Immigration

Immigration

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Immigration and society contribution to problems of immigrants

Introduction.

Immigration is defined as the act in which a person or a group of persons move from their country of residence to another country for the purpose of settling there permanently. The United States and European countries are the most common destinations for immigrants. Some find it easy to live in the new countries while others find it hard due to challenges (Joly & Reitz, 2018). Most of them usually suffer from unfair treatment given to them by the natives. Treatment is usually as a result of negative perceptions. On top of that, the host countries usually do not have enough resources needed to carter for the immigrants. In this paper, I thus seek to explain some of the problems that immigrant face, their causes and how the society contributes to the problems.

Discussion

From the beginning of the twenty first century, the number of immigrants has grown from 2.8 % to 3.3% of the total world population in 2015 (Diaz, Et al, 2017).This numbers to roughly 245 million people. Due to their huge numbers, they usually live in deplorable conditions and lack proper nutrition. This presents them with huge threats to their health. A study published in the European journal of public health said that most of them are under threat of infections. They also do not have proper access to healthcare due to financial problems. So far, interventions by various government s and non-governmental organizations have not yielded much and most of them continue suffering with illnesses and poor living conditions.

I would like to begin by saying that most of the immigrants are driven from their homes by unfavorable living conditions. Most of them are usually seeking a safe haven where they can be free from poverty and insecurity. For example most Mexicans from South America usually come seeking greener pastures in North America. Those from the Middle East are as a result of insecurity due to terrorism and political instability. There are generally two types of immigrants. The legal immigrants and the illegal immigrants. The legal immigrants are those that follow the due process to get into the country while the illegal are those that sneak through borders into the country.

For the legal immigrants many easily settled into the country. There are however some of them who find it hard to settle. Mainly due to language barrier, unemployment, religious and political differences, among others. it the recent publication of the international migration review, it was stated that people from the middle east find it hard to settle in countries such as Canada and France (Joly & Reitz,2018) Surveys found out that Muslims immigrants suffer psychologically mainly due to unemployment and the high cost of living in those countries. Contrary to what many people believe, the difficulties are not usually related to religious attachments. Joly & Reitz (2018) say that ‘the Muslim difference is unrelated to religious attachment and rather is partly explained by the high rates of unemployment or labor market inactivity’.

The youth and the children are usually the most affected by psychological suffering. Ethnic segregation usually takes place in countries where immigrants live in large numbers. Due to this, their children suffer social exclusion and fail to integrate with the rest of the children. Those that try integrating usually suffer from victimization, isolation and rejection by their peers. Victimization usually as a result of their background. For example those from the Middle East may sometimes be branded as terrorists while those from South America may be taunted as being drug dealers. This is usually because some may see some races and ethnic groups as being superior to others. Social groups may also be formed as a result of believing in religious superiority resulting to bullying and limited social integration (Plenty & Jonsson, 2017).

Many people especially conservatives tend to believe and say that crime immigration increases crime. Their argument is usually centered on the belief that the immigrants, particularly illegal immigrants, get into the country with malicious intentions. The American government is even building up a wall on the Mexican border so as to stop the illegal immigrants from entering the United States. However, a recent study proves otherwise. It has been found out that illegal immigration does not necessarily contribute to crime as many people term it. Michael light a criminologist who took part in the study said the following “We found no evidence that undocumented immigration increases the prevalence of any of those outcomes,”1.this show that the immigrants are often victimized due to a preconceived believe that people possess about certain groups. The study further found that in states such as Texas which are at the border of the US and Mexico, the natives are more involved in crime than the immigrants.

Dehumanization of the refugees is also to blame for the problems that they go through. Dehumanization refers to the act in which human beings are compared to animals. The wrong narrative that people usually have that some races are superior to others is totally wrong. It results into some people being denied equal rights as other humans. United States president Donald Trump 2 has been quoted several times referring to immigrants as animals. In one instance, he was quoted saying “we are letting people come in from terrorist nations that shouldn’t be allowed because you can’t vet them. We’re dealing with animals.”2

Immigrants should be treated with respect and given equal rights as other human beings. This is because it is not their wish to leave home. More so, they also bring about numerous benefits among them economic benefits. They are an easy and cheap source of both skilled and semi-skilled labor. They are also a market due to their large numbers. Some of them invest in the countries they reside thus bettering the economy by providing jobs through their investments. Creation and innovation is also an observable trait among immigrants. Some are usually highly educated and only lack the resources needed to apply their skills. (Peri, 2013).

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is evident that the refugees usually suffer from numerous problems. Some of this problem such as dehumanization, discrimination and victimization as we have found out are as a result of negative mindset. Others such financial problems and lack of proper access to healthcare which are as a result of unfavorable environments make most of them suffer from depression. Governments and the society at large should ensure that the immigrants have proper access to healthcare, ensure equal employment opportunities and come up with measures to enhance their welfare. Most if not all of this problems can be eliminated if the right decisions are made and the right actions taken.

Sources

1 https://www.npr.org/2018/05/02/607652253/studies-say-illegal-immigration-does-not-increase-violent-crime

2 https://thebluereview.org/dehumanization-influences-attitudes-toward-immigrants/

Diaz, E., Ortiz-Barreda, G., Ben-Shlomo, Y., Holdsworth, M., Salami, B., Rammohan, A., … & Krafft, T. (2017). Interventions to improve immigrant health. A scoping review. European journal of public health, 27(3), 433-439.

Joly, M. P., & Reitz, J. G. (2018). Emotional Stress and the Integration of Muslim Minorities in France and Canada. International Migration Review, 0197918318768551.

Peri, G. (2013). The economic benefits of immigration. Berkeley Review of Latin American Studies, 14-19.

Plenty, S., & Jonsson, J. O. (2017). Social exclusion among peers: The role of immigrant status and classroom immigrant density. Journal of youth and adolescence, 46(6), 1275-1288.