Essay Sample on International Migration: Growing Trends & Impacts

Introduction

International migration has become a continuous attribute of modern societies. Individuals move across borders looking for a more pleasant retirement, more significant opportunities for acquiring new ideas and skills, more fulfilling jobs, and for a better life. Also, people migrate to escape natural disasters, political persecution, and war. For worse or for better, migration has been growing in the recent decades, particularly in the U.S and Europe, and is improbable to abate in a developing interdependent world marked by extending civil wars, political and economic differences, and also less predictable and changing climatic patterns (Just and Anderson, 2015). After the Romanian revolution and the entrance of Romania into the European Union, the number of Romanian immigrants to the U.S has been increasing rapidly (Simionescu, 2019). About 20% of the Romanian immigrants in the EU and U.S work in agriculture, 30% in the building sector, and 50% in the tertiary sector (hotels, restaurants, and family care) (Simionescu, 2019). This paper will analyze the immigration of Romania's family to the U.S about 20 years ago.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Background Story and Conditions in Country of Origin

The tremendous changes that have taken place in Southeastern and Central Europe for the past decades have enabled former communist nations like Romania to re-join the Western world and the free market economies (Just and Anderson, 2015). After the Romanian revolution, the economic and political changes have not been easy and has taken shape against the background of social and technological change unprecedented in immensity due to the rapidness of communication and increased globalization phenomena (Beachain et al., 2012). The Romanian migration represents an original case of transplantation of people trying to escape the localism (claustration, isolation), and seek for new better opportunities. Daniel Lonut and Dana Tudoe were among the Romanian intellectual immigrant who left the country 20 years ago and went to the U.S to live the American dream. They had two children, Darius Lonut 19 years and Andreea Maria 11 years.

At the beginning, the Romania government was experiencing severe economic hardships due to increased foreign debts that made it difficult for the new regime to invest significantly in education even after the fall of the communist regime. Thus, many Romanian immigrants left the country to look for quality education, and they were looking for destinations like Spain, Italy, and the U.S that had a better education system that would make it easier for their children to have a better future (Beachain et al., 2012). Also, due to the internal situation of human rights and poverty and the positive influence of diaspora immigrants, many people from Romania were willing to start a new life elsewhere.

Why the Family Choose the U.S and the Support System They Found

After Romania became a member of the EU, the majority of the Romanian immigrants have been moving to EU countries like Spain, Italy, and France among other countries. However, Daniel and Dana together with their children decided to go to the U.S. The civil liberties and appealing economic conditions provided by the U.S, the optimistic letters sent home by immigrants to their relatives, the recruitment campaigns offered by immigration firms, and the donations that were made by immigrants to cultural associations, newspapers, schools, and churches among other attracted Daniel family to move to America (Wertsman, 2002). Also, the favorable economic conditions in the U.S provided a rigorous need for the workforce, something which was convenient to both Daniel and Dana.

Although immigrants in the U.S come from different countries, they all experience issues that enable them to develop a sense of kinship and solidarity with other immigrants-being immigrants means being born and lived in a different social, economic, and political environment (Just and Anderson, 2015). Moreover, it means an experience of the psychological and physical relocation and uprooting that mostly need significant efforts in adjusting to a new environment and also learning how to deal with the impacts of being different in the hosting homeland and being an outsider. However, in the U.S, Daniel and Dana received support from the Romanian-American Network, which provides opportunities for outreach and socialization to the Romanian-American society all over the U.S (Romanian-American Network, 2020).

Issues Faced by the Family and How They Were Addressed

The Romanian immigrants are distributed throughout America, with concentrations found in the Midwest like Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan; the Northeast, in California, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New York. In the Southeast, Romanians communities are found in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia (Wertsman, 2002). After relocating to the U.S, Daniel and Dana, together with their children, moved to Los Angeles, California. While starting their new life in the adopted homeland, the family experienced several challenges that are mostly faced by the majority of immigrants who move into a new country. First, although Daniel and Dana had learned English in Romania, it was not their first language, and their children did not know how to speak English. However, to address this issue, both the parents and children took ESL classes.

