Written by: Timothy Sonniah

Every year dozens of individuals from different countries across the world migrate to the United States of America; often, the reason for this migration is to seek employment as they believe that there are more opportunities in the United States of America and that equal opportunities are for everyone. Unfortunately, all these feels are contrary to the reality that awaits all first-generation immigrants in the United States of America.

The current set of laws regarding immigrants somehow supports undocumented immigrants’ unlawful treatment and those that have temporary protection by the government (Leisy,2011). The above statement is a clear indicator of what awaits immigrants in the United States; the “American Dream” is a virtual dream. These immigrants are constant victims of different forms of discrimination.

Racial profiling is among the leading forms of discrimination that immigrants face. Social Organizations play a significant role in how immigrants notice how much racialization takes place in America. This essay’s primary objective is to elaborate on the impacts of social racialization on the lives of first-generation immigrants and how these immigrants learn about social racialization. 

In the study on social racialization on first-generation immigrants in the United States of America, themes are quite dominant; the theme of racial socialization in first-generation immigrants through the media and the theme of racial socialization in first-generation immigrants their work environment. According to the social conflict theory, resources are available to individuals depending on two factors: dominance and the power these people have.

There is a vast difference between Americans and first-generation immigrants when it comes to employment and work environments. For instance, half of the first generation immigrants working in America have gone as far as high school when it comes to education levels. In contrast, 20% of first-generation immigrants work in areas requiring minimal skills, like cleaning (Girard & Smith, 2012).

In addition to this, according to Girard and Smith (2012), it takes a first-generation immigrant over a year to secure work in firms that offer regulated occupations in the United States of America.

Moreover, Catron explains that unlike American born individuals who care secure a job being as young as sixteen years, first-generation immigrants often secure jobs at older ages (Catron, 2016). The media also plays a significant role in social racialization because it determines how the public, in general, views these first-generation immigrants. According to Sohoni and Mendez (2014), media portrayals often depict first-generation immigrants as dangerous people and a risk to the population, which escalates social racialization.

The media also labels students who move to America for studies as “exchange or foreigners. The study makes use of a mixed approach as it borrows from both a qualitative and quantitative approach. Several works and journals explain different themes in the research paper. In addition to this, an analysis of varying content to understand the impacts of social racialization on first-generation immigrants. 

The collection of samples for an in-depth study would come in handy; the data comes from questionnaires, journals, interview observations, and surveys, among others. Pieces could come from regions in America that are inhibited by first-generation immigrants and areas where these individuals work. SPSS is the most appropriate method for analyzing the data collected from samples as it gives concrete results at the end of the project.

Such a project requires a significant amount of funds, making funding the most considerable drawback in the project.

References

Abrego, Leisy J., and Cecilia Menjivar. 2011. “Immigrant Latina mothers as targets of legal violence.” International Journal of Sociology of the Family. 

Catron, Peter. 2016. “Made in America? Immigrant occupational mobility in the first half of the twentieth century.” American Journal of Sociology 122, no. 2. 

Girard, Magali, and Michael Smith. 2012. “Working in a regulated occupation in Canada: An immigrant-native born comparison.” Journal of International Migration and Integration 14, no.2. 

Sohoni Deenesh and Jennifer Bickham Mendez. 2014. “Defining immigrants newcomers in new destinations: Symbolic boundaries in Williamsburg, Virginia.” Ethics and Racial Studies 37, no. 3.