xenophobia essay body

5 Essays About Xenophobia

The word “xenophobia” has ties to the Greek words “xenos,” which means “stranger or “guest,” and “phobos,” which means “fear” or “flight.” It makes sense that today we define “xenophobia” as a fear or hatred of strangers or foreigners. Xenophobia has always existed, but the world has experienced a surge in recent years. The essays described in this article provide examples of xenophobia, its ties to anti-immigration and nationalism, and how diseases like COVID-19 trigger prejudice.

“These charts show migrants aren’t South Africa’s biggest problem”

Abdi Latif Dahir  | Quartz Africa

Between March 29-April 2 in 2019, violence broke out in a South African municipality. Foreign nationals were targeted. Even though people were killed and businesses looted and destroyed, the police didn’t make any arrests. This represents a pattern of violence against foreigners who are mostly migrants from other places in Africa. Reporter Abdi Latif Dahir explains that these recent attacks are based on a belief that migrants cause South Africa’s economic and social problems. In this article from Quartz Africa, he outlines what people are blaming migrants for. As an example, while politicians claim that migrants are burdening the country, the data shows that migrants make up a very small percentage of the country.

Abdi Latif Dahir reports for Quartz Africa and speaks multiple languages. He also holds a master’s of arts degree in political journalism from Columbia University.

“Opinion: A rise in nationalism could hurt minorities”

Raveena Chaudhari | The Red and Black

Nationalism is on the rise in many countries around the world, including the US. The election of Donald Trump signaled a resurgence in nationalism, including white nationalism. In her essay, Raveena Chaudhari explains that far-right politics have been gaining steam in Western Europe since the 1980s. The US is just following the trend. She also uses the terms “patriotism,” which is an important part of the American identity, and “nativism,” which is closely linked to a fear of immigrants and diversity. Xenophobia easily emerges from these ideas. Minorities feel the consequences of a rise in nationalism most keenly. Raveena Chaudhari is a junior accounting major and staff writer for The Red and Black, a nonprofit corporation that circulates the largest college newspaper in Georgia. For 87 years, it operated under the University of Georgia but is now independent of the college.

“The Deep Roots of Trump’s Anti-Immigrant Policies”

Daniel Denvir | Jacobin

In this essay, author Daniel Denvir digs into the background of President Trump’s anti-immigration policies. At the time of this piece’s writing, the Supreme Court had allowed the administration to exclude certain groups from entering the United States. The travel ban has been labeled the “Muslim ban.” Where did these anti-immigrant views come from? They aren’t original to Donald Trump. Denvir outlines the history of racist and xenophobic policies that paint immigrants as a threat to America. Knowing that these views are ingrained in American society is important if we want change.

Daniel Denvir is the host of “The Dig” on Jacobin Radio and the author of All-American Nativism, a critique of nativists and moderate Democrats.

“Nationalism isn’t xenophobia, but it’s just as bad” 

Jeffrey Friedman | Niskanen Center

If you’re unsure what the difference is between nationalism and xenophobia, this essay can help clarify things. Written in 2017, this piece starts by examining surveys and studies measuring how xenophobic Trump supporters are. They also explore the reasons why people oppose illegal/legal immigration. The core of the essay, though, takes a look at nationalism vs. xenophobia. While different, Friedman argues that they are both irrational. The distinction is important as it reveals common ground between Trump supporters and Trump opponents. What does this mean?

Jeffrey Friedman is a visiting scholar in the Charles and Louise Tarver Department of Political Science at the University of California. He’s also an editor and author.

Xenophobia ‘Is A Pre-Existing Condition.’ How Harmful Stereotypes and Racism are Spreading Around the Coronavirus 

Jasmine Aguilera | Time

As COVID-19 spreads throughout the world, there’s been a surge in racism against people of Asian descent. In her essay, Jasmine Aguilera relates examples of this discrimination, as well as responses as people take to social media to combat xenophobia. Reacting with racism to a disease is not a new phenomenon. It’s happened in the past with SARS, Ebola, and H1N1. Society always looks for a scapegoat and minorities usually suffer. This has an impact on a population’s health, livelihood, and safety.

Jasmine Aguilera is a contributor to Time Magazine. She has written several articles about COVID-19 for the publication.

You may also like

15 Quotes Exposing Injustice in Society

14 Trusted Charities Helping Civilians in Palestine

The Great Migration: History, Causes and Facts

Social Change 101: Meaning, Examples, Learning Opportunities

Rosa Parks: Biography, Quotes, Impact

Top 20 Issues Women Are Facing Today

Top 20 Issues Children Are Facing Today

15 Root Causes of Climate Change

15 Facts about Rosa Parks

Abolitionist Movement: History, Main Ideas, and Activism Today

The Biggest 15 NGOs in the UK

15 Biggest NGOs in Canada

About the author, emmaline soken-huberty.

