Information AboutAnti-immigrant |
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Anti-immigration may be used to describe individuals, groups or movements which oppose significant levels of Immigration into their countries. '''Anti-immigrant''' may refer to those who are opposed to specific Migrant groups, or as a pejorative for those who are anti-immigration. The terms often have negative connotations in a political context, particularly in the West , where politicians generally avoid giving explicit support to anti-immigration platforms or describing their policies as "anti-immigrant". Nevertheless, Opinion Poll s demonstrate that many people across the Developed World are uncomfortable with, if not outright opposed to, immigration. Similarly, many other people support immigration. MAJOR ANTI-IMMIGRATION ARGUMENTS Anti-immigration sentiments are typically justified with one or more of the following arguments.
Opponents of Immigration blame it for such problems as Unemployment , Crime , harm to the Environment , and detoriating Public Education . COUNTER ARGUMENTS In response, others points out that:
Commentators also point out that the problems which are purportedly caused by immigrants equally exist amongst native-born populations as well, and that politicians often use immigration as a convenient Scapegoat to distract the public from real social, political and economic problems. CONTINENTAL EUROPEAN ANTI-IMMIGRATION MOVEMENTS Current anti-immigration views in Europe seem particularly directed towards the recent influx of Muslim s from Turkey and Northern Africa . Prominent European opponents of this migration include Jörg Haider , Jean-Marie Le Pen , and Pim Fortuyn (murdered). Anti-immigration views are held by virtually all Neo-Nazi , and ethnic and Racial Separatist movements in Europe and the US, although the majority of people with anti-immigration views have no connection to such groups. Popular attitudes include such examples as the majority of Spaniards who currently see immigration into their country as excessive (see article mentioning El Pais survey ). Fascist parties, such as Movimiento Social Español, openly campaign using nationalist or anti-immigrant rhetoric. Everyday racial harassment of Africans is sometimes a problem - a notorious incident being the November 2004 Spain-England football (soccer) friendly . Popular media sometimes portray American Black Culture and Music negatively for humor, though there exists also an active following of such music In Spain As Well . Portugal was long a dictatorship and had little immigration until a sudden influx in the 1970s, as ex-colonists returned. Today Lisbon has mixed native-born, African, and Middle Eastern neighborhoods. The rural areas have just recently begun to see many new arrivals. The country has right-wing parties that support curbs in immigration quotas. (Any resident of a Portuguese-speaking country is free to live and work in Portugal, and vice-versa.) In France , the National Front opposes immigration. Major media, political parties, and a large share of the public see the possibility of anti-immigrant sentiment due to the October/November 2005 Rioting . A major anti-immigrant political organization in Germany is the National Democratic Party . The Nazi Party is now banned there, but Nazi sympathisers have carried out attacks against immigrants. OPPOSITION TO IMMIGRATION IN THE UNITED KINGDOM Anti-immigrant perspectives in the , and Islamist Terrorism . Abuse of Asylum policies is also a frequent discussion topic. During the , New Zealand ers, and Australia ns who arrive and work illegally, and have been involved in other criminal activities. As well, some troubled areas of the UK do not have large or even significant numbers of immigrants, suggesting that other causes than immigration are coming into play. OPPOSITION TO IMMIGRATION IN MEXICO In the first eight months of 2005 alone, more than 120,000 people from , Asia , United States and Central and South America are also offered jobs at Table Dance establishments in large cities throughout the country causing the National Institute Of Migration (INM) in Mexico to raid Strip Clubs and deport foreigners who work without the proper documentation {Link without Title} Mexico has very strict immigration laws pertaining to both illegal and legal immigrants. {Link without Title} The Mexican constitution restricts non-citizens or foreign born persons from participating in politics, holding office, acting as a member of the clergy, or serving on the crews of Mexican-flagged ships or airplanes. Certain legal rights are waived in the case of foreigners, such as the right to a deportation hearing or other legal motions. In cases of flagrante delicto, any person may make a citizen's arrest on the offender and his accomplices, turning them over without delay to the nearest authorities. The country's instability and endemic Corruption , ranked higher as of 2006 than in several past years, mean that many laws are