The Ethics of Migration and Immigration

1. The Ethics of Migration and Immigration Introduction to Moral Issues

2. What is Migration? • Migration is fundamentally the story of the human race from its origins to the present. • People move to survive. They move in search of food. • They move away from danger and death. • They move towards opportunities for life. Migration is tied to the human spirit, which seeks adventure, pursues dreams, and finds reasons to hope even in the most adverse circumstances.

3. Theories of Migration • One author, Peter Stalker, describes migration theory in terms of individual approach, structural perspective, and networks or systems theory.  • The individual approach focuses on individual choices, including family or group choices. • It is also labeled the 'human capital' approach, according to this scholar, because it is looked at in terms of education, skills, and health investments in persons • The structural approach deals with influences that are more social, economic, or political, such as population pressures and unemployment. • Networks and systems theory involves more than individual decisions and structural forces. It combines movement of goods and capital with political and cultural elements.

4. Feminist Critique of Migration • Migration theory has also been challenged in the context of gender. • Scholars have argued that traditional migration theory does not help explain "the circumstances that encourage women to become transnational migrants, to enter into trafficking channels, or to seek refugee resettlement." 

5. Evolving Migration Characteristics • With growing economic interdependence, some would argue that it is only natural that people (labor) follow the capital, wherever that might take them. • Similarly, some argue that people should not have to move for jobs, but instead governments should encourage capital to remain in the nation and should protect jobs for citizens.  • Global warming and resource depletion have no boundaries. Some feel that these environmental issues cannot be addressed by nations acting individually.  • Thus, they might argue that the movement of people around the globe becomes the province of the world, not that of individual nations. • Others believe that in order for countries to protect their environment they need to restrict immigration.

6. Shifting Destinations • While migration trends used to be from developing countries to industrialized countries, those patterns do not necessarily hold today. • With the "dot com" bust many professionals have left the United States and returned to India. • Small farmers in the U.S. are moving to Latin America. • As businesses expand to sites abroad, migration among developing countries increases. • There are also "new" considerations in determining destination. • Language and customs have a significant role in determining destinations. • For example, human rights organizations in Colombia prefer to send their persecuted members to Spanish-speaking countries. • Second, they choose to send their members to more "welcoming" nations. • Indonesian women are going to Saudia Arabia to work, because the Muslim families in Saudia Arabia want Muslim women working in their homes and caring for their children.

7. Methods of Movement • Many methods of migration are similar to ancient methods of travel. People continue to migrate on foot and by rickety boats.  •  More recently, movement of people has occurred via containers on ships and trucks. • Attempts to migrate have also included hiding in the wheel-wells of airplanes. • Ships and airplanes account for much of the migration that occurs legally across borders.

8. More Risky Migration • The methods of movement mean that migration can take place at a much faster rate. • The newer methods of moving surreptitiously across borders are proving to be more risky and dangerous. • As movement is restricted by the building of walls and increasing use of technology, people turn to those who are sophisticated, organized, and possess the resources to move them around the barriers. • This reality leads to increased vulnerability to human trafficking.

9. Different Immigration Policies • Some sending countries believe that borders should be monitored and exit permits should be restricted in order to stem the flow of labor and intellectuals. • Other sending countries choose to offer incentives to those who pursue overseas employment and travel. • Sending countries also struggle with issues of citizenship of their nationals who adopt a new country. • There are countries such as Mexico and Ireland that recognize dual or multiple citizenship. • In other words, a citizen of Mexico or Ireland retains that nationality even if she or he obtains citizenship in another country. 

10. Different Immigration Policies • Other countries do not recognize dual citizenship, so once their citizens obtain citizenship in another country they lose all rights of nationality in their home country. • Another question facing sending countries is the extent to which they will protect their citizens who are residing in another country. • There are rights of embassies to protect and advocate for their citizens in another country. • But such exercise of protection requires use of political capital and resources to commit to effective advocacy of their citizens abroad.

11. Benefits of Emigration • Some benefits of emigration include a reduction in population stress. • This in turn reduces stress on the land - land needed for food production and land needed for homes. • It also reduces stress on resources such as water, heating oil or wood, and services. • Emigration brings to the sending country capital in the form of remittances. • It serves as an inexpensive form of foreign aid. Emigrants also send new ideas, culture, technology, and products home to family. • Emigration rids a country of malcontents, dissension, and criminal elements. The government can use emigration as a mechanism to maintain its political control. • Emigration also shifts the care of elderly to receiving countries.

12. Losses from Emigration • The energy and strength of young people are often lost by the sending country through the process of emigration. • There are "ghost" towns in countries such as Mexico, where the only residents for most of the year are women, young children, and older persons. • Many also decry the "brain drain" that occurs with emigration. These persons note the investment that sending countries have made in education and health, only to lose these intellects in the prime of their lives.

13. Losses from Emigration • A further loss is the community infrastructure. Older people and children are left in many sending countries without mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters. • The traditional families and communities are disrupted, and this disruption, some would argue, dominos into other parts of the social structures in sending countries. • Finally, some argue that there is a loss of capital that travels with labor and intellectuals abroad. • Others see this departure as part of the necessary growth of intellectuals, and the natural result of capitalism.

