Why do some people assume that all foreigners living in their country are 'second class citizens'?

Question

I read a lot of questions and answers here where people seem to 'tar everybody with the same brush'.
They see foreigners in their country as a group of problem people who should all go back home.
Why is this?
Surely a person arriving in a country should be judged based on their personal credentials instead of the country they were born in?
Imagine if you had to choose between the following 2 people to live next door to you:
a) A muslim refugee asylum seeker who had trained to be a nurse and was a kind hearted person;
b) A white native man who had served a prison sentence for violence and assault and still showed signs of aggression without remorse,

surely you would choose to live next door to the nurse?

So why do some people see the likes of the nurse as a "second class citizen" over the violent white man who was just released from prison and shows no sign of remorse?

Help me understand.

Answer 1

Because the foreigners (most of them) piss-off the local people by demanding changes in the current laws and traditions of that country to accommodate their weird customs.
Examples of that would be, "Christmas is offensive to Muslims"
"The sight of pigs is offensive to Muslims"
Etc.
They don't want to acclimate to the new culture but instead want to recreate their own culture from the place that they fled in a different location where it is not wanted.
That is the biggest reason.
Does that help to explain it for you?
It has little or nothing to do with your race, or your chosen profession, or your national origin, or even your religion, it has to do with the inability or unwillingness to adapt to the new culture.

Answer 2

They are not second class citizens because they are not citizens at all. They are guests. I have seen little in the discussions here that suggest the type of xenophobia you suggest. The discussions you disparage tend to talk about illegal immigrants. They are not guests; they are intruders. They are law breakers just as surely as the man "b" in your slanted hypothetical.

Imagine there are two foreigners wandering your neighborhood.
A) You invite one in to have dinner because you have more than you can eat.
B) One breaks into your home in the middle of the night and helps himself to your leftovers. (Are you sure the food is ALL he wants? Aren't you concerned at all about your family sleeping in the next rooms?)

If you can't see the difference between an invited (legal) immigrant and one who enters the country illegally, perhaps you need to head to the border states and live with the problem.

Answer 3

*sigh

"rights" not withstanding, unfortunately the same issue happens everywhere and what i think happens is that nationals all become very protective of their 'turf'. i've travelled to quite a few countries and each one has their same hang-up that include these feelings.

Right now I'm in China and it's interesting because most of the Chinese treat me like a child and I have no clue what is going on or that I can possibly understand what they are saying. The most fun i have is catching people saying remarks about me in front of me, or trying to cheat me. Then I realize that Americans do it in the US to anyone who is ethnic, the same thing happens.

That and the US is looked down upon by pretty much every country in the world right now, it's interesting to think that I say I'm from Canada more often because it gets me into less fights and is safer in the long run (and I mean from physical violence). Denying my country is a great feeling.

Answer 4

There's a long history of immigrants coming to the US because their lives in their old country were so bad. Typically, these people did not have money or connections here, so they certinaly weren't going to live a wealthy person's lifestyle. Also, if they come legally they still need to wait a long time to get green cards and visas and citizenship, which makes it hard.

Answer 5

Here's the thing. I myself am sick of questions/open ended comments such as these. No offense and by no means am I trying to be rude to you. But you are just as bad, you are generalizing. I do not have any friends or family that judge "second class citizens" by their race, we do the judging by the money you "appear" to have/make. I was born and raised in America. One of my direct grandmother's, was from Australia. She was from a very wealthy family there, but she came here and that status didn't follow, but she made her own money. My best friends boss whom I respect tremendously is from Israel, he is an entrapaneur in the wireless industry. My brother-in-law, he's from Mexico, and he's in the military. One of my other friends, he's from Cuba, he's a freakin' real estate guru in our parts. Just because a person isn't born and raised in America doesn't make them second class. But also, please don't use the word citizen, because not all "immigrants" are. Some of them don't want to be. But anyway, again, please quit generalizing. It makes you just as bad as the people in whatever countries you have these feelings toward that behave like this.

P.S. when I stated that we judge second class citizens by the money they appear to have, doesn't mean we think we're "better" than them. Because by no means, does having money make you a better person than the next.

Answer 6

personal credentials are relative and it usually isn't the first thing that comes to mind whenever a citizen sees a foreigner as opposed to a fellow citizen. your example is like comparing apples and oranges. while personal credentials may be the only thing citizen and foreigner have in common, no one would even bother to consider their similiarities because of the natural first impressions.

Answer 7

Why are they second class citizens? Because they do not have the same right as nationals.

Answer 8

Ignorant, illiterate foreigners,,,,are second class citizens.
Ignorant, illiterate Americans,,are second class citizens.
Political correctness, does not rule my life.
Common sense, and Logic does.

Thank you very much