Monday, November 21, 2011

Refugee Community Adaption in USA

Refugee community adaption depends on how long refugees have been in USA, either they have other family members who came before them or not, how much English they speak, how soon they can get a job, education,....Some studies also show that for people from war zones, it may take more time for them to trust anyone due to an abusive life they have experienced which leads them to isolation and lack of community adaption. For example, when i came to America, it took me a while to feel comfortable being in a movie theatre because being in the dark and hearing the noise reminded me of the genocide in my country. Many refugees want to eat food that they are familiar with, therefore going to American restaurants or being invited at the house of their American friends for dinner may be a problem.

Let's see how the three social theories impact refugee adaption in their communities:
SYMBOLIC INTERACTION and CONFLICT THEORY: Perception of Refugees: Depending on how much development refugees had from their home countries, coming to America may be a huge change in their lives (for example: facing more technology in USA than home) compared to non-refugees. If communities (neighbors, employers, teachers, health care providers,....) focus on saying that refugees don't have enough knowledge in technology (symbolic interactionism theory), refugees may lose many apportunities like employment and scholaships and this will lead refugees to being discouraged by the fact that there is competition between them and the dominant group which has power over them (Conflict theory), therefore refugees may end up by isolating themselves and feel like they are left behind and want only to intergrate with their fellow refugees who understand them.

FUNCTIONALISM: Language barrier (lack of English) makes refugees unable to express themselves and intergrate in the society. There are so many activities that refugees would like to attend/participate in, but the fact that they can't understand what's going on discourages them. Another problem that may influence this adaption can be the life that refugees lived back home. In some countries people don't pay much attention on being on time while in USA this is a huge deal, therefore it may take time for refugees to adapt to this new system.

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