14. Impact on Receiving Countries • The decision whether to close a border(s) and which border(s) depends on the relations the country has with the sending nation, the type and number of immigrants that arrive from that country, and the political, social and economic environment which exists at the time of the immigrant's arrival. • Questions which factor into decisions about closing borders include the cost of closing the border (financial, technological, and human resources needed), the human cost (loss of life crossing deserts or seas), the geography and feasibility of closing the border(s), and the political will to close the border(s). • Receiving countries must decide whether they will accept any immigrants at all. • If they choose to accept immigrants but with limitations, then they must decide which immigrants will be given preference (ethnicity, education, skills, family already in the receiving country), how many immigrants will be allowed to enter over what period of time, and what process will be used to facilitate immigration (will it be rigid or will there be discretion).

15. Benefits of Immigration • The benefits of immigration include the influx of labor, capital, and innovation. • Many countries find that new immigrants are willing to fight and die to protect their new homes, and so incorporate new immigrants into their military. • New immigrants bring enthusiasm, energy, and culture to share with those already living in the country. • They pay taxes which support services to those living in the country. • Immigration also unites family members and promotes more stable families and communities.

16. Losses from Immigration • Others say that new immigrants strain already overburdened service providers. They need education, health care, housing, and support services. • Some feel that immigrants disrupt existing practices and beliefs and power structures. • There are some that feel national unity and cohesiveness disintegrate with the arrival of new people.

17. Responses to Immigrants • Justice SystemThe justice system is one of the systems generally thought to be open to all. • Yet, immigrants may not have the same rights or access to the justice system as those given to native-born persons. Some would argue that justice should apply equally to everyone who is found within the borders of a nation. • Others argue that the laws cannot and should not apply the same to all.There are those who caution that immigrants strain the criminal justice system. • They point to the number of immigrants in jails and the amount of law enforcement resources dedicated to dealing with immigrant-related crimes. • On the other hand, recent studies in the United States show that native-born citizens are more likely to commit a crime than immigrants.  • Law enforcement is torn between needing the cooperation of immigrants to help solve crimes and the financial incentives and political pressures to help enforce immigration laws.

18. Language • The debate over language is often a heated one. Most nations encourage newcomers to learn the national language. • Language can be seen as a mechanism for integration and acculturation. • For full participation in the national and political life of a country, immigrants benefit from knowledge of the language. Language is seen as a unifying force. • Some see language differences as a matter of identity, cultural pride, diversity, and a connection with one's ancestors. • Where language differences are accepted, there are costs such as bi-lingual education, multi-lingual signs and instructions, and a constant need for qualified interpreters. • Language is fluid and constantly changes. • For language purists, the introduction of new languages may endanger the old form of the language. New hybrids are created, and for some these hybrids are the signs of the vitality and richness of language.

19. Employment and Immigrants • Jobs have been zealously guarded during economic decline. Many argue that citizens cannot get jobs because immigrants are willing to work for less. • Yet, there are employers who simply cannot find laborers and must recruit from abroad or move their companies abroad. • Legal rights for immigrants in the work place help some, but many do not know their rights or are too afraid to exercise them. • While one could argue that immigrants should not be encouraged to work illegally by providing such workers with employment rights, others would point out that creating an underground, unequal labor force only undermines the rights and protections of all workers.

20. Healthcare and Immigrants Health care is a service generally provided to all, including immigrants. • It is difficult to treat and care for only the native-born population, when dealing with contagious diseases. Diseases spread regardless of immigration status. • Yet, the cost of providing even basic services is enormous. • Often tax dollars are used to cover these services. It is true that immigrants pay taxes and thus help to pay for the health care services they receive. • It is also true that much of medical care is being provided by health care providers from abroad. • Nevertheless, a growing population from immigration puts an increased demand for services on health care providers. • Some have proposed to have healthcare providers report undocumented immigrants to immigration. • Yet, others fear that parents will not take dying or sick children to the hospital if they are afraid that they or their children will be deported.

21. Conclusion • As a framework for this debate, there are some crucial questions: • Who are the migrants of today? • How do we understand the needs and rights of those who migrate? • What rights do migrants have and how do those rights compare to the rights of those who do not migrate? • How are the needs and rights of migrants to be balanced against those of the people from the sending, transit, and receiving countries? • Do countries have obligations beyond those they owe their citizens? If so, what responsibilities do countries have to migrants? • If not, then what entity has the power and will to protect migrants? • Can countries to close their borders at all costs, or do they have some obligation to minimize the harm to persons crossing their borders? • Are migration issues best served when addressed nationally, regionally, or internationally through orderly processes and clear laws? • Or are there times that individual citizens or communities can and should address migration issues outside of national laws and legal processes? • What are the limits on the power of countries to control or affect migration? • Who decides what those limits are? • Are there methods and forums to discuss and address migration issues?