--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you have free immigration, in the way…" description: "\"If you have free immigration, in the way we had it before 1914, everybody benefited. The people who were here benefited. The people who came benefited...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/milton-friedman-616_benefits_if-you-have-free-immigration-in-the-way_1533561.png" --- # If you have free immigration, in the way we had it before… ![“If you have free immigration, in the way we had it before 1914, everybody benefited. The people who were here benefited. The people who came benefited. Because nobody would come unless he, or his family, thought he would do better here than he would elsewhere. And, the new immigrants provided…” quote by Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/milton-friedman-616_benefits_if-you-have-free-immigration-in-the-way_1533561.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/milton-friedman-616_benefits_if-you-have-free-immigration-in-the-way_1533561.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/milton-friedman-616_benefits_if-you-have-free-immigration-in-the-way_1533561.png) > “If you have free immigration, in the way we had it before 1914, everybody benefited. The people who were here benefited. The people who came benefited. Because nobody would come unless he, or his family, thought he would do better here than he would elsewhere. And, the new immigrants provided additional resources, provided additional possibilities for the people already here. So everybody can mutually benefit.” [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Free immigration historically created mutual benefits for both newcomers and existing residents by expanding labor and opportunities. **In simple terms:** Open borders helped both immigrants and natives. Key Takeaway Consider policies that enable mutual economic gain. Themes economics immigration mutual benefit Mood optimistic analytical Type economic policy historical When to use this quote - labor markets - community development - policy reform - business growth Key Concepts market dynamics human capital resource allocation Questions to Reflect On - How does immigration affect wage levels? - What safeguards ensure equitable resource distribution? A Different Perspective Benefits may be uneven if labor markets are saturated or social services strained. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Immigrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigrants/) [Immigration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigration/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Possibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possibility/) ## Related quotes > [ \[Globalization\] has enriched the world scientifically and culturally and benefited many people economically as well. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/globalization-has-enriched-the-world-scientifically-and-culturally/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [What's the difference? How can people be so inconsistent? Why is it that free immigration was a good thing before 1914 and free immigration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/what-s-the-difference-how-can-people-be-so-inconsistent-why-is-it/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [You will find that hardly a soul who will say that it was a bad thing. Almost everybody will say it was a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/you-will-find-that-hardly-a-soul-who-will-say-that-it-was-a-bad-thing/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [“You cannot simultaneously have free immigration and a welfare state. ... I am in favor of the unilateral reduction of tariffs, but the movement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/you-cannot-simultaneously-have-free-immigration-and-a-welfare-state-i/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [You cannot simultaneously have free immigration and a welfare state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/you-cannot-simultaneously-have-free-immigration-and-a-welfare-state/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [Because it is one thing to have free immigration to jobs. It is another thing to have free immigration to welfare. And you cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/because-it-is-one-thing-to-have-free-immigration-to-jobs-it-is/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [But on the other hand, if you come under circumstances where each person is entitled to a pro-rata share of the pot, to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/but-on-the-other-hand-if-you-come-under-circumstances-where-each/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [There are people who have benefited from therapy without being confronted with the past at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/there-are-people-who-have-benefited-from-therapy-without-being/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [A lot of people think, particularly the people who have benefited, that they're entitled to the fruits of their abilities, their labor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-solman/a-lot-of-people-think-particularly-the-people-who-have-benefited-that/) [Paul Solman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-solman/) > [“Why is it that the people who risk the most to build our world are those least cared for in retirement by the very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-h-jucha/why-is-it-that-the-people-who-risk-the-most-to-build-our-world-are/) S.H. 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Hardly any of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/few-economists-even-mention-immigration-control-as-one-of-those-nasty/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It doesn't worry me a bit that China and Japan hold so much US debt. In a way, it seems foolish for them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/it-doesn-t-worry-me-a-bit-that-china-and-japan-hold-so-much-us-debt/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [In the past 40 years, the United States lost more than a million farmers and ranchers. Many of our farmers are aging. Today, only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-vilsack/in-the-past-40-years-the-united-states-lost-more-than-a-million/) [Tom Vilsack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-vilsack/) ## More by Milton Friedman > [The government solution to a problem is usually as bad as the problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/the-government-solution-to-a-problem-is-usually-as-bad-as-the-problem/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [I believe the role that people like myself have played in the transformation of public opinion has been by persistently presenting a different point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/i-believe-the-role-that-people-like-myself-have-played-in-the/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [To really understand something you've got to reduce it to its principles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/to-really-understand-something-you-ve-got-to-reduce-it-to-its/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [It is a mark of how far we have gone on the road to serfdom that government allocation and rationing of oil is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/it-is-a-mark-of-how-far-we-have-gone-on-the-road-to-serfdom-that/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [Economic freedom is an essential requisite for political freedom. 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