Children of Unauthorized Immigrants: New Pew Report, By the Numbers

(Aug. 11) -- In a new report sure to rock the cradle in the debate over whether to tinker with the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Pew Hispanic Center estimates that 8 percent of all babies born in the United States in 2008 had "unauthorized immigrant parents" -- meaning that their parents were in the country in violation of immigration law. Because of so-called "birthright citizenship," those roughly 340,000 babies were automatically granted U.S. citizenship.

Though the Pew report is cautious to steer clear of making any sweeping generalizations about what these numbers mean or what impact they have on America, especially in terms of political matters, it does acknowledge the ongoing debate over the 14th Amendment -- which some Republican lawmakers have called for reviewing and even repealing because it grants citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil. Moreover, the relatively short, 11-page report contains many more fascinating figures and illustrative charts, and is definitely worth a read in its entirety, which is why we've gone ahead and appended it to the bottom of this post. You can find the original report here or on the Pew Hispanic Center website.

But as interesting as the report is, it doesn't mean much without some context. As such, Surge Desk has taken the liberty of comparing some of the most important figures with other revealing data points. Have a look:

340,000 babies born to unauthorized immigrants in 2008 approximately equals:

The population of Santa Ana, Calif., the 55th-most-populous U.S. city.

The population of the Maldives, the 26-island nation in the Indian Ocean, the government of which last year held a meeting underwater via scuba gear to call attention the direct threat posed to its land by global warming. The nation is reportedly the first to pledge to become entirely carbon neutral.

The number of users on Gowalla, a social media check-in game/service that rivals the comparatively more popular Foursquare.

Meanwhile, although the number of children born to illegal immigrants dropped a percent one year later, in 2009, the total number of children born to illegal immigrants here on U.S. soil that stayed here over the past 18 years was estimated to be quite high, comprising 5 percent of all of the kids living in America by 2009.

"In total, 4 million U.S.-born children of unauthorized immigrant parents resided in this country as of 2009." Four million approximately equals:

The population of Los Angeles, the second most populous U.S. city.

The generous estimate of the number of jobs President Barack Obama last year said the stimulus package would create or save. The most recent estimates peg the figure at between 2.5 million and 3.6 million, though, of course, the issue is hotly debated.

The number of copies of the "Twilight: New Moon" DVD that were sold in its first retail weekend.

Finally, the Pew study covered a bit of immigration trends writ large.

"In 2009, immigrants -- be they legal or unauthorized -- comprised 12.8% of the total population of the United States." And 12.8 percent of 305 million, the official estimate of the U.S. population last year, equals just over 39 million, which is about the same as:

The population of California.

Number of Xbox 360 game consoles sold as of January.

The number of people affected by allergic rhinitis, aka hay fever, as of a 2000 study.

And compare that final number to the total estimated foreign-born population of the U.S. back in 1910, which the U.S. Census Bureau estimates was roughly 13.5 million, or a whopping 14.7 percent.

Finally, the Pew report in full:
Children Unauthorized Immigrants