IS XENOPHOBIA JUSTIFIED?
Nowadays, due to high immigration rates from one part of the world to another, globalization is on the rise in modern societies and therefore terrorist acts are more common than ever. Hence, xenophobia is a prominent social issue. Is it, however justifiable?
More and more people flee to European countries due to financial or political pressures to start a new life. Nevertheless, locals see them as a menace and feel threatened by their presence, although some immigrants succeed in assimilating in a community and become socially accepted. This phenomenon occurs as the mass media discriminate against foreigners who happen to commit certain crimes by stressing their nationality when they broadcast the news. This makes locals leery towards them and since television has such a strong impact on public opinion these racist ideas are consolidated. Another cause of xenophobia is the misguided upbringing of children by conservative parents who show bias against non-natives.
But what are people afraid of and are their fears justified? For starters it is a fact that employers show a preference for cheaper working hands most of which belong mainly to foreigners. As a result, locals start to develop hostile feelings due to unemployment rates rising. Furthermore, locals are afraid of religious extremist groups and therefore don’t allow immigrants to exercise their religious rights and ceremonies as they should. Another matter that the public fears, is contracting exotic diseases that these people might be carrying with them from their countries of origin and could spread rapidly within the community due to the lack of hygiene. In addition to that, many foreigners are occupying many employment slots that locals should use. This is why there are many conflicts between natives and non-natives.
In conclusion I believe that xenophobia is justified. However, immigrants committing crimes, or violating rules, is not the norm, because even locals can ignore rules and break the law! We must not be misled by the Mass Media blaming foreigners for everything possible! We must learn to coexist with these people! We must be humane….
Harris Tsitsirigos, Γ΄ Γυμνασίου