why are refugees treated differently

The way we. The U.S. has an opportunity to build off of its strong response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis. Millions of Ukrainians are living in unimaginable terror; but thankfully the countrys refugees will face a more accommodating Europe than did those who sought similar protection a decade earlier. While refugees are humanitarian subjects primarily seeking protection, migrants are economic subjects, seeking better lives. This is because under Australia's excision regime (which was introduced in September 2001) asylum seekers who arrive at an 'excised offshore place' without a valid visa are barred from applying for a visa to remain in Australia unless the Minister personally intervenes to allow them to do so. A charity that helps refugees has said there is a big variation in how the UK helps people from different countries. If you are among those who hate refugees, do you know why you feel this way? What does Turkey get in return for taking care of Europes deported lot? NPR's Andrew Limbong has more. In the words of Al Jazeera journalist Saif Khalid, when white people commit terrorism this is seen as an individual act that does not represent the entire race. In Srebrenica in July 1995, towards the end of the 1992-1995 civil war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbs massacred 8,000 Bosnian Muslims, a blatant act of genocide. ANDREW LIMBONG, BYLINE: On Friday, CBS News senior foreign correspondent Charlie D'Agata framed the fighting in Kyiv like this. She told us that she shared the name of a family member in California, and then boarded a plane, believing she would be safe and with her family in the U.S. soon. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkelwidely hailed as a champion of refugee rightsfunded Turkeys refugee camps so that President Erdoan would hinder the passage of refugees into Greece, an EU member. Meanwhile, Poland erected a border fence, started to build a wall, passed legislation to make entry more difficult, and only accepted about 5.7 percent of asylum applications in 2020. Yet, as Khalid notes, we do not have a stereotype of white people being inherently violent and prone to domestic terrorism." Branding Muslims as terrorists and using such accusations to reject Muslim asylum seekers are thinly veiled attempts for religious, racial, and ethnic prejudice to masquerade as national security concerns. For example, people are not eligible to make a claim if they have: been convicted of serious criminal . [vi] Immigration policies are allegedly based on principles like "the reunification of families, admitting immigrants with skills that are valuable to the U.S. economy, protecting refugees, and promoting diversity." The death of Alan Kurdi: one year on, compassion towards refugees fades: Toddler's death opened European hearts and policy towards refugees, but 12 months on those changes have proved temporary. Furthermore, to many white and Christian Europeans, an influx of Middle Eastern and African Muslim refugees threatens power dynamics rooted in racial and religious hegemony, while incoming Ukrainians primarily strengthen them. While the first three threats may be considered direct threats, the other three are extended threats. Refugees, for instance, pose an economic threat because they need jobs, low-cost housing, access to health care, etc. An anchor for Al-Jazeera English called Ukrainian refugees, quote, "middle-class people," in comparison to refugees from the Middle East and North Africa. While EU members bicker over how to define, manage, and ultimately dispose of their new work-eager guests, asylum seekers themselves are finding innovative ways to avoid the system and gain access to the labor market so they can accomplish what they came for: Continue their life as best they can, even if on temporary grounds. Notwithstanding, numerous other treaties - dealing with human rights, refugees, stateless people and the protection of political, civil and economic rights -indirectly afford protection for migrants; unfortunately, all too often, receiving countries flout these obligations. 1, People want to keep their identity and their profession when they go abroad. A recent report by Human Rights First documented at least 6,356 reports of kidnappings and attacks on asylum-seekers and migrants after they were turned away from the U.S. under Title 42. These two groups are treated very differently, however, due to the prevalent stereotypes that exist about them in society. IE 11 is not supported. But several EU countries have implemented labor restrictive measures to avoid this. As of March 4, Canada has only resettled 8,580 of . Landmann and colleagues in Germany conducted a series of four related studies to examine hostility toward refugees. Central American and Mexican refugees ask why they aren't being treated at the same level as . Data collected from three IPL projects shows that Muslim immigrants and refugees face higher levels of discrimination in Europe than those with a Christian heritage. In contrast, a refugee arriving in America, after receiving a grant of $900 from the government, often has to rely on private aid organizations. This crisis requires countries that are accepting refugees to have . Rather than bringing people to safety via transit centers and, ultimately, to countries including the United States, these flights are sending vulnerable migrants and asylum-seekers back to danger returning them to the very places theyre fleeing. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. If you are an immigrant, particularly a recent refugee or asylum seeker, you may have already asked this question many times after having experienced prejudice, racism, and discrimination. The Harbour Project charity said many Ukrainians received immediate refugee. You know, looking and seeing why African migrants aren't allowed to cross into Hungary is just as valid as just asking why Ukrainians are. They also found that eligible voters favored refugees with higher employability. 