A Changing Europe
Hey, Where Are You Going?
When people move, they don’t just leave one place and magically arrive somewhere else. Often, people are pushed out of their original place and pulled towards a new place. This idea is called the push-pull factor.
Push Factor - A force that acts to push a person or group of people away, like war, no work, natural disaster, unlimited governments
Pull Factor - Something that pulls a person or group of people to a new place, like safety, jobs, good education, limited governments
Places with jobs available PULL people to move there.
Places that have war, are unsafe, or have unstable governments PUSH people to leave.
Places that have droughts (not enough water) lead to crops and livestock dying. Eventually, this can cause starvation, which PUSHES people to move.
Places with natural disasters experience destruction and require time and money to rebuild. This PUSHES people to move.
Developing economies usually have access to good health care, which PULLS people to move there.
Good education can help break the cycle of poverty, which PULLS people to move.
Push and Pull Factors
The Immigration Crisis in Europe
The European Union* has seen a rise in immigrants flowing into Europe. Some people are crossing by land, but many are traveling through the Mediterranean Sea in unsafe rubber boats to get there. According to the Pew Research Center, a record 1.3 million immigrants applied for asylum in 2015.
Asylum seekers, also called refugees, immigrate to look for protection after being pushed out of their home country. Many who fled to Europe left due to corrupt governments, war, and a general lack of safety. The number of immigrants to Europe keeps rising, which worries many Europeans.
*European Union - 27 European countries that have agreed to cooperate towards peace and economic opportunities
Why are they Moving?
Many countries in Africa and Asia are struggling with push factors like unstable governments, developing economies, and climate changes. Immigrants are moving from there to Europe, in search of pull factors like developed economies, stable governments, good schools, more job opportunities, and where life is much safer.
Europeans disagree about whether or not they should allow in more immigrants and refugees. They don't know how European countries will be able to provide shelter, food, medical attention, and other services as these immigrants rebuild their lives in Europe.
Examples of PUSH factors from Asia and Africa
Syria is in the Middle East, which is part of ASIA
South Sudan is in AFRICA
More than 250,000 Syrians have lost their lives in their violent civil war. It began when citizens rose up against the corrupt government, and is now a fight between the people and those in power.
People have left South Sudan to seek safety from the violence of civil war and genocide. Recently, climate change has caused droughts, desertification (when the land turns into deserts and you can no longer grow crops), and starvation.
Culture Clash
Before this recent increase of immigrants, European countries were homogeneous*, meaning most people were alike or similar. For example, most Europeans share the same religion: Christianity.
However as refugees began to arrive, Europeans started to experience more diversity* with different ethnic groups* and religions. Many of the immigrants from the Middle East and North Africa are Muslim of the Islamic faith. Ignorance and fear about the new cultures that are arriving to Europe have led to conflicts over laws, rights, and immigration practices.
Fortunately, there are many Europeans who are educating themselves and trying to help find solutions for the thousands of refugees that continue to move to Europe from Africa and Asia.
*Homogeneous: all are alike, similar, same characteristics
*Diversity: having different races, languages, religions, cultures in one place
*Ethnic group: a community or population made up of people who share a common cultural background (history, language, religion, daily life, governments, food, music, etc)
Most Europeans are Christian; there are different types of Christianity, such as Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant.
