Migrating to another country can bring new hope and new opportunities for adults but will it be the same for the children? How many children are able to blend in properly to the countries that they live in after living in their home country for quite some time? It can be harder for children if they are immigrating illegally because this means that they have to hide. At the same time, there are some children who are unable to go to school because they do not have the legal documents to continue their education at the new country. This can always be a problem for a lot of people.
Negative Effects of Immigration on Kids
There are some negative effects that kids would have to endure because of immigrating illegally such as the fact that they always have to be invisible. Some are not allowed to be friends with real immigrants or the real citizens of the country for fear that they will be seen and reported. Some immigrant kids grow up friendless with no one to rely on but themselves especially if their parents are working hard to make a living.
At the same time, illegal immigrants may be used and abused. They are given some jobs that pay less than the regular pay and the employers always give them the hardest jobs, jobs that citizens of the country would not get for anything less. All the stresses that illegal immigrants would have to go through can be resolved but only if they would become legal citizens of the country but in order to do this, they would have to pass documents that will show that they are staying in the country when they are not supposed to.
For some kids, they would love to just go back to their home country but their parents would tell them that their “home” country cannot be called home anymore. The reasons for this may vary. It may be because of the lack of jobs, the lack of opportunities or the lack of money that can force adults to bring their children to another country to become illegal immigrants.
Positive Effects of Immigration on Kids
Of course, if there are some negative effects that kids may feel, there are also instances when they would go through positive things because of immigration. Usually, this is achieved when immigration is done legally and kids are able to go to normal schools. They are allowed to socialize with other children and while it may be hard in the beginning especially for kids who are painfully shy, they would begin to speak with other kids and eventually make friends.
Kids who are children of immigrants tend to see their parents working hard and having aspirations so they tend to absorb these good traits. They may have a tendency to do well in school not because they are being forced to do so but because they want to. Since immigrant children are usually born into large families, they also have more support than other original citizens of the country.
If there are some kids who are bullied because of their skin color or because they are different, they may feel bad about it but when they have the support group that they need, they learn to rise above the hate and prove to their detractors that they are never meant to be bullied. Despite the challenges that immigrants may feel in the beginning, they will be able to get through it after they have already adjusted to the new environment and the new life that they are living.