2. Once granted refugee status in a host country, the state cant deport them. The United Nations refugee agency has expressed concern over these expulsion flights, noting that those impacted are being sent back to the very dangers they have fled in their countries of origin. Indeed, these asylum-seekers should instead be welcomed just like Afghans are being welcomed all refugees deserve protection, not just our allies. In this post, I discuss new research by Helen Landmann and colleagues in Germany, which has examined the reasons people use to justify anti-refugee hostility. Ukrainians enjoy more lenient entry requirements, refugee reception centers offering essentials, easier travel within the EU, and free public transportation and phone services. He's the host of NPR's Book of the Day podcast and a frequent host on Life Kit. KESHAVARZ: And I think one very dangerous thing that we're seeing is - and it bears asking the question - is, have journalists become so desensitized to the suffering of different peoples of color, specifically people that are in war zones, that we're no longer seeing on the same level playing field? Tags: syria, refugees, eu, migration policy, Germany, chancellor angela merkel. If the U.S. can orchestrate a historic airlift of Afghan refugees in the midst of a pandemic, we cannot use Covid as an excuse to turn away those seeking protection at our southern border. The European Parliament stresses in a report that even though Sweden offers low working restrictions for asylees, their labor market is inflexible and poorly adaptable to employees with different skills. Since the media expose Europeans more to the conflict in Ukraine, they are more aware of the atrocities and trauma necessitating Ukrainians flight to nearby countries; therefore, refugees need for asylum seems more legitimate. In the past year, a record-high 65 million people have been displaced worldwide, including more than one million people who crossed borders into the European Union while thousands more died on the way. The United States has been consumed with the mass evacuation and resettlement effort for vulnerable Afghans in the wake of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. The Danish. Social Issues and Policy Review, 11, 78-123. As the European asylum system has effectively broken down amid the recent inflow, it is time for the EUs wealthier member states to rethink current practices. In the first of these investigations, they used a sample of 55 male and 121 female psychology students (average age of 32 years). While the two categories are treated differently by law, in practice they are both asylum seekers. The 1953 Refugee Relief Act defined "refugee" (someone in a non-Communist country fleeing persecution), "escapee" (someone fleeing communism), and "expellee" (an ethnic German forced out of Eastern Europe). Early refugees from Ukraine often had relatives outside the country and the means to reach them. Here are some suggestions: To understand the real effects of migration on us and our country, we must rely on data (e.g., economic indicators and crime rates), not ideology. This has meant that asylum-seekers have been expelled in violation of the United Nations 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees, which prevents countries from returning people to places where they face threats to their lives or freedom without providing them the opportunity to apply for asylum. Tens of thousands of people have already crossed into. The 2014-15 asylees from Syria and North Africa were mostly Muslim and faced higher degrees of discrimination than will the Ukrainians, who are largely of Christian heritage. Syrian Palestinians have always been treated differently to their Syrian counterparts; whereas Turkish authorities have given Syrian refugees a "temporary protection" status using a specific regulation (which has become increasingly precarious over time), Palestinians (including Syrian Palestinians) have had to apply for visas to enter and stay . Border patrol agent seen holding whip during encounter with Haitian migrants, the Biden administration has been quietly engaged in another series of evacuation flights, more than 1 million migrants and asylum-seekers, Biden immigration hypocrisy on full display as he tells Haitians fleeing chaos not to come, The United Nations refugee agency has expressed concern, Thousands of Afghan refugees await new homes in U.S. airbases, has 14 days to implement the court ruling, arrive without visas as humanitarian parolees, more than 123,000 people were safely flown out of Afghanistan, received medical screenings and access to vaccinations. Chancellor Angela Merkel is facing her biggest political crisis to date over this issue, with over 40 percent of Germans calling for her resignation this year in response to her open-border policy. Germany, for example, has suffered fromzero population growth for years and is in acute need of young, able-bodied workers to feed its massive industrial economy. The Russian incursion has sparked the fastest growing refugee crisis since World War II, forcing more than 2 . Job insecurity, poverty, and hunger can leave people with no other choice but to risk everything on a boat across the Mediterranean. Why aren't all refugees treated like Ukrainian refugees? Given its magnitude, the Ukraine crisis may prompt leaders to consider policies that cast a wider lens, Laitin said. foreigners). Other EU countries are now considering taking similar steps. David Laitin discusses how the experience of Ukrainian refugees in Europe compares to those who have fled other conflicts and hardships. . The Century Foundation Although Article 3 of the 1951 Refugee Convention states that nations shall apply the provisions of this Convention to refugees without discrimination as to race, religion or country of origin, white, Christian, Ukrainian refugees receive preferential treatment in the EU. Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov recently drew a distinct line between the two groups, justifying differential treatment and fostering a sense of Ukrainian exceptionalism: Underscoring this justification is Islamophobia; Ukrainian refugees are primarily Christian, while refugees from Syria and North Africa are mostly Muslim. All rights reserved. Second, under the EUs temporary protection directive, any Ukrainian national who flees as a result of the invasion, plus his or her partners and children of any nationality, may receive permission to stay in any EU country for one year; previously, a Ukrainian passport permitted visa-free entry into the EU for only up to 90 days. Chief among these is the so-called " jewelry law " - a measure which allows the government to seize asylum seekers' assets, including their jewelry, to fund their stay in the country. Examining these six threat types, researchers tried to determine if only one or two of them might explain hostility toward refugees just as well or even better than all six factors combined. Albagir, a male refugee from Sudan, and one of his co-travelers struggle to cross into Poland. Explosives and debris must be cleared from areas that have been retaken so that water and electric services can be restored. Refugee The United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) defines refugees as those who have fled from conflict and persecution to seek protection in another country. Given the risk of deportation, many also avoid the system altogether and work informally instead. KESHAVARZ: And I think one very dangerous thing that we're seeing is - and it bears asking the question - is, have journalists become so desensitized to the suffering of different peoples of color, specifically people that are in war zones, that we're no longer seeing on the same level playing field? By Muhammad Idrees Ahmad, a lecturer in digital. As anthropologist Miriam Ticktin has documented, some even infect themselves with deadly diseases to gain protection as HIV-positive patients and thereby gain residence. Treatment of Haitians at the border in Texas exposes double standard toward refugees These asylum-seekers should be welcomed just like Afghans are being welcomed. The conflict is also highly symbolic, for it reflects a [return] to bipolarity and a new Cold War, a standoff between democracy and autocracy, morality and hostility. But at the same time, the Biden administration has been quietly engaged in another series of evacuation flights, this time at our southern border. A third study, a replication of the second study, included a sample of 23 male and 108 female students (average age of 33 years) and concluded that, aside from the prejudice threat, every threat type was associated with unfavorable attitudes toward migrants. Turkish security guards shot and killed eleven Syrian refugees. Knowing what you value will help you build the most meaningful life possible. By welcoming Ukrainian refugees and imposing economic sanctions on Russia, the EU has demonstrated its support for Ukrainian sovereignty and opposition to Russian aggression without direct military intervention. Al Jazeera journalist Virginia Pietromarchi notes, Bloody conflicts in Syria, Somalia, and other places have not received the wide-reaching international media coverageor urgent international government actionthat the invasion of Ukraine has inspired." Islamophobia also underlies the assumption that Middle Eastern refugees are violent terroristsa sentiment echoed in Petkovs speech and Orbns comments that Muslim asylum seekers are Muslim invaders, accepting Middle Eastern migrants is importing terrorism, and all the terrorists are basically migrants. This assumption is a blatant fallacy of composition not applied to whites. They have received medical screenings and access to vaccinations upon their arrival. According to the U.N.'s 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is "someone who is unable or unwilling to return to their country of origin owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion." As more refugees entered Europe, detention increased, and former European Council President Donald Tusk even called for 18-month detention periods. In a strategic attempt to halt irregular migration while maintaining her principle of a generous domestic asylum policy, Merkel has facilitated an EU agreement with Turkey. That flow increased the worlds refugee population by about 9 million over the next decade, according to data from UNHRC, the United Nations Refugee Agency. LIMBONG: Keshavarz points to Poland accepting Ukrainian refugees when not that long ago, the country was telling scores of Afghans, Syrians and Iraqis, no, the country's full. D'AGATA: What I'd hoped to convey is that what's unique about the fighting underway here is that this country has not really seen the scale of war in recent years, unlike some LIMBONG: But it wasn't just CBS. The asylum program works to provide refugee protection to people in Canada who: have a well-founded fear of persecution or. A few European politicians have also stressed that Ukrainian refugees are qualitatively superior by virtue of their race and religion to those from countries in Latin America, Asia, Africa and. U.S. authorities are dedicating extra resources to pick up the rate of flights in order to remove them more quickly, saying six to eight flights a day will depart starting Tuesday. Six threat types emerged from the analysis of the responses:1. The act allowed approximately 190,000 refugees, escapees, and expellees to arrive in the United States before the legislation . This led to a disorganized and desperate re-migration throughout Europe, with refugees under continued fear of being repatriated. Religion is a key factor influencing attitudes toward refugees. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Andrew Limbong, NPR News. A refugee is someone who has been forced to flee his or her home because of war, violence or persecution, often without warning. "Countries that had been really negative on the refugee issue and have made it very difficult for the EU to develop coherent refugee policy over the last decade, suddenly come forward with a much . Its an undertaking thats demonstrated the ability of the U.S. government to bring tens of thousands of refugees to safety in America and marshal local resources to help them resettle in their new home. 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