Also, even though many immigrants are happy to take any available job once they enter the country, finding proper work and moving up the corporate ladder, is profoundly hard. In many instances, immigrants are the easy victims of exploitation and discrimination in the workplace in America (Grigorenko, 2013). Many employers can recognize a sense of desperation and urgency among these groups to maintain their jobs, making them take dangerous and less desirable roles. Both Daniel and Dana were well educated. At first, they took available less desirable positions in the companies that were not paid well. Afterwards, they went to university to enhance their education; Daniel studied IT and Dana Business Administration. Later after working hard for about five years, they were able to get good jobs where Daniel became head of the IT department, and Dana became a professional business consultant in a reputable firm.

Furthermore, in the beginning, before finding proper jobs, the family struggled to raise their children in a new and unfamiliar culture. The children adopted American culture quickly and relinquished the Romanian culture fast, something that was hard for the parent to cope with since they were used to a collective culture that is different from Western individualistic culture. However, afterwards, the parents were able to catch-up with their children in adopting the new American lifestyle with the help of other Romanian-American communities (Grigorenko, 2013). The children succeeded well in school, where Darius became an IT expert, and Andreea became a business consultant like her mother, and this enabled the whole family to live the American dream, which was the reason why they left their country.

What I Learn about Immigration in America from This Story

The story of an immigrant family from Romania 20 years ago to the U.S shows that the American dream mostly influences immigration in America. Immigration in American has occurred in different waves; however, for all those years, the factors which drive immigrants to go in the U.S continue being the same. For many people throughout the world, the American dream means, opportunity, freedom, and safety (Orchowski, 2008). Although in the beginning, Daniel and Dana's family experienced hardship both in terms of suitable employment, raising children, and integrating into American culture, they were prepared to face the challenges. In the end, the whole family was able to live the American dream. Today, thanks to these immigrants, the USA is known worldwide as a country that has the most sophisticated cultural identities. Moreover, the whole country's national identity is shaped by the motivations, drive, and energy, which every successive generation of immigrants brings. Also, as immigrants pursue their dreams, the U.S economy is strengthened, and everyone can enjoy the American dream. Therefore, from Daniel and Dana's story, it is evident that America immigration puts the U.S as a country in a position to develop international partnerships based on mutual gain, empathy, and understanding.

Conclusion

Throughout human history, migration has continued being a significant concept to societies across the world. The end of the Cold War enabled former communist countries like Romania to join the European Union, making it easy for the Romanian immigrants to move across Europe and the U.S (Beachain et al. 2012). However, throughout history, the factors which drive immigrants to go in the U.S continue being the same, living the American dream. For many people throughout the world, the American dream means, opportunity, freedom, and safety.

References

Beachain, D. O., Sheridan, V., & Stan, S. (2012). Life in Post-communist Eastern Europe After EU Membership: Happy Ever After? Routledge.

Grigorenko, E. L. (2013). U.S. Immigration and Education: Cultural and Policy Issues Across the Lifespan. Springer Publishing Company.

Just, A., & Anderson, C. J. (2015). Dual Allegiances? Immigrants' Attitudes toward Immigration. The Journal of Politics, 77(1), 188-201.https://doi.org/10.1086/678388

Orchowski, M. S. (2008). Immigration and the American Dream: Battling the Political Hype and Hysteria. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Romanian-American Network. (2020). Romanian-American Network. 301 Moved Permanently. https://ro-am.net/roam/

Simionescu, M. (2019). European economic integration and migration in Romania. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istrazivanja, 32(1), 3607-3626. https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677x.2019.1674176

Wertsman, V. (2002). Romanians in the United States and Canada: a guide to ancestry and heritage research. Heritage Quest.