Emmaline Soken-Huberty is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon. She started to become interested in human rights while attending college, eventually getting a concentration in human rights and humanitarianism. LGBTQ+ rights, women’s rights, and climate change are of special concern to her. In her spare time, she can be found reading or enjoying Oregon’s natural beauty with her husband and dog.

• Bipolar Disorder
• Therapy Center
• When To See a Therapist
• Types of Therapy
• Best Online Therapy
• Best Couples Therapy
• Best Family Therapy
• Managing Stress
• Sleep and Dreaming
• Understanding Emotions
• Self-Improvement
• Healthy Relationships
• Student Resources
• Personality Types
• Verywell Mind Insights
• 2023 Verywell Mind 25
• Mental Health in the Classroom
• Editorial Process
• Meet Our Review Board
• Crisis Support

Xenophobia: The Fear of Strangers

Adah Chung is a fact checker, writer, researcher, and occupational therapist. 

 PBNJ Productions/Blend/Getty

• Fighting Xenophobia

What Is the Opposite of Xenophobic?

Xenophobia, or fear of strangers, is a broad term that may be applied to any fear of someone different from an individual. Hostility towards outsiders is often a reaction to fear. It typically involves the belief that there is a conflict between an individual's ingroup and an outgroup.

Xenophobia often overlaps with forms of prejudice , including racism and homophobia , but there are important distinctions. Where racism, homophobia, and other forms of discrimination are based on specific characteristics, xenophobia is usually rooted in the perception that members of the outgroup are foreign to the ingroup community.

Whether xenophobia qualifies as a legitimate mental disorder is a subject of ongoing debate.

Xenophobia is also associated with large-scale acts of destruction and violence against groups of people.

Signs of Xenophobia

How can you tell if someone is xenophobic? While xenophobia can be expressed in different ways, typical signs include:

• Feeling uncomfortable around people who fall into a different group
• Going to great lengths to avoid particular areas
• Refusing to be friends with people solely due to their skin color, mode of dress, or other external factors
• Difficulty taking a supervisor seriously or connecting with a teammate who does not fall into the same racial, cultural, or religious group

While it may represent a true fear, most xenophobic people do not have a true phobia. Instead, the term is most often used to describe people who discriminate against foreigners and immigrants.

People who express xenophobia typically believe that their culture or nation is superior, want to keep immigrants out of their community, and may even engage in actions that are detrimental to those who are perceived as outsiders.

Is Xenophobia a Mental Disorder?

Xenophobia is not recognized as a mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). However, some psychologists and psychiatrists have suggested that extreme racism and prejudice should be recognized as a mental health problem.

Some have argued, for example, that extreme forms of prejudice should be considered a subtype of delusional disorder .   It is important to note that those who support this viewpoint also argue that prejudice only becomes pathological when it creates a significant disruption in a person's ability to function in daily life.

Other professionals argue that categorizing xenophobia or racism as a mental illness would be medicalizing a social problem.  

Types of Xenophobia

There are two primary types of xenophobia:

• Cultural xenophobia : This type involves rejecting objects, traditions, or symbols that are associated with another group or nationality. This can include language, clothing, music, and other traditions associated with the culture.
• Immigrant xenophobia : This type involves rejecting people who the xenophobic individual does not believe belongs in the ingroup society. This can involve rejecting people of different religions or nationalities and can lead to persecution, hostility, violence, and even genocide.

The desire to belong to a group is pervasive—and strong identification with a particular group can even be healthy. However, it may also lead to suspicion of those who are perceived to not belong.

It is natural and possibly instinctive to want to protect the interests of the group by eliminating threats to those interests. Unfortunately, this natural protectiveness often causes members of a group to shun or even attack those who are perceived as different, even if they actually pose no legitimate threat at all.

Xenophobia vs. Racism

Xenophobia and racism are similar in that they both involve prejudice and discrimination, but there are important differences to consider. Where xenophobia is the fear of anyone who is considered a foreigner, racism is specifically directed toward people based on their race or ethnicity. People can be both xenophobic and racist.

