The nearly 80,000 immigrants older than 65 who arrive in the U.S. each year are often overlooked by society because they don't hold paid jobs or speak fluent English, says UC Irvine sociology professor Judith Treas. "Elderly immigrants remain in the shadows," says Treas, whose research on them was recently published in Generations, a journal of the American Society on Aging. "They never win spelling bees. They don't join criminal gangs. Nobody worries about Americans losing jobs to Korean grandmothers." Over the last 15 years, Treas and her students have interviewed many foreign-born seniors and their relatives and friends. The immigrants have come from a wide range of countries, including Iran, Mexico, Korea, Pakistan and Cambodia. Treas hopes her research will raise awareness of the issues facing elderly immigrants.   More »