Differences Between Sweden And Denmark

Migration policies are often designed with the sole objective of influencing international migration by either restricting or encouraging circular migration, immigration or emigration(Ripsman & Paul, 2010). Open border policies have contributed to the uncontrolled to the flow of illegal immigrants into countries and in turn generating challenges to the host countries. The fundamental basis for arguments has been whether open immigration policy or restricted immigration policy

Globally, the United States has been known as "a nation of immigrants" almost from its inception. Beginning in the 1600s with English Puritans and continuing today, America is a melting pot of culture and ethnicity. In fact, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, immigration was the major source of U.S. population growth. Looking over our 200+ years we find that to clearly be true, with approximately 1 million immigrants coming to America during the 17th and 18th century. Almost 3 million arrived during the 1860s, and another 3 million in the 1870s. In the next four decades, the number of immigrants rose to over 25 million people, most from various European nations, most arriving in New York or one of the Eastern seaports (Damon, 1981). Despite the politicization, as of 2006, the United States actually was the number one country globally to accept legal immigrants into the country, with a current immigrant population of almost 40 million (Terrazas and Batalova, 2009). In fact, the peak of immigration was 1907, when over 1.2 million Europeans entered the country beginning a push towards legislation limiting immigration in the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1924 and the 1921 Congressional Quota Act. These immigrants came for two sociological reasons: the push factor (wars, famine, persecution and overpopulation) and the pull factors (jobs and the promise of freedom). Most came by ship, and a passage often cost the equivalent of an entire life's savings causing many

This is due to its relatively homogeneous population of 5.4 million, a strong sense of national identity, and the fact that, until recently, immigration flows were moderate. Most immigrants in Denmark came from other Nordic or Western countries, and the country experienced more emigration than immigration. The problems the Danish welfare state faces in terms of integrating immigrants are rooted in two interconnected phenomena. One is that the government and the public believe the continued success of Denmark depends on cultural homogeneity. The second is that policies of entry and integration have been inadequately geared to distinguishing between different "categories" of immigrants (e.g. economic migrants versus refugees, male versus female immigrants, Muslim versus non-Muslim), and have also been unprepared for the increase in the number of refugees and family dependents. However, since politicians and the public are beginning to realize that Denmark will need more immigrants in order to cope with the an ageing population and to ensure a sufficient supply of skilled as well as unskilled workers to a booming economy, there are a number of concrete changes in immigration policies. They include automatic citizenship for children born and raised in Denmark, regardless of their parents’ citizenship; equal welfare rights for immigrants and Danes; vast reductions in application fees and cash securities; expanded work benefits

Patricia B. Strait’s article, “When Societies Collide: Part Three: Finding the Best Fit Immigration Model” (2011), showcases multiple immigration models for countries to choose from. Countries look at its current factors to determine which model is appropriate. No model is necessarily the best, but instead, Strait emphasizes finding the most fitting model for a country's historical, cultural, demographic, and economic prerequisites.

To begin it is helpful to understand that the word “migrant” is a rather contested concept, one that changes over time, and varies depending on the criteria used to assign it.(Raghuram & Erel, 2014, p.133)

Finally Iceland introduces the segmented assimilation theory which focuses on divergent patterns of incorporation among contemporary immigrants. Iceland then moves to comment on how U.S. immigration policy has influenced

For the last year, people from the various regions of the globe have been fleeing their home countries and migrating toward several nations across Europe. What pushes them away and what draws them to their final destinations? Ascertaining a single motivation of immigration remains too complex to determine because a variety of factors and goals have lead to this grand movement. Several issues arise from increased numbers of immigrants who may or may not be finding what they seek.

