Immigration

Immigration

  • America, Europe, and dreams
  • America, reform, borders,Trump
  • Asylum, Prejudice, Work
  • Contentious, good, Mexico
  • controlled, beneficial, development
  • controversial, US-Mexico relations, tense
  • country, move, adventure
  • Discrimination, resilience, loneliness, voice
  • diversity, political, inclusion
  • Family, Difficulties, Challenges
  • forced, poverty, hopeful
  • Hardship, Foreign Language, Change
  • identity, bravery
  • Laws, tough, controversial
  • Mexico, grandma, wall
  • Necessary
  • opportunity, American Dream, search
  • Opportunity, Dreams, Difficult
  • politics, freedom, rights
  • self-betterment, improvement, home
  • statue of liberty, ellis island, courts, wall
  • accueil, besoin
  • accueil, nouveau départ, danger
  • bateau, papier, travail
  • crise, humanité, partage
  • danger, augmentation, diversité
  • diversité, opportunité, nouveau
  • diversité, politique, inégalités, accueil
  • fuir, accueil, départ
  • fuite, besoin, accueil
  • Fuite, rêve, inégalités
  • Guerre, mélange
  • Intégration, nécessité, difficulté
  • Inégalités, communautarisme, partage
  • Marine Le Pen, extrême droite, racisme
  • Maroc
  • Mexique
  • mixité, main d'oeuvre, rêve d'une vie meilleure
  • Obligation
  • opportunité, accueil, travail
  • Problème
  • Transport, cultures, paix, survie

Discussion

Bonjour,
Je vois que vous avez une vision plutôt positive de l’immigration, mais qu’il y a quelques problèmes. Le même phénomène est présent chez nous et c’est souvent un sujet important de débat politique lors de différentes élections. Est ce que pour vous aussi, les débats politiques se centralisent autour de ça ?

There is a lot to talk about when discussing immigration-related politics from the Muslim-ban to DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) to building a wall. There’s always news about people dying to cross the border and then facing containment and separation after they arrive. Being an immigrant myself and having watched my parents struggle with the ideas of a better life and opportunities, I have strong feelings about the politics of immigration. And there are many controversies with how the politics of it all work out. But, one thing for sure, the people who come here come because of hope. Have you ever spoken to an immigrant about their experiences?

Immigration is a very contrived issue in the United States but it dates back to the very beginnings of this country. There have been many instance in which the United States has selectively banned certain ethnicities such as the
Chinese exclusion act and the most recent middle eastern country bans. However, in most of Europe there seems to be a lot of recent discussion on immigration laws. Have you noticed in your hometown an influx of immigrants and what are your opinions about them? What is your country’s stance?

Hello,
I noticed that inequality is mentioned a lot in association with immigration. What are some aspects that contribute to this inequality of life and opportunities where you live and how do you think they can be fixed?

I saw that on both sides, immigration is considered a very controversial topic. The root of this controversy, in my opinion, turns to be clear when we look at the history of the country who is receiving the immigrant and the immigrant himself. Usually the immigrant is filled with longing for opportunities, adventure, resilience, bravery… whereas the countries and their governments can be unwelcoming, racist and support the existence of certain disparities between immigrants and non-immigrants. Why do you think that countries, rather than welcoming diversity, more frequently tend to discriminate against immigrants?

As others have said, immigration is very contentious in the US. In more liberal places like big cities or colleges, it is seen more positively, so don’t forget that our responses will reflect that. I think we are focused a lot more on illegal immigration over the border with Mexico than from outside the Americas. What areas/countries do you associate with immigrants?

I think mayareese2 raises a very good point: it seems that there is a common perception of immigration among students both in America and France. The image of the immigrant that we have seems to come from countries like Mexico (mentioned often on the MIT list) or from places like Morocco (and always followed by words like “guerre”, “crise”, “bateau”). Do we not think of Canadians or other Europeans as immigrants somehow?

Hi Clément,
Almost 14 percent of the U. S. population is comprised of immigrants (that is, 44 million people). Immigration and its economic, security and humanitarian concerns have been the subject of political discussion for decades. With the Trump government, these discussions have become even more turbulent, bringing up to the conversation the plans to build out the border wall with Mexico, deport millions of undocumented immigrants, and ban a fraction of the Muslim population.

Bonjour,

Pour répondre à la question de Luen, je pense que ces inégalités viennent du fait qu’en général, les immigrés qui arrivent en France sont très pauvres, n’ont pas eu accès à l’éducation, et ne parle pas tous correctement français. Le seul moyen pour eux de s’en sortir serait de trouver un travail, or nous n’en avons presque pas, et leur manque d’accès à l’éducation limite leurs choix.

La création massive d’emplois serait une solution, mais si nous savions comment faire, il n’y aurait plus de problème de chômage. Une autre manière d’améliorer leur vie, qui est déjà un petit peu appliqué en France, serait de leur apporter des cours de français, un accès gratuit aux écoles, à des formations pour qu’il aient plus de possibilités, mais là ce sont les français au chômage qui vont réagir, car ils ne trouveront pas cela juste que l’on débourse de l’argent pour aider les immigrés à trouver du travail alors qu’ils n’en n’ont pas eux-même.

Pensez-vous que chez vous les inégalités sont moins marqués qu’en France ?
Que fait votre pays pour aider les migrants, et pensez-vous que c’est suffisant, insuffisant, ou trop ?

Hi adanquigny, in response to your question about what our country does to help migrants, in my view it’s split between migrants from poorer countries with perhaps less of an education and educated, richer migrants. The US government and corporations do a lot to help the latter find their footing and even incentivize them to come: there are “genius grants” to come study in the US, corporations help you get visas and green cards, and it’s easier for you to integrate and get a citizenship. As for the former, there aren’t really any large government programs that I personally know of to help migrants (maybe they exist but aren’t well-publicized?). I feel like a lot of programs to help immigrants are done at a local or grassroots level, for example English classes at the local school. Other than that, I feel as though immigrants have to work extremely hard on their own in order to establish themselves and integrate into the American community. Would you say that part of the rising anti-immigrant sentiment in France is due to the part that integration programs are funded by taxpayer money?

To respond to Clément’s question, immigration is a very politically polarizing topic, displaying our rooted beliefs on the rights of immigrants. It is a highly discussed topic especially since the 2016 election with the plans for the wall inching closer to reality. Immigration is also closely tied to the American Dream: immigrants hoping for a better life of opportunity and happiness waiting for them in the U. S. Unfortunately, however, immigration has become a heart-wrenching topic of families torn apart through deportations and mistreatment of immigrants on our boarders. Sentiments of hatred and fear have swept across many areas of the country. I believe it is important to remember that love trumps hate in order to change the narrative surrounding immigration. Everyone should be welcome here.
How widely discussed is immigration in France? What is the political climate in regards to immigration?

I find it interesting that more EINSERB students decided to characterize immigration as an act of fleeing, while more MIT students saw it as an act of development and opportunity. Although it is inherent that both require fleeing the country of origin, why was it seen more as “departing” by EINSERB students and more as “arriving” by MIT students?

I agree with the above responses that immigration is and has historically been a very prominent topic in American politics. I also think that while it has always been a contentious topic of discussion in American society, it seems that public opinions on immigration are especially polarized now due to the economic and political uncertainty in the US and around the world. I’m wondering if you have noticed significant changes in how immigration is viewed between now and when you were younger.

To offer a possible explanation to Miguel’s comment, it might have to do with a diverse MIT community. I wonder how many of the MIT students that participated in this project are immigrants/international students, or have family that came to America (for instance, someone used the word “grandma”).

To add to Emily’s response, I also don’t think the resources for the poorer immigrants are sufficient. The English classes offered at local schools or libraries are not usually well taught, and the immigrants never appropriately learn English there. This language barrier also hinders the immigrants’ process of finding a job, as most employers want to hire someone who is able to communicate properly. They then end up working in some very difficult job with the worst shifts. I think, it would be very useful if the US government started offering more resources where immigrants can learn English and find jobs.

Bonjour,
je pense qu’on peut facilement constater que quelques commentaires se focalisent sur une partie du sujet: la partie liée à l’immigration illégale. De ma part, je préfère plutôt me focaliser sur une autre partie que j’estime être aussi importante, il s’agit du départ des cerveaux. J’aimerai d’abord commencer par la chose que je trouve la plus importante, l’immigration des cerveaux vers les pays développés est présente de manière significative, que ce soit de provenance de pays sous-développés ou de pays avancés. La focalisation sur l’immigration illégale dans les commentaires n’est pas choquante pour moi, puisque vue la sensibilité du problème, elle est toujours le sujet de plusieurs débats politiques et par conséquent plus présente.
Les pays développés tirent profit de l’immigration des cerveaux. Cela peut se constater durant le parcours universitaire, un exemple classique lié au système éducatif français est “les classes préparatoires aux grandes écoles d’ingénieurs” où les étudiants poursuivent leurs études durant deux ans et passent un concours pour intégrer les grandes écoles d’ingénieurs. Les centres préparatoires sont présents dans certains pays sous-développés francophones et font l’objet de permettre aux meilleurs étudiants étrangers d’intégrer les écoles d’ingénieurs françaises. Après leurs études, la plupart des jeunes diplômés s’installent dans ce pays d’accueil et y deviennent des cadres.

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