As it is widely known, refugees have been flooding into Europe from Eastern and Arabic countries. In August/September of 2015, Angela Merkel famously opened the borders of Germany to asylum seekers and received mixed reviews. This was the start of major events that would impact the entire world.
THE START OF A CRISIS
By the end of 2015, and after over two million immigrants entered the country, the perception on immigrants had shifted negatively. Then, after hundreds of reports of rape and inappropriate behavior during the New Year celebrations in Cologne and elsewhere, that attitude, especially from women, trended much more severely in a negative direction. After these tragic incidents, the term rapefugee became popular among protesters as many people had turned against Merkel’s choice to open the country to refugees and anyone from abroad was seen as a threat to the way of life.
ECONOMIC MIGRANTS
This trend of refugee migration also led to an increase in economic migrants who caught an opportunity to ride the coattails of refugees in order to gain entrance into Europe. The reason it became conceivable that economic migrants were out to disrupt the German way of life was that people began to question:
“WHY GERMANY?”
Obviously, the first answer would be because the Chancellor, Angela Merkel, said that the country was open to refugees and that the rules established in the 1990s by the EU determining that refugees had to seek asylum in the first country they set foot in were no longer relevant to Germany. Until this recent 2015/2016 wave of immigration, which yielded a net immigration number of over 1 million people (just under 1 million people also emigrated in 2015, coincidentally), refugees had to seek asylum in the first country they stepped foot in, per EU regulation. For most, really ALL, refugees, the initial points of entrance were Greece, Spain, Italy and occasionally a handful of other European states. Notice the problem here? When millions of people bypass multiple states in order to enter your state, surely it is acceptable to wonder “if they really are refugees, wouldn’t ANY European state be better than where they are coming from?” The answer might be an obvious “yes,” but with the financial crises facing these Mediterranean states, it is understandable that:
A)These states would not be capable of handling hundreds of thousands of refugees and, therefore, they pass them along to the next state until they reach Germany and/or France
and
B)These refugees would not be able to assimilate, if they were to apply for asylum in these states, due to the limited resources and interest from the population.
IMMIGRANT DEMOGRAPHICS
While there are indeed a great number of economic migrants, it should be known that they are certainly not the only people entering the EU. It is also important to note that many of these immigrants are not uneducated nor are they illiterate. Sure, many of the people who have entered Europe in this two-year wave are young-adult males. But that is precisely why their integration should be encouraged. Due to the recent rapes and molestation accusations attributed to people from North Africa and of Arab decent, there is a profound xenophobia throughout Europe.
XENOPHOBIA
In the past few years there has been a huge spike in terrorist threats and a heightened awareness of activities due to the global reach of modern media. The problem with this is: Terrorism is an idea. It is not an enemy with a face and the threat is largely unknown until an act has been committed. Now, people fear the unknown. This is a fact. There are many cases of people accusing someone or finding a scapegoat in order to ease fears and create a sense of relief when times are bad. These trends go back for centuries, from the Dark Ages, to countless executions such as during the French Revolution, Spanish Inquisition, Salem Witch Trials, etc.
In all cases, the ones receiving the blame are outsiders. In this case, the outsiders happen to be refugees. Many of these people are fleeing war-torn homelands in hope of asylum. They do not deserve to be looked at as terrorists and rapists on behalf of a few. In major population centers, it is hard to ignore the countless homeless foreigners on the streets begging for change as they clutch their cold children close to them. They are people like everybody else. They are not, in any degree, second-class citizens. This xenophobia is doing nothing but dividing the world and the trend of blaming and grouping people as one and the same needs to stop. It should be increasingly clear in this Globalized world that everybody is different.
INTEGRATION METHODS
In France, laws have changed so that immigrants are more forcibly integrated. Articles of clothing are illegal, discourse of religious topics is not only discouraged but illegal and the popular culture is anything but conservative as near-nude figures are a typical means of advertisement and in many cases cannot be avoided. It is important to note that there are also government run methods of integration and there are many people who preach integration and tolerance but the way that the media is adapting to the refugee crisis is much more important as they are highlighting crime and marginalizing the human importance of the right to asylum. The problem here is the Right-Wing isolationist National Front is gaining steam under Marine Le Pen which says a lot about the nation’s view towards refugees. Xenophobia.
In the wake of the recent attacks in Paris, and other incidents before, most Governors in the United States say that their states will not be accepting Syrian refugees. This is out of fear. Again, a fear of the unknown. An assumption that outsiders are enemies. And a misconception that all Muslims are terrorists.
On the other hand, in Germany they are isolated from large groups of refugees and enrolled in programs to learn the German language and German culture (A refugee cannot apply for residence without speaking German fluently). The reason Germany is stressing isolation is that they have a history with immigrants who did not integrate and they are still suffering the consequences. In the 1970s, Germany let in multiple waves of Turkish guest workers who stayed grouped together and never left the country as they were expected to do. Why? Because there were too many of them for the country to remove. Why is that important? There are over 2 million new refugees in Germany alone since this crisis began. Is it feasible that these refugees will leave anytime soon? No. And, against the argument that these refugees are all criminals, there is an extensive screening process for asylum seekers and immigrants with a criminal record have little if any chance of achieving resident status. In fact, they have no chance if they commit a major crime in Europe. That being said, the problems in this situation are endless and many of them have no foreseeable solution, however, in the case of the facilitation of refugee and migrant integration, there is hope for change. That hope starts with Millennials.
WHAT CAN BE DONE?
The world is small. Globalization has made the world a place with countless political borders and no true physical one. Show me a 50 ft. wall and I will show you a 51 ft. ladder. Media has a way of traveling across the globe and reaching millions of people as was never before imaginable. The problem with this is propaganda from both sides spreads like wild fire. It comes down to the value of life. Is a European life worth more than a Syrian Life? of a North African Life? Of an Arabic life? Is a Christian Life more valuable than a Muslim life? the answer is no. No life is worth more than another.
With the Millennial generation, there is a vast multitude of shared information and facilitated debate on controversial subject matter which in some cases produces solutions and in most cases leads to better education on these topics. Social media may be the solution. Information can be spread quickly and efficiently through this means and most people have access to some form of social media.
In the upcoming elections in the US, it is important to be educated on all topics and make smart decisions especially when it comes to voting for local representatives so that visible changes can be made. In Europe, the same is important. Also, due to the system of government which runs the EU, there are more people with more voices that can be heard and thankfully, human rights are a top priority. People need to stop associating immigrants with criminals and terrorists and begin accommodating them and facilitating immigration, this will diminish xenophobia and lead to a population of new German residents who are grateful for their chance at a new life. Mindset is the problem, all it takes is a change of mind.
All it takes is you. All it takes is Us.
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