Canadian and US Immigration and Discrimination - Essay Example

Canadian and US immigration and discrimination Introduction: A successful and prosperous life is a dream of all human beings irrespective of their nationality, color or creed. But unfortunately not all gets what they want from life and there is a constant struggle to achieve the deficient. One of the likely reasons is the unavailability of proper resources and hospitable environment that can enable a person to pursue their dreams. A poor citizen of a poor and under developed country mostly blames its government for his present situation. No matter how hard he cultivates, the soil is not fertile enough to fruit an appropriate reward for his efforts. Therefore, around the globe many people eyes on the developed countries as a staircase towards their dreams. They believe that being in a developed state will provide them with proper job opportunities and a reward that is equivalent to their efforts. This partly may be true, but the first step of immigration is a big hindrance and may itself be a discouraging factor. Developed countries like United States and Canada have their own policies of immigration. Some may be beneficial for the immigrants while some poses a challenge to their existence. These negative aspects of these two countries immigration policies can be attributed to the fact that most developed nations are not very receptive to immigrants. A lot of discrimination exists on the bases of original nationality of the immigrants and various other factors. The paper will highlight and compare the difference in these policies and how they might discriminate on various bases. History of immigration in Canada and America: Both Canada and America are major recipients of immigrants from all over the world. As the statistics show that both of them accepted over 12 million immigrants between the period of 1960 to 1980 (Borjas 1991). This was a result of various changes in the policies implemented by the governments in the early 1960s. Before this period both the countries had a policy to issue only very few visas based on the nationality of the applicant. For example in the United States national origin quota system influenced the immigration policy prior to 1965 amendments. There was a definitive discrimination as Asian were only allocated a very low percentages of the total available quota. Most of these accepted immigrants were from European countries, Germany and Russia. Now we know that the source of immigration is an important factor that can determine the skills of the workers. This is partially due to the fact that cultural and social aspects of any country mould an individual’s talent. A single cultural immigration, therefore, caused a decline in the diversities of skills present in both countries. After 1960 both United States and Canada started to accept immigrants from diverse nations. US evolved a policy that allocated visa permits to those immigrants with relational ties to the residents of US. Whereas Canada initiated issuing visas on the basis of applicants observable socioeconomic characteristics (Borjas 1991). So overall these transmutation in the policies of both countries attracted workers with diversity of technical skills that aid in the economic development of these countries. US and Canadian immigration policy 1960 to 1980: The amendments made in 1965 in United States immigration policies abolished the national origin quota system and introduced a more versatile approach in allocation of the visas to the immigrants. These amendments influenced immigration system for the next two decades. Total number of visa allocation was increased to 270,000 and no more than 20,000 can be issued to the origin of a specific country. This is was totally in contrast to the earlier policies where most percentage of the visas was allocated to only few specific countries. Moreover, about 80 percent of those total visas were given to those with close relational ties with the US resident. This in particular was an important amendment because it allowed the families of those skilled workers that already obtained alien residency to migrate in United States. It ensured workers commitment and permanent services to the nation. The remaining 20 percent of the remaining quota were given to the skilled workers and their families. Comparing these policies changes with that of Canada will also illustrate a similar story. Before 1961 a similar situation existed in Canada with scarce number of immigrants coming from few specific European countries. Again the changes in the policy invalidated this origin based allocation and promoted the distribution of visas on the basis of immigrant’s skills. One important reformation of Canadian policy that was in contrast to United State was introduced in 1967 (Chiswick 2008). This was the introduction of point system. Basically the application requesting an entry into Canada was divided and looked upon under three categories: Sponsored immigrants, nominated relatives and independent immigrants. Sponsored immigrants were those who were sponsored by their close relatives in Canada whereas in nominated relatives’ category more distant relatives were incorporated. Independent immigrants had no such sponsorship and they independently desired to enter Canada. Now under to the point system last two categorize were scrutinized. Points were awarded to the applicants based on their education, age, occupational demand and arranged employment. A max of 20 points was given based on the extent of education. An applicant under the age of 35 was also given 10 points. If the occupational demand was high of the applicant he was most likely to score high under this category. Other points were given based on applicant’s job arrangement and a personal assessment by the immigration officer. Any applicant with a score of 50 or more qualified for entry in Canada. This point system was a well organized scrutinizing tool that scanned immigrants and allowed entry of those skilled workers required in Canada. It also encouraged young educated candidates to apply for immigration as they were scored more than the older and uneducated applicants. In 1976 additional points were given to the families of Canadian residents also promoting them to migrate to Canada (Borjas 1991). So a close analysis of the policies of United States and Canada during this period will demonstrate striking similarities in the amendments made by the two governments. It increased the flow of immigrants from Asia in both countries which was very restricted before. As a consequence there was a decline in percentage of immigrants migrating from the European countries. Apart from these similarities there are some major differences in the policies of Canada and USA. A closer look at the policies reveals that US mostly incorporated immigrants on the basis of family ties and Canada mostly recruited them on skill basis. This is a significant observation as in future it counted for the difference in diversity of immigrants in both countries. Present situation: There is no doubt that both US and Canada has a liberal approach towards their immigrants. Both these countries are mould by generations of immigrants and their lineage. Unlike other developed countries US and Canada have welcomed most of the immigrants in the past because they provide them with necessary assistance in the shrinking population of the country. Therefore, immigrants actually are important contributors in the economic development of America. By looking at the history, it is evident that most of the famous and successful companies in US are actually formed by those who migrated and found permanent residency. After the initial amendments in the immigration policies of US and Canada, nothing much has been revised in the present times. The divergence created by the difference in policies earlier however had led both nations’ immigration outcomes to be contrasting. US have almost reached at the verge of saturation in the aspect of immigrants and face a considerable problem in the form of illegal immigrants. This situation is worse in US as compared to Canada and few reasons for this variation can be traced back to the earlier policy differences. Unlike Canada, US minimally looked upon immigrants skills as a ticket to enter its territory. Therefore, those immigrants had difficulty sustaining themselves on their own as jobs opportunities were less for them. They needed more support from the government than a skilled worker would have required. This burdened the economy and further deteriorates the situation for US government. Canadian immigrants on the other hand were scrutinized on the basis of skills and job opportunities available to them. Therefore, they were not a burden on the government and acted more as a catalyst for the development of the economy. Discrimination in Canada and US: Discrimination on the basis of race, color and creed has been a topic of debate for most of the American population. This is partly due to the fact that they have been exposed to various different cultures and races as compared to the other nations. Moreover, both Canada and US being one of the most favorite destinations for immigrants around the globe creates further amalgamation and conflict of cultures and races. It is more severe United States but is also evident in Canada (Driedger et al 2000). In United States, segregation and discrimination started with the implementation of slavery. Prejudice shaped by this slavery prompted legal practice of racism in US. Due to this discrimination black people were only allowed to work on the fields and domestic works. However, in the 19th century a north and south was divided on the issue of racial discrimination. It was not until the late 19th century that slavery system was abolished in US. Canada on the other hand has no such concrete history of slavery and racial segregation. But this statement does not rule out any possibility of racism in the country. Both Canada and US have worked hard in forming an infrastructure that can prevent segregation and racism on the basis of color or creed. But as the world is becoming more globalized the clash of different cultures and nationalities had invoked inevitable wave of discrimination. Many citizens in both countries view foreign immigrants as a liability and burden. Therefore, in Canada and US, discrimination on the basis of origin is more common than the racial segregation. Conclusion: From the discussion and review of the history in regards to immigration policy of US and Canada certain conclusions can be drawn. Initially before the amendments that were seen mid 20th century, most of the immigration policies of both the countries had same underlying notion. It was restricted to most while open for some nations. But after the modifications, both countries opened their borders for all who fulfilled the eligibility criteria. However, these eligibility criteria were different for both countries and in some ways affected the future outcomes. Discrimination on the basis racism was a major problem faced by both countries and though many reforms have been initiated, there is still variable degree of discrimination still evident. Reference: Borjas, George J. Immigration Policy, National Origin, and Immigrant Skills: A Comparison of Canada and the United States. Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research, 1991. Print. Chiswick, Barry R. Immigration: Trends, Consequences and Prospects for the United States. Amsterdam: Elsevier JAI, 2008. Print. Driedger, Leo, and Shivalingappa S. Halli. Race and Racism: Canada's Challenge. Montreal: Published for Carleton University by McGill-Queen's University Press, 2000. Print. Read More