The Rise of Discrimination Against Foreigners

Foreigners have been negatively impacted by our society's prejudicial behaviors and beliefs, which is far from anything new. Ultimately, it needs to come to an end.

By Victoria Trebicka

For generations, discrimination amongst foreigners has been an ongoing issue. Recently, unjust treatment, such as racial and lingual discrimination has increased. The flawed mentality of people needs to become aware of the devastating impacts it creates for foreigners and their families and future families. How much longer can these desperate individuals tolerate verbal and physical abuse, lost job opportunities, and question the safety of their families?

More cases have occurred due to the spark of the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically targeting Asian Americans. Amongst those Asian Americans are foreigners who immigrated to the United States to start a brand new life for their families. Little did they know, they were to be blamed for a virus just because of their physical appearance and accent.

           

                                     

  As you can tell in the image above, there was a protest being held against Anti-Asian cruelty. Two women are seen holding a sign that says, "Time for facts not fear," and "My ethnicity is not a virus,". These signs portray the outrageous hate and violence that is swarming Asians during the COVID-19 pandemic. It saddens me to think that others are blaming a whole ethnic group because the virus originated from their country. Action is being taken place to show others that these people are human beings just like us.                                                                                                                                                            

During, the COVID-19 pandemic, Asians have experienced racial discrimination, which has taken a toll on their lives. According to Justin A. Chen, Emily Zhang, and Cindy H. Liu's article on, "Potential Impact of COVID-19-Related Racial Discrimination on the Health of Asian Americans", published in the American Journal of Public Health stated, "Historical precedent suggests that COVID-19-related racial discrimination will exert harmful effects on Asian American health...the experience of racial discrimination has been associated with worsened psychological and physical health outcomes, including increased pain and disability and higher all-cause mortality". Not only is this impact heartbreaking, but imagine if your family and kids were put in this position because they were belittled based on their ethnic background during a pandemic. And the sad thing is that it's avoidable! 

  Not only are foreigners racially discriminated against, but they are mistreated due to their language or dialect. In an article from UNDARK, Stanely Dubinsky, Kaitlyn E. Smith, and Michael Gavin stated, "People speaking differently have been denied restaurant service or lodging, lost access to public transportation, and even been physically assaulted". The effects that foreigners endure are far from normal, especially when it has to do with their native language. 

These types of incidents have been reported following Chinese people with a Wuhan accent, Italians traveling with a dialect outside of their country, and even Americans within their own country. Foreigners who learn another language are going to have an accent, but should they be brutalized for it? Of course not! The language or dialect that human beings speak is crucial to their national identity and ethnic group. 

             

                                                           

The picture above says, "Speak English always," which symbolizes lingual discrimination. This picture almost seems like a threat. I understand that communication is key, but if a person cannot speak your native language, there are ways to conversate back. 

First of all, you need to be patient, no need to panic or get uncomfortable. You can communicate by using your hands, such as pointing to objects and using signals. The second is to use a translator on a device or any other kind of app. A third way, if it is not possible to help the person at all is to get someone else who can possibly aid them in what they need. Last but not least, if you run into someone whom you cannot communicate with and you cannot be attentive to help immediately at that time, then it does not hurt to be respectful and say something along the lines of, "Sorry, but I cannot help right now,". These are all effective methods to take into consideration and action with other foreigners.

It reminds me of a personal situation that my father, Genci experienced while in the workplace. A teenage boy went up to Genci’s face and said, “Speak English. I do not understand your language,”. At that moment, my dad was in utter shock. After that, managers were called. One thing led to another and his manager announced to my father that he was fired. Everything my dad had exactly explained to me, he had told the manager. My dad was curious as to why that decision was made. The manager continued to explain that the particular reason for this circumstance was that the teenage boy felt threatened by my dad’s behavior and felt as if he was going to hit him. At that moment, my eyes shot out of my socket, I stood up flabbergasted. I abruptly asked, “How did he feel threatened?” and paced the room. My dad softly said, “I spoke with my hands to say no and the teenage boy took it way too far and used it against me,”.

In contrast, yes, someone could argue, "Speak English. I do not understand your language or dialect. If you come into someone else's country you must only speak our native language,". This may be true, however, I still insist that no one should be degraded and looked down upon for not being able to be understood. No one should be forced to only speak that country's native language. Perhaps it would be extremely helpful when it comes to certain situations with job opportunities. Although, others should not cause difficulty and stress on someone else's life, just to make them more comfortable. Other languages need to be valued too!  

Around the world, there is a diversity of people and hundreds of languages. People need to understand and accept other people's cultural differences. The racial and lingual discrimination against foreigners is outrageous and unjust. With awareness, patience, and change, foreign discrimination can finally come to an end!