The global mobility of human resources between countries is a key driving force of the currently ongoing economic and regional development all over the world. It is indisputable that the immigration of international labour force would exert many positive and important impacts on the economic, cultural and social structure of both migrant-receiving and migrant-sending countries. Actually, the trend of temporary and permanent immigrants increasing in some western countries began to gain momentum in recent years. Organization for Economic Cooperation Development (OECD 2004) reports indicated that there were more than 1 million new immigrants in the United States in 2001 and 2002, increased by 25% from 2000; in some European countries

Over the last decade, the number of immigrants has increased tremendously growing from 331,000 to a whopping 409,000. An increase of about 78,000 people ( Britannica). Despite media coverage on the issue many people are blind to the true nature of the situation . Therefore it is important to understand the extent to which immigration affects us all.

From the micro-level to the macro-level globalization has transformed the world into a smaller place with constant interactions occurring at every moment between nations, institutions, groups, and individuals. And with this prevalent interconnectivity, migration between the Global North and the Global South has been a controversial consequence of this global integration (Hinojosa, 2015). For this reason one cannot ignore the importance and impact of migrant populations in the country they settle in, and in the countries of origin.

Danso in his study highlights how a society accepts and welcomes its new members goes a long way to influence the life chances of the newcomers in their new country. He examines how “if refugees are accepted not as full members of the new society, but as ‘unwelcome others’, it may create a condition of social exclusion leading, ultimately, to dysfunctional integration for the refugee community” (Danso, 2002. p. 7). Anti-refugee rhetoric’s hinder individuals from access to opportunities, which may affect them from complete membership and participation in Canada. Danso highlights how a feeling of acceptance by the receiving society will determine if the refugees ‘sink or swim’ (Dano, 2002, p. 7). He also explores the initial stages of resettlement and how harmful it is if refugees are placed in circumstances where they find themselves in conflict situations with the new society who views them as competition for

As we stepped in to 21st century, humankind still faces poverty, insecurity, diseases and warfare. Often causing massive amount of migration to a safer land that offers better and secure future. Immigration brings its own challenges that is almost unique for every immigrating humankind and hosting nation. Therefore, immigrants face issues that they have never faced or even thought about. Trying to cope through unseen issues and even putting core values on the line, immigrating often have very interesting challenges.

Immigration in its simplest term can be conveniently referred to as the international movement of people into a destination country of which they do not have citizenship in order to settle of reside there especially as permanent residents or naturalized citizens to take up employment as a migrant worker or temporarily as students. No nation on earth can boast of singlehandedly archiving all that it has without the help of immigrants. The case f America isn’t different. “The idea that immigrants have the capacity to make the country more innovative and more prosperous is especially appealing at a time of deep insecurity about America’s economic future and its place in a global changing economy” Demetrios G. Madeleine S. (2011) The role of immigration in fostering competitiveness in the united states. p2

To measure societal acceptance towards immigrants, attitudinal data can be utilized to better understand the effects of immigration on both societies. One way to measure the general political reaction of each country towards the influx of immigrants. Though such data is constrained by temporal boundaries, a blanket understanding can be gleamed from surveys taken in nations during different periods. Further, in both countries, support for the importance of mainstream right-wing strategies has exacerbated the politicization of the immigrant issue. A survey asking identical questions in the two countries was conducted by the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia in 2000. The Swedes tend to be more positive than the Danes, but the differences are not dramatic. However, similarly to Denmark, societal attention to the issue increased in the 1980s, not least due to a considerable growth in the number of refugees from the Middle East. In both nations, there are clear trends that reveal a significant rise in negative attitudes towards immigrants; but, the levels of said societal and political attention towards immigrants and the policies enacted which affect immigrants differ greatly in Sweden and Denmark.

As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, it is imperative to understand how societies interact and the issues they are facing. I have been interested in languages, cultures, and international affairs for many years which is why I have decided to major in Global Studies. To broaden my global perspective, I am currently participating on St. Lawrence University's Global Francophone Cultures program where I am studying abroad in Quebec, Canada; Rouen, France, and Dakar, Senegal. In addition to learning the French language, the main area of focus for this year's program is immigration. One of the courses I am taking is called, “The Age of Migration: Labor Mobility in the EU.” In this course we have read various articles on immigration, researched countries immigration policies, and are studying the economics of immigration. We