German Immigration
Summary
I saw the topic of immigration manifest itself in Germany in that the people there lacked a common identity. Similarly, there wasn’t a lot of pride for the German country. I don’t recall seeing one German flag during my time in Germany. These observations were validated in the interviews that follow.
Interview #1
While I was at the farm in Berlin, I had the opportunity to talk with Toby. He shared many insightful things about German culture compared to American culture. Toby stated that many Germans feel limited in what they think they can accomplish. To elaborate, the German nation as a whole feels defeated. They have lost 2 world wars and have been occupied for many years. Their history shows a divided nation specifically when it comes to the Berlin Wall. Toby’s thoughts were very powerful and gave me a glimpse of the mindset of the German people and the reason behind it. It makes complete sense but is quite sad too. These Germans have grown up in such a troubled nation being limited by wars, poor economy and so many other things. It made me realize how blessed I have been to grow up in America where I truly haven’t faced many limits of where my dreams could take me. As our conversation continued, I asked specifically about the issue of immigration in Germany. Germany recently re-elected Angela Merkel as chancellor who is in favor of open borders. Toby said that this obviously doesn’t help the flow of immigrants coming into Germany. The conservatives of Germany are also in favor of open borders and believe that everyone should be welcomed into the country. Toby thinks that there should be open borders but there also needs to regulations as well because there are so many people fleeing their own countries from war to come to Germany.
Interview #2
The second interview took place with Eugin as we were cleaning potatoes at the farm. Eugin didn’t have as much to say as Toby did but he still gave some insightful thoughts. Eugin filled me in on the recent election that had just taken place and explained that the border security most likely would not change because the same chancellor was just re-elected. Eugin’s personal thoughts were similar to Toby’s in that most people should be welcomed into Germany but he definitely thought that not everyone should be. He thought that there needed to be a more strict process to pass into the country but overall was in favor of immigration.
From these interviews it is clear that the common view on immigration in Germany is positive. The majority of Germans, including the government, approves open borders.