Recently, there have been remarks
from Dehli officials that seem to imply that migrants are ruining the city.
With each account of a major crime, the offenders tend to be “non-natives” of
the Dehli area. This is because of Dehli’s high migration intake as a central
city in the area. The city attracts all people from neighboring counties and
countries, and with such a high population of migrants in the city, there is an
increased chance of crime being greater among these peoples than the “natives”.
The people of Dehli are associating crime with ethnicity, instead of considering
the fact crime rates correspond with populations. Since the migrant population
is larger than the native, the crime rate will naturally be higher with the
migrants than natives, thus creating the illusion that migrants are more prone
to crime than natives. This then creates ethnic tensions and hatred between the
two groups, mostly from the natives who want to preserve they’re culture and
economic standings amongst the influx of farmers and various other outside professions
that come to the city in search of new lives.
This predicament is very much
similar to the US/Mexican immigration debate: the accusations of the outside
groups coming and stealing our jobs and bringing “their” crime with them. What
is not being considered is the economic aspects of these immigrants who come
into a new world with no smooth transitions, and must find any means to make
ends meet (sometimes crime being the only option). We as host cities/countries,
do not provide the means to make the best use out of these flourishing labor
resources. Instead, make it harder on them. We try and keep the immigrants out
or threaten them while they’re within out border/limits. Not to mention the
media, which has the ability to make these situations flair up into a blaze
when crimes are committed by immigrants, reinforcing the stereotypes and
possibly inciting acts of violence.
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