More essentially, do we understand why Europe’s leaders have chosen apparently the multiculturalism option, rather than trying to keep Europe ethnically “European”?
Apart from our continent’s colonial legacy, Europe became multicultural because it chose to follow the USA in its financial and social policies. After WW2 the European economy was in tatters and so it was forced to copy the American model, whose economic boom was based on immigrants from all over the world, including Europe.
One by one, eventually, most European nations adopted this model and for many years it proved acceptable and successful. That is, until the EU’s 2004 big-bang expansion to the East, combined with the eurozone and refugee crises. [...]
The debate over whether the country should loosen its immigration laws is becoming more vocal. Shigeru Ishiba, in charge of revitalising regional economies, stated in 2015 that since Japan’s population is in decline, the government should promote policies to accept immigrants into Japan. “It is wrong to think that foreigners must not come to Japan,” he said. [...]
Today just 0.7% of the population receives benefits – compared with the 4.8% of Americans who get grants from Aid to Families With Dependent Children or the 9.7% who receive food stamps. About 2.3% of Americans receive grants through the Supplemental Security Income programme, which serves the elderly, blind and disabled.
To be sure, Japan’s welfare system operates in a very different context to America’s. Only 1% of Japanese births are to unwed mothers. By comparison, the rate in the United States has now reached 30% and keeps climbing.
No comments:
Post a Comment