October November 2002

It's a sad fact, but recent news reports relate how the Mexican government is keeping track of its citizens who reside in the U.S. far better than our inept and inefficient Immigration and Naturalization Service.

In cities all across America, Mexican President Vicente Fox has his diplomats issuing high-tech, photo ID cards to Mexican citizens who are in the U.S. illegally. Operating from 45 consulate offices and rented church halls in key cities, the Mexican government acknowledges that it is aggressively working to get the card into the hands of as many Mexican citizens within our borders as possible. Thus far this year, it has already distributed a half-million of the cards (known as matriculas consulares).

What's troublesome is that these cards, which undermine the U.S. identification system and aid lawbreakers, are fast-becoming an accepted form of "official" identification in this country as they are recognized by police departments, banks, and city and state governments. Pushed to its fullest extent, the cards will enable an estimated 4.5 million undocumented Mexican immigrants in the U.S. to open bank accounts and register their children for school. Pressure is building on many states to permit the card carriers to get drivers licenses.

"With an estimated 300,000 Mexicans illegally entering the U.S. for work each year, there is absolutely no chance for America to ever bring its population under control if today's already permeable borders become more open"

Don Mann
NPG President

Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies said it best when he told the Washington Post, "It's part of a creeping amnesty. What we're seeing with illegal immigrants is a growing institutionalization of their status."

That is exactly Mr. Fox's goal.

In fact, in a mid-September interview with The New York Times, Mr. Fox made it clear that following the United States elections this November, his government will launch a broad new campaign that will have large American-based grassroots organizations push Congress to enact broad immigration reforms that will move millions of illegal Mexicans residing in the U.S. closer to legal status.

Mr. Fox knows his politics. And he knows that both political parties will, in the coming months, be appealing to the growing number of Hispanic voters who can swing the 2004 elections in key states.

Stay tuned for further information about what is sure to be a major battle - the result of which will have grave consequences for the future of our nation.

There is little question that actual facts are our most persuasive argument when it comes to educating our federal, state and local officials, as well as our fellow citizens about out-of-control population growth. Compiling and distributing these facts state by state is an ongoing project of NPG's Census Project and we present the following excerpts of our completed reports to underscore the enormous challenge we face in getting our nation's leaders to give priority attention to the ever-growing population crisis.

In Nevada, America's fastest growing state, the Southern Nevada Water Authority says that even if conservation goals are met, existing water supplies will not be able to meet future demand.

Maryland's new development will consume as much land in that state over the next 25 years as was developed in the state's first 366 years.

If sprawl in the Chesapeake Bay area in Virginia is not brought under control in the next 10 years, 3,500 square miles, an area equivalent to fifty Washington, D.C.'s, will be developed to provide for population growth.

North Carolina has had to close off more than 18% of its shellfish waters, due to contaminating runoff from local development.

Georgia adds about 540 people each day.

Every day, 860 acres of Florida's forests and farmland are lost to development.

At its current annual growth rate of 2.05 percent, it will take Texas only 34 years to double its population.

Colorado is growing so fast that in order to maintain its 1999 student-teacher ratio, approximately 5,000 new teachers will have to be hired annually.

California adds over 550,000 people annually, which is equivalent to absorbing the entire population of Vermont every year.

Dear Members of NPG:

As NPG's 30th Anniversary Year comes to a close, I want to thank all of our members who made a special effort to make this a year of both celebration and commitment.

Together, we celebrated NPG's continued success in keeping America's citizens and leaders focused on the important issue of overpopulation. And we now move forward with a renewed commitment to build on our educational efforts, expand our grassroots network, and get Congress to create a National Population Policy that will reduce, and then stabilize, our nation's population.

Through the years, there has been much debate about an optimum population size for both the United States and the world. I feel strongly that a goal should be set. Yet, I also realize that optimum population size can never be defined with scientific precision and to do so is not necessary for NPG's purposes. The most important thing we can do right now is to bring an immediate halt to our current population growth and get America moving toward a far smaller, sustainable population.

A negative rate of population growth is well within our grasp. We need only to reduce our fertility rate, which is now at the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman, to below replacement level and keep it at that level for several decades only. We have long advocated non-coercive tax incentives to encourage couples to have not more than two children. At the same time we need to severely reduce immigration.

Polls have shown for years that the American people want a halt to population growth. A few years ago, NPG commissioned a national poll by Roper-Starch that showed 50% of the American people wanted immigration reduced to not more than 100,000 a year. Two-thirds felt it should not exceed 200,000 a year. And 20% wanted a complete halt to all immigration.

We have long argued that our national policy on immigration should be an integral part of a National Population Policy aimed at achieving a far smaller U.S. population. Until now, Congress has turned a deaf ear to the wishes of the American people on the twin issues of population and immigration. With the advent of campaign finance reform, there is hope that this will change, and that the influence of special interests on Congress will be diminished.

But, whatever our chances of success, NPG will never give up the fight for a smaller, sustainable, U.S. and world population. Never!

The lives of millions, indeed billions, of people, many yet unborn, will be blighted unless population growth can soon be halted and eventually reversed. Our voice in the battle to achieve a sane national population policy can and must be heard. It is truly astonishing that NPG is the only national organization, as far as I know, that advocates a smaller U.S. and world population. It is astonishing because it is so clear that this is what is desperately needed.

Our cause is too vitally important for NPG to do anything but stay the course, expand our membership base, and move closer to our goals. We can do that thanks to the ongoing support of our many thousands of dedicated members. Please accept my deepest and heartfelt thanks for your support of our work.

Sincerely,

Donald Mann

Note: The NPG Commentary: The United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development - A Counter-Productive Exercise in Futility, which highlights the critical need to address the issue of population in planning for the future, is accessible here.

NPG has for some time now had a presence on the World Wide Web (www.npg.org) and we hope that you frequent it often to access the latest updates on population-related matters, our huge library of publications, and our collection of facts and figures that help drive home the NPG mission. Being accessible via the web allows NPG to educate individuals and organizations here in the U.S. and around the world that might not otherwise have the opportunity to know NPG.

However, the greatest benefit of our website is that it opens the doors for greater two-way communication with our members. That is why we encourage you to contact us via e-mail directly from our website, provide us with your feedback, and let us know how NPG can better serve you and other members. Finally, please make sure you include your e-mail address on the enclosed response so that you can receive the weekly population-related news stories, press releases, and other information that will keep you up-to-date on population issues.

NPG's core mission is to educate the public, as well as our nation's lawmakers and policy makers, about the devastating impact of overpopulation on our nation and our communities. We accomplish this by broadly disseminating information through the media, the mail and the internet (where at www.npg.org we are linked to dozens of other websites of well-respected organizations that complement our efforts). Our policy papers are available to educators for research purposes and our advertising in national newspapers and magazines helps take our message to millions of Americans. In recent months NPG ads have appeared in The New Republic, E Magazine, The Washington Post National Weekly, The Christian Science Monitor, Audubon, The Washington Times National Weekly and Atlantic Monthly. Our special thanks to all NPG members who contributed to our recent media campaign. Your donations make it possible for us to constantly reach a wider audience.

What's in this issue...
Creeping Amnesty?
Alarming Facts
The President's Corner
NPG, the Web and You!
Help Build Our Member Base
Bequests and Major Donations
Getting the Message Out
.