selectively enforced. The frequent violence between police, military, and Drug Gangs along the US border, sometimes with collaboration between these groups, adds another dimension to problems which fuel mass Emigration . Critics of Mexican social policy also consider severe rural poverty to be caused by international competition with US exports, and another cause of illegal immigration. IMMIGRATION AND ECONOMICS Another issue concerns Free Trade ; immigrant rights advocates believe it is hypocritical and inhumane to allow goods and money to freely cross borders yet impose numerous requirements on people to do the same thing. It has been argued that this constitutes a form of Class Warfare against workers, who are not free to move with changing economic conditions in the same manner that businesses can move their capital. (See also Capital Flight .) Anti-immigrant rhetoric in the US frequently mentions that foreigners take "American jobs", yet the US Constitution does not guarantee employment for anyone, and free flow of capital means that business owners have no legal obligation to keep jobs in the country. To this end, many immigration opponents/reductionists offer Protectionist solutions to economic problems, and there was considerable criticism of NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) among them. Many proponents of these policies do not otherwise tend to support the modern welfare state. Politicians and commentators have contrasted the Developed World 's immigration controls with what they see as uncontrolled movement of people throughout the Third World . This is inaccurate; many poor countries indeed have numerous restrictions on immigration, and there has been little apparent economic gain from these policies. ANTI-IMMIGRATION VIEWS IN THE UNITED STATES In the United States , anti-immigration views have a long history, including the American Party of the mid- 19th Century (formed by members of the Know-Nothing Movement ), the Immigration Reduction League of the early 20th Century , and the anti-Asian movements in the West, resulting in the Chinese Exclusion Act and the so-called " Gentlemen's Agreement " aimed at the Japanese. Ironically, the exclusion of the Chinese caused the western railroads to begin importing Mexican railroad workers in greater numbers (" Traquero s"). An Immigration Reduction ism movement formed in the 1970s and continues. Prominent members often press for massive, sometimes total, reductions in immigration levels. However, as most Americans are themselves descended from immigrants, many feel that it is hypocritical to criticize those who enter the country through legal means, and neither of the two major parties has proposed curtailing the number of visas given out annually. Illegal Immigration , principally from across the U.S.-Mexico Border , is the more pressing concern for most immigration reductionists. Authors such as Samuel Huntington (famous for the " Clash Of Civilizations " thesis) have also seen recent Hispanic immigration as creating a national identity crises and presenting insurmountable problems for US social institutions. In the May 2005 Spanish edition of Foreign Affairs magazine, he lists the size, illegality, cultural roots, and poverty of this recent wave of migration as most problematic. The political effects of anti-immigration/immigration reductionism movements have been embodied in the US Welfare Reform Bill Of 1996 and initiatives such as Protect Arizona Now in 2004. The Minuteman Project , launched in 2005 with several hundred volunteers patrolling the Mexican and Canadian borders to assist authorities in spotting illegal immigrants, have also been influenced by opposition to illegal immigration. Some members also support reductions in legal immigration. VDARE is an editorial collective website which advocates for reduced immigration, including heightened selectivity in legal immigration into the United States. American Patrol , an organization run by Glenn Spencer, posts news and media articles about crimes that illegal aliens and their alleged sympathisers have committed. ANTI-IMMIGRANT HATE CRIMES After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, an increase in Islamophobia was perceived by some, directed towards individuals perceived to be either Arab or otherwise Muslim . An example of this behavior is the murder of Balbir Singh Sodhi , a Sikh Indian living in Mesa, Arizona who was gunned down by native-born US citizen Frank Roque in September 2001. Roque had also shot at several other Sikhs (who were unharmed), apparently because he incorrectly associated their Turban s with Islam. The Maricopa County Superior Court sentenced Roque to death in 2003. REFERENCES | ||
| "http://historymattersgmuedu/d/5046/" class="copylinks" target="_blank">Dennis Kearney, President, and H L Knight, Secretary, “Appeal from California The Chinese Invasion Workingmen’s Address,” Indianapolis Times, 28 February 1878 |
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