Patty Holley's

Analysis of Interview(s)

The differences in perspective between the two people who left India at approximately the same time was something that I found extremely interesting.  Both left India in the early 1980s.  However, they were at very different stages in their lives.  One was mature, moving out on his own to complete his education in the United States.  The other was a young boy, viewing the world through the eyes of his parents.  Neither expresses an interest in returning to India permanently at this point in time, but one does hear regularly from his students (who are mostly migrants themselves) that they do plan on returning to India once they complete their education here. 

This type of thinking falls into the area of transnationalism.  This phenomenon occurs when migrants "develop and maintain multiple relations -- familial, economic, social, organizational, religious, and political that span borders." (Schiller, Basch, Blanc-Szanton)  Many migrants who currently reside in Arizona are here on a temporary basis, wanting one day to return to their homeland and family.  This loyalty to land of heritage is something that "many Americans don't seem to comprehend.  Their nationalism is so strong, they don't seem to respect it in other countries." (Clark) This aspect of the differing views of those who recently left and those who have been here for more than 20 years I believe is impacted by the situation in India when they left, not necessarily the situation as it stands now.

Migrants who have achieved social status and have respected professions in their homeland many time have to give those up when they move to another country.  For example, Vinay's father was educated and employed as a mechanical engineer and his mother was a high school teacher.  Both lost those positions of respect when they moved to this country.  It was hard to hear about the times of disillusionment when Vinay saw the disappointment on his father's face when he lost a job in this country.  "When people come from poor to rich countries, without local knowledge or networks, lacking proficiency in the language and unfamiliar with local ways of working, then their entry point into the labour market is likely to be at a low level.  The question is whether there is a fair chance of later upward mobility." (Castles)

The question of the value of migrants comes into play when you look at the total picture of globalization.  "When you have a system that frees the flow of capital across borders, you should move toward a transnationalization of labor, too... all such workers should be protected by serious enforcement of health and safety regulations on the books." (Cooper) Those who are an important part of the economy should be afforded the basic human rights that we expect, demand, for citizens of the United States.  Many workers who arrive and accept jobs here take dangerous work, where their physical safety does not play into their employers' concerns.  Low paid and manual jobs are held by women and immigrants.  "Although these types of workers and jobs are never represented as part of the global economy, they are in fact part of the infrastructure of jobs involved in running and implementing the global economic system including such an advanced form of it as international finance." (Sassen)

The basic premise of migration may vary greatly depending upon the country of origin; however, you cannot diminish their experiences based on country of origin.  The contributions and experiences of migrants from any country has many shared similarities.  The emotional impacts of moving from homeland, friends and family, and trying to assimilate yourself into a foreign and usually inhospitable environment is not an experience that many chose to undertake without much thought and deliberation.

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