Refugees Stereotyping

Refugees Stereotyping

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Refugees Stereotyping

Question 1

American refugee families face many challenges I their everyday lives. While some refugee families assimilate and acculturate into the American system, others find it difficult to cope with these challenges hence ending up in deplorable circumstances. The difficulties these families face are enormous and refugees that cannot cope with them languish in poverty and desperation. According to David Haines (2010), one of the greatest challenge refugees face when they come to America is the challenge of acceptance. Society tends to alienate or reject refugees simply because they are not natives or are of a different color. Refugees therefore struggle with these issues having no one to turn to and thus are likely to run into problems or resort to crime in order to survive.

The American society has an opportunity to assist refugees begin new lives, recollect their past and prosper in the new and challenging environment. Failing to help these refugees is a failure on our part to assist them to become established and knowledgeable students. Refugees require humanitarian assistance and special programs that will assist them recover and chart a promising future (Haines 2010). Failure to provide services and an environment suitable for their recovery places them in difficult conditions. Hostility from American citizens and the lack of welfare programs would doom the lives of the already traumatized and desperate individuals that come to seek refuge and a new beginning. They therefore need food, shelter, clothing and a means of income. Without these provisions, they may never survive the harsh conditions of the new life.

Refugee assistance is a critical contribution to their recovery and a major step towards their success. The government must develop programs for provision of necessities and accessories for refugees. Citizens on the other hand have a duty to be hospitable and co-exist peacefully and understandably with refugees. Individuals can also join programs offering services that help refugees. Citizens can also assist them seek employment and access other important services from the government and the community. The most important responsibility the government and society have in helping refugees however is the provision of a favorable environment for the refugees within the community (Haines 2010).

Question 2

            Generalizations direct the overall perceptions people have on a certain group of people. A great number of the population for example, might generally perceive refugees as people who come to America to scramble for the limited resources. In other instances, some people might view all other non-Americans as refugees. These generalizations lead to the creation of stereotypes. For example, all black people might be viewed as poor people from Africa even though some of them have lived in America for most of their lives. Categorization of refugees into communities and groups according to their ethnic origins or their countries leads to the development of negative stereotypes (Elliot & Segal, 2012). Negative stereotyping results from the general perceptions of individuals that what is right for a person is right for the entire community. Thus, communities and groups of refugees or individuals make a major contribution to the stereotyping issue.

The following are some of the questions about the museum exhibit:

• Why are black people less intelligent and sophisticated than white people?

The Revision of the question:

• What factors contribute to poverty in African countries?

The rest of the questions for the museum exhibit:

• Why do racial stereotypes exist even in modern times?
• Is the level of racial/refugee stereotyping increasing or reducing?
• What generalizations do Americans have on refugees and refugee communities?
• How does racial stereotyping affect the development/ progress of refugee recovery?
• What has the government and concerned bodies done to curb increasing racial stereotyping?

References

Elliott, D., & Segal, U. A. (2012). Refugees worldwide. Santa Barbara, Calif: Praeger.

Haines, D. W. (2010). Safe haven?: A history of refugees in America. Sterling, VA: Kumarian Press.