Chez Jolie Coiffure: Understanding the Push and Pull of International Migration Extensions
Extensions
Whose crisis? Response and Responsibility in the Global Refugee Crisis
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) the UN Refugee Agency reports that as of the end of 2019, “at least 79.5 million people around the world have been forced to flee their homes. Among them are nearly 26 million refugees, around half of whom are under the age of 18. There are also millions of stateless people, who have been denied a nationality and lack access to basic rights such as education, health care, employment and freedom of movement.”
Why have approximately 1% of the world’s population fled their homes and what responsibilities do the international community (and we as individuals) have to them? Have students analyze the scope of the global refugee crisis (see resources below) and consider the ethical and legal implications of this issue.
Students will:
- Examine the nature and scope of the global refugee crisis
- Identify the complex Push/Pull Factors underlying the crisis
- Analyze the international laws and rules that address the treatment of migrants and if/how they are effectively implemented and monitored
- Appraise the United States’ role in the crisis including existing and newly established policies and legal constructs that define the rights, opportunities and responsibilities of refugees and asylum seekers
- Write an essay in the style of an Op Ed arguing how and why U.S. policy should be modified to better address the global refugee crisis
Resources:
- The Flow Towards Europe - Europe is experiencing the biggest refugee crisis since World War II. Based on data from the United Nations:
https://www.lucify.com/the-flow-towards-europe/ - The Refugees Operational Portal
Partners coordination tool for Refugee situations provided by UNHCR
https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations - UNHCR Refugee Agency - Refugee Population Statistics and Data
https://www.unhcr.org/data.html - Facing History and Ourselves: Migration Explainer
https://www.facinghistory.org/sites/default/files/ExplainerMigration.pdf - United Nations, “Migration”:
https://www.un.org/en/sections/issues-depth/migration/index.html - The Core International Human Rights Instruments and their monitoring bodies:
https://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CoreInstruments.aspx - International Organization for Migration – Migration Law Database
https://imldb.iom.int/_layouts/15/IML.Portal/AppPages/Home.aspx - Facing History and Ourselves: The 1951 Refugee Convention and Protocol
https://www.facinghistory.org/standing-up-hatred-intolerance/1951-refugee-convention-and-protocol
Dismantling Myths about Migrants and Migration (Includes resources in Spanish and English)
The subject of immigration is a fraught topic that is complicated by widespread myths and stereotypes that too often go unchecked. Have students research and collect five to 10 myths that are most commonly repeated in discussions about immigrants and immigration policy and investigate the roots of each myth as well as its purpose in the social and political debates. Have students develop a Bust the Myths campaign at their school that illustrate immigration Myths, Facts, and strategies for their peers to “Bust the Myths”. Projects can include posters, infographics, student generated videos (short looping vids are effective), gifs an or original memes. The sources for all information and data included in their campaigns should be reliable and appropriately cited.
Resources:
- “Migrants Are on the Rise Around the World, and Myths About Them Are Shaping Attitudes,” By Eduardo Porter and Karl Russel, New York Times, June 20, 2018.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/06/20/business/economy/immigration-economic-impact.html - “Discover More: Immigration Myths and Realities,” POV American Documentary (In Spanish and English)
http://archive.pov.org/madeinla/immigration-myths-and-realities/ - “Ten Myths About Immigration,” Teaching Tolerance, Issue 39, Spring 2011
https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/spring-2011/ten-myths-about-immigration - “Sources | Ten Myths About Immigration, A list of sources that help to dispel common immigration myths.” Teaching Tolerance, July 21, 2015
https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/sources-ten-myths-about-immigration - “New Americans Quiz,” Independent Television Service (ITVS), 2014
https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/newamericans/quiz.html - Immigration Myths and the Facts.” U.S. Chamber of Commerce, April 14, 2016
https://www.uschamber.com/sites/default/files/documents/files/022851_mythsfacts_2016_report_final.pdf - “What would happen if the US had totally open borders? 7 myths about immigration, debunked.” by Rutger Bregman, Business Insider, Aug 23, 2018.
https://www.businessinsider.com/immigration-myths-open-us-borders-debunked-2018-8#myth-1-theyre-all-terrorists-1 - “4 myths about how immigrants affect the U.S. economy.” By Gretchen Frazee, PBS New Hour, Nov. 2, 2018
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/making-sense/4-myths-about-how-immigrants-affect-the-u-s-economy - Immigrants and the Economy, ACLU,
https://www.aclu.org/other/immigrants-and-economy - LATINO AMERICANS (In Spanish and English)
A production of WETA Washington, Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB) and Independent Television Service (ITVS), 2013
http://www.pbs.org/latino-americans/en/education/lesson-plans/ - “How media stereotypes about Latinos fuel negative attitudes towards Latinos.” by Latino Decisions, Sept 18, 2012
https://latinodecisions.com/blog/how-media-stereotypes-about-latinos-fuel-negative-attitudes-towards-latinos/ - “Latino Stereotypes Thrive in the Media, Negative Attitudes Dominate.” By Mónica Novoa, Sep 20, 2012
https://www.colorlines.com/articles/latino-stereotypes-thrive-media-negative-attitudes-dominate - “What Is the Model Minority Myth?” By Sarah-Soon Ling Blackburn Teaching Tolerance, March 21, 2019
https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/what-is-the-model-minority-myth - “Debunking Misconceptions About Muslims and Islam,” Teaching Tolerance
https://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/tt_debunking_misconceptions_0.pdf - “Speak Out: Challenging Muslim Stereotypes YCteen staff,” Youth Communication, November/December 2015
https://www.ycteenmag.org/issues/NYC249/Speak_Out:_Challenging_Muslim_Stereotypes.html?story_id=NYC-2015-11-08
Whose rights? Constitutional Protections for Undocumented Immigrants (Resources in multiple languages)
The modern debate about U.S. immigration policy often fails to forefront the fact that the rights of all immigrants are protected under the U.S. Constitution. Beyond a few exceptions--such as voting, running for president or Congress, and in some instances traveling between states—all immigrants on U.S. soil, documented or not, enjoy “equal protection under the law.” The U.S. Supreme Court reinforced this concept in its 1896 ruling in Wong Wing v. United States, “The Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution is not confined to the protection of citizens." Have students define the legal rights of undocumented immigrants in the United States and investigate why immigrant rights are unknown or misunderstood.
Students will:
- Understand that the 14th Amendment grants anyone on U.S. soil “equal protection under the law.”
- Compare these rights to the protections outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and their implementation and effectiveness
- Examine why immigrant rights and protections are unknown or misunderstood by the majority of immigrants and American citizens
- Research an assortment of outreach and education resources and programs by immigration advocates and develop a practical guide to immigrant rights in the form of a pamphlet (this can be print or digital)
Sources
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