:40 EST https://www.numbersusa.com/content/nusablog/moubre/december-28-2012/population-growth-fueled-immigration-puts-us-fast-track- depletion-nMurphy, Dean E “Imagining Life Without Illegal Immigrants” New York Times, January 11, 2004 http://www.wright.edu/~tdung/ Immigrants.htm