Examples of Xenophobia

Unfortunately, xenophobia is all too common. It can range from covert acts of discrimination or subtle comments to overt acts of prejudice or even violence . Some examples of xenophobia include:

• Immigration policies : Xenophobia can influence how nations deal with immigration. This may include hostility and outright discrimination against immigrants. Specific groups of people may be the target of bans designed to keep them from moving to certain locations.
• Displacement : In the U.S., the forcible removal of Indigenous people from their land is an example of xenophobia. The use of residential schools in the U.S. and Canada was also rooted in xenophobic attitudes and was designed to force the cultural assimilation of Native American people.
• Violence : For example, attacks on people of Asian descent have increased in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Causes of Xenophobia

There are a number of different factors believed to contribute to xenophobia: 

• Social and economic insecurity : People often look for someone to blame in times of economic hardship or social upheaval. Immigrants and minorities are often scapegoated as the cause of society's ills.
• Lack of contact : People with little or no contact with people from other cultures or backgrounds are more likely to be fearful or mistrustful of them.
• Media portrayals : The way immigrants and minorities are portrayed in the media can also influence people's attitudes towards them. If they are only shown in a negative light, it can reinforce people's prejudices.
• Fear of strangers : In general, people are more likely to be afraid of unfamiliar things. This can apply to both physical appearance and cultural differences.

Impact of Xenophobia

Xenophobia doesn't just affect people at the individual level. It affects entire societies, including cultural attitudes, economics, politics, and history. Examples of xenophobia in the United States include acts of discrimination and violence against Latinx, Mexican, and Middle Eastern immigrants.

Xenophobia has been linked to:

• Hostility towards people of different backgrounds
• Decreased social and economic opportunity for outgroups
• Implicit bias toward members of outgroups
• Isolationism
• Discrimination
• Hate crimes
• Political positions
• War and genocide
• Controversial domestic and foreign policies

Certainly, not everyone who is xenophobic starts wars or commits hate crimes. But even veiled xenophobia can have insidious effects on both individuals and society. These attitudes can make it more difficult for people in certain groups to live within a society and affect all aspects of life including housing access , employment opportunities, and healthcare access.

The twisting of a positive trait (group harmony and protection from threats) into a negative (imagining threats where none exist) has led to any number of hate crimes, persecutions, wars, and general mistrust.

Xenophobia has a great potential to cause damage to others, rather than affecting only those who hold these attitudes.

How to Combat Xenophobia

If you struggle with feelings of xenophobia, there are things that you can do to overcome these attitudes.

• Broaden your experience. Many people who display xenophobia have lived relatively sheltered lives with little exposure to those who are different from them. Traveling to different parts of the world, or even spending time in a nearby city, might go a long way toward helping you face your fears.
• Fight your fear of the unknown. Fear of the unknown is one of the most powerful fears of all. If you have not been exposed to other races, cultures, and religions, gaining more experience may be helpful in conquering your xenophobia.
• Pay attention. Notice when xenophobic thoughts happen. Make a conscious effort to replace these thoughts with more realistic ones.

If your or a loved one's xenophobia is more pervasive, recurring despite exposure to a wide variety of cultures, then professional treatment might be in order. Choose a therapist who is open-minded and interested in working with you for a long period of time.

Xenophobia is often deeply rooted in a combination of upbringing, religious teachings, and previous experiences. Successfully combating xenophobia generally means confronting numerous aspects of the personality and learning new ways of experiencing the world.

While xenophobia describes a fear of strangers, foreigners, or immigrants, xenophilia, or the act of being xenophilic, describes an appreciation and attraction to foreign people or customs.

History of Xenophobia

Xenophobia has played a role in shaping human history for thousands of years. The ancient Greeks and Romans used their beliefs that their cultures were superior to justify the enslavement of others. Many nations throughout the world have a history of xenophobic attitudes toward foreigners and immigrants. 

The term xenophobia originates from the Greek word xenos meaning "stranger" and phobos meaning "fear.

Xenophobia has also led to acts of discrimination, violence, and genocide throughout the world, including:

• The World War II Holocaust 
• The internment of Japanese Americans during World War II
• The Rwandan genocide
• The Holodomor genocide in Ukraine
• The Cambodian genocide

Recent examples in the United States include discrimination toward people of Middle Eastern descent (often referred to as "Islamophobia") and xenophobic attitudes towards Mexican and Latinx immigrants. The COVID-19 pandemic also led to reports of xenophobia directed toward people of East Asian and Southeast Asian descent in countries throughout the world.

Suleman S, Garber K, Rutkow L. Xenophobia as a determinant of health: An integrative review . J Public Health Policy . 2018;39(4):407-423. doi:10.1057/s41271-018-0140-1

Choane M, Shulika LS, Mthombeni M. An analysis of the causes, effects and ramifications of xenophobia in South Africa . Insight Afr . 2011;3(2):12-142.

Poussaint AF. Is extreme racism a mental illness? Yes: It can be a delusional symptom of psychotic disorders .  West J Med . 2002;176(1):4. doi:10.1136/ewjm.176.1.4

Bell C. Racism: A mental illness? . Psychiatr Serv . 2004;55(12):1343. doi:10.1176/appi.ps.55.12.1343

Baumeister RF, Leary MR. The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation . Psychol Bull . 1995;117(3):497-529.

National Cancer Institute. Let's talk about xenophobia and anti-Asian hate crimes .

Klein JR. Xenophobia and crime . In: Miller JM, ed. The Encyclopedia of Theoretical Criminology . Oxford: Blackwell Publishing; 2014. doi:10.1002/9781118517390.wbetc094

Merriam-Webster. ' Xenophobia' vs. 'racism .'

Romero LA, Zarrugh A. Islamophobia and the making of Latinos/as into terrorist threats . Ethnic Racial Stud . 2018;12:2235-2254. doi:10.1080/01419870.2017.1349919

American Medical Association. AMA warns against racism, xenophobia amid COVID-19 .

By Lisa Fritscher Lisa Fritscher is a freelance writer and editor with a deep interest in phobias and other mental health topics.

What Is Xenophobia? Types & Effects

Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc

Associate Editor for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education

Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.

Learn about our Editorial Process

Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester

Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

On This Page:

Xenophobia refers to the fear, hatred, or prejudice against strangers or people perceived as foreign or different from one’s community or culture. It involves hostility and perceived conflict towards those considered an “outgroup.”

Xenophobia originates from the Greek words “xenos” meaning “stranger” and “phobos” meaning “fear.” So, in literal terms, it describes fear of strangers.

However, in common usage, xenophobia also encompasses general discrimination, negative attitudes, and hostile behaviors towards immigrants, foreigners, and cultural outsiders.

What is Xenophobia?

Xenophobia is the fear or hatred of people perceived as being different from oneself. This can be based on a person’s race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, or other distinguishing characteristics.

Xenophobia can often lead to discriminatory behaviors and attitudes, such as prejudice, racism, and even violence. It is important to recognize and address xenophobia, as it can have harmful effects on individuals and society as a whole.

This can typically stem from the deep-rooted belief that there is a conflict between the individual’s ingroup and the outgroups.

Someone xenophobic may feel uncomfortable being in the presence of people from a different group, refuse to be friends or associate with these individuals, may not take outgroup individuals seriously, or may believe their ingroup is superior to the outgroup.

While racism is the belief that one race is superior to another, xenophobia is the hatred of outsiders based on fear, which could then result in feelings of superiority over those outsiders.

Xenophobia is an issue as this type of thinking separates people into insiders and outsiders, which can ultimately cause attitudes such as fear, hate, and humiliation.

Xenophobia could also result in people feeling excluded from the culture they wish to live in or even violence in the most extreme cases. Xenophobia can, therefore, lead to negative experiences at the individual and the social level.

Is it a Mental Disorder?

Xenophobia is not recognized as a mental health condition since there are no criteria for it in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).

Some researchers have debated whether xenophobia should be given its own criteria or made a sub-type of another condition. Poussaint (2002) suggested that extreme xenophobic attitudes should be considered a sub-type of delusional disorder.

The reasoning behind this is that extreme violence because of xenophobia should be indicative of a mental health condition, and not viewing extreme xenophobia as pathological can normalize and legitimize these views.

The researcher, therefore, proposes there be a ‘Prejudice type’ under the criteria of delusional disorder, which can account for extreme xenophobic attitudes and behaviors.

In contrast, others have maintained that extreme xenophobia should not be labeled as a mental health condition, as they argue it is a social problem rather than a health issue (Bell, 2004).

While xenophobia contains the word ‘phobia,’ a diagnosable mental health condition, it is not suggested to be as extreme as other clinical phobias people may experience, such as agoraphobia or claustrophobia.

While it is possible to have a clinical fear of strangers, these individuals would fear all strangers, including those that would be of the same race, ethnicity, and culture as them. People with a fear of all strangers would experience anxious symptoms associated with phobias even while only thinking of strangers.

They would also try to avoid all strangers as much as possible. Therefore, the condition would be significantly detrimental to their lives.

While xenophobia is not a diagnosable mental health condition, it can become a symptom of other mental health conditions. For instance, extreme racist views which stem from xenophobia could be a symptom of psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia.

Likewise, xenophobia could be because of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If someone develops PTSD after experiencing terrorism and violence in another country, they could then develop xenophobia attitudes because of that experience.

Types of Xenophobia

There are two main types of xenophobia:

Cultural Xenophobia

Individuals who have culturally xenophobic views may reject objects, traditions, or symbols which are associated with another group.

For instance, this could be clothing that is traditional of another culture, different languages, or traditional music of another culture.

Culturally xenophobic people may believe their own cultures and traditions are superior to those belonging to other groups.

This type of xenophobia may present as people making negative remarks about culturally traditional clothing or making derogatory comments when people speak another language around them.

Immigrant Xenophobia

Individuals who express immigrant xenophobia may reject people or groups of people who they believe do not fit in with their ingroup society.

This may involve rejecting people who have different religions or nationalities and avoiding people who have different skin colors to them.

Individuals with this type of xenophobia may consider people in their own social or cultural group as being superior to others, avoid places heavily populated by immigrants, or make negative comments about people who belong to other cultures or countries.

The cause of xenophobia can be complicated. Evolutionary psychologists may argue that xenophobia may be a part of the genetic behavioral heritage because fear of outside groups protected ancestral humans from threat.

Due to this, we may still have a predisposition to being wary of outgroups and may feel more inclined to spend our time with those who are like us. This has also been demonstrated in experiments using the ‘Strange Situation.’

In these classic studies, infants were shown to have anxiety (e.g., crying, not wanting to go near the stranger) when left in a room with a stranger compared to someone familiar.

Factors that affect xenophobic attitudes are mainly considered internal and external. Internal factors are genetics and personality traits, while environmental factors are within the range of intergroup relations and education.

A study by Kocaturk and Bozdag (2020) investigated the relationship between personality traits and xenophobic attitudes. They found that those who had high scores of ‘agreeableness,’ which is associated with compassion and kindness, had lower levels of xenophobic attitudes.

In comparison, those who scored highly on narcissism and psychopathy were shown to be linked with higher levels of xenophobic attitudes.

While some people may be more predisposed to be xenophobic, a lot of the attitudes are a learned response. For instance, if people grow up with families who are xenophobic, they will likely pass on these beliefs to their children.

Similarly, if people are brought up in areas with little diversity or went to school with primarily people who were of the same culture and race or spoke the same language as them, they may not be as knowledgeable of people outside of their own culture or nationality.

This lack of knowledge may also affect the tolerance someone may have of other people, and there may be a stronger sense of ingroup and outgroup.

Social media and news outlets could also fuel xenophobic attitudes, such as politicians using political propaganda to weaponize xenophobia to manipulate emotional tensions within a community to further their agenda. Social media can make it easier than ever to find like-minded individuals and communities who have the same xenophobic attitudes.

Also, social media could influence individuals’ opinions if something is presented to them in a way that can sway views.

Previously tolerant individuals might become exposed to intolerant views, which can shift their opinions in the same way that those with intolerant views may find information that makes their views more extreme (Bursztyn et al., 2019).

Xenophobic attitudes can have a wider impact on societies, including cultural attitudes, economics, politics, and history.

Xenophobia has been linked to the following:

War and genocide

Hostility towards ‘others.’

Decreased social and economic growth for outgroups

Discrimination

Hate crimes

The spread of false information about certain cultures

Controversial policies

Those experiencing xenophobic attitudes towards them may find it difficult to live in their society. They may have fewer job opportunities, housing access, and rights than others.

This could negatively affect their mental health, making them feel socially isolated or depressed.

They may also feel unsafe, dismissed, disconnected, and constantly feel like they are being threatened.

A study on experiences of xenophobia among U.S. Chinese older adults found that they had increased levels of depression, poorer health, an increased risk of isolation, and was more likely to have suicidal ideation (Dong, Chen, & Simon, 2014).

On the other hand, those who express xenophobic views may also face negative impacts. They could lose friends with people who do not share their views or even lose their job, in extreme cases, if their xenophobic actions are reported. This may also result in these individuals feeling socially isolated or depressed.

Current issues could also strengthen xenophobic attitudes and cause negative impacts. For instance, the increase in immigration over the years on a global scale may have strengthened xenophobic attitudes (Yakushko, 2009).

The terrorist attack of 9/11 in New York was followed by anti-Muslim xenophobia. Likewise, the European Union referendum in Britain in 2016 also saw a significant increase in xenophobic attitudes towards immigrants, with a 41% reported increase in racially aggravated offenses in June 2016 compared to June 2015 (Home Office, 2016).

More recently, the outbreak of COVID-19 sparked an increase in xenophobic attitudes towards Asian communities, with more than 1700 anti-Asian hate incidents documented across the United States between March and May 2020 (Le, Cha, Han