Due to certain events in the last couple of years, many refugees and immigrants are looking to find their homes in the West. However, when things like these happen, it’s unavoidable that voices will appear and shout how they don’t want illegal aliens coming through their borders.
No matter if you’re living in the USA or some other First World country, there’s a lot of confusion when it comes to immigrants these days. Well, it’s not just these days. The same rhetoric was in use back when Italians, the Irish, and Poles came to America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Nevertheless, those people became pillars of the modern-day United States, and it can happen again if we welcome newcomers again.
In the following lines, we’ll list five pros of having immigrants in your country. We’ll thoroughly explain them in the hope of clearing things up for you and your community.
Immigrants Increase Native People’s Happiness
Although this might sound strange at first, refugees actually increase the happiness of the native population. A study done by the London School of Economics and Political Science claims that recent flows of immigration in Europe have an overall positive impact in many aspects.
During the first two years of their stay, they have a major impact on how happy the natives are in certain countries. However, after those initial 24 months, those numbers become insignificant and stagnate.
The mentioned study shows how countries with a low influx of refugees have lower happiness levels on a diagram that is based on empirical evidence. The countries in the research are Finland and Luxembourg (low influx) and Spain and Germany (high influx).
Contribute New Ideas and Customs
It’s no secret that immigrants change the fabric of society. And when you say something like this, most people will take it negatively. However, you can say the same thing about technological advancements and newborn natives too. The change of society is inevitable, regardless of whether immigrants do or don’t come to our countries.
The reality is that this change is for the better. Overall, refugees and immigrants make a positive impact. The likes of cuisine, new ideas, customs, art, and expertise come to full fruition when mixing cultures.
Just think about how many celebrities you know are immigrants. From older movie stars like Andy Garcia to brilliant minds like Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, to highly skilled tech geniuses like Sergey Brin of Google, the list goes on. Each of them had a positive impact on American culture, education, and tech development.
This immigrant benefit is best seen in the United States of America. “How so?” you might ask. Well, just think about jeans, Apple, Mexican food, tech giants like Apple, and you’ll understand that they’re all products of the immigration system. After all, the whole country is built on the idea of mixing different cultures, and so far, the results are more than satisfying.
Companies Can Fill In Vacant and Undesired Job Positions
Today, it’s no secret that most of us don’t look forward to working at undesired job positions like mere labor force. Every one of us has big dreams and wants to be a successful business owner, unlike our grandparents and their parents before them. This is an unfortunate reality of most First World countries, regardless of how steady or booming our economy is.
Luckily, immigrants are here to the rescue again. Within the first few years of their time in new countries, most of them are more than happy to take on vacant positions and undesired jobs. They need to start somewhere, and such work opportunities are perfect. But don’t get us wrong. We’re not saying that they’re the ones who should keep doing those jobs for the rest of their lives. Instead, it’s a perfect opportunity to begin a new life.
After some point, most of them will begin to branch out, developing their businesses and giving their children a proper education to take that step forward when their time comes. This is more than helpful to the native population, as businesses won’t need to take jobs to other countries around the world, and the domestic economy will start kicking again.
Increases the Country’s Economic and Financial Growth
Numerous studies show how immigration shows economic benefits and overall growth. However, ordinary people tend to think differently, as they believe the old mantra about refugees stealing their jobs. Most of us know that famous scene from South Park where the crowd chants: “They took our jobs!” And just like that episode tells us, that’s not really the truth, and here’s why.
Immigrants and native-born workers simply don’t compete for the same jobs and positions. Moreover, they tend to balance each other. Their jobs complement economic growth. And as such, they up the productivity of existing workers. For example, in America, most legal immigrants work in STEM fields that include high-tech development, medicine, and so on.
Immigrants Are Greatly Capable of Entrepreneurship
By now, it’s no secret that immigrants show great skills when it comes to being entrepreneurs. In fact, they have more drive than the locals. But how so? What’s the reason behind this interesting notion?
Well, it mostly comes down to risk-taking. By default, immigrants are more prone to making risky moves, which is easily seen in their initial decision to leave their native country and start all over again. They understand how to succeed, one needs to put his cards on the table and go with the flow.
But starting their businesses doesn’t only benefit them, their families, and their communities. Even if many immigrant workers stay just workers, some of them branch out and create jobs for the local economy. Moreover, their presence outweighs the labor supply, causing the wages of both natives and other immigrants to rise.
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