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Speak Out
How big of a problem do you think illegal immigration is?
Wrapping up our first World News Week here on Student Voices, we turn to a hot topic the world around – immigration.
The state of Arizona was heavily criticized for passing the nation’s strictest anti-illegal immigration law in 2010. In Europe, politicians have fiercely opposed an increase in emigration of Muslims from Turkey and Northern Africa.
But last week, a report released by the German Marshall Fund (GMF), a nonpartisan research group focusing on transatlantic issues, showed that people in the United States, Canada and six European countries (the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain) think immigration is far more widespread, and consider it a bigger problem, than it actually is.
| While history tells lots of tales of explorers circling the globe, settling in new locations, immigration to the United States as we know it did not begin in earnest until the 1600s when the first settlement was made at Jamestown, Va., in 1607. Over the next four centuries, waves of people sailed in – slaves brought in by wealthy landowners in the 1700s, Europeans escaping famine and oppression in the 1800s, and people seeking better job opportunities in the 20th century and today. |
First, immigration in general – legal or illegal. In Italy, immigrants make up only 7 percent of its national population. But respondents to the GMF survey, on average, guessed that the figure was more like 25 percent. Similar gaps between perception and reality exist in Spain (respondents guessed 21 percent; the reality is 14 percent) and the United States (respondents guessed 39 percent; reality is 14 percent).
There are also misperceptions and negative views of illegal immigration. In the United States, 58 percent of people surveyed thought that most immigrants were here illegally. In reality, less than one-third of all immigrants are here illegally. In Europe, majorities of those surveyed thought that illegal immigrants caused increases in crime – 56 percent of Italian respondents and 55 percent of French respondents, for instance.
Last, those surveyed overwhelmingly felt their country was doing a poor job of handling immigration – 73 percent in the U.S., 70 percent in the U.K., 61 percent in Spain, 58 percent in France, and 53 percent in the Netherlands.
So, what do these numbers mean? Why is it a big deal that so many people have negative views of immigration?
The disconnect between perception and reality can be dangerous. For one thing, it promotes a world view that is xenophobic – fearful of outsiders. It can also have racist undertones. If people knew the accurate numbers, they might feel differently about immigration. (The GMF survey actually showed this.)
But people are entitled to their views. If an individual has xenophobic or racist beliefs, they’re not something that’s easy to change. Indeed, many of the fears about immigration in Europe have to do with cultural intrusion – whereas in the United States, people are more worried (outwardly, anyway) about the possible loss of economic opportunities to illegal immigrants.
The bigger concern is how leaders react to people’s views. Politicians in Spain and Germany have made vitriolic anti-immigration speeches that have been called fascist. In the U.S., states from coast to coast are considering strict laws in response to immigration fears – some laws, like in Arizona, that critics say intrude on people’s rights.
Some also say that not only are these laws and political stances oppressive and potentially unconstitutional, but they also take time and energy that lawmakers might use to confront other problems their countries face.
On the other hand, some might say the disconnect revealed by the GMF survey doesn’t make the situation different. If there is an issue – say, illegal immigration –that you view as a huge problem, but you find out it’s not as huge of a thing as you thought, is it still a problem?
What do you think?
How big of a problem do you think illegal immigration is? Does the disconnect revealed by the GMF survey change things? Do you think a more positive view of immigration would affect legislation? Do you think elected officials around the world should spend as much time on immigration? Join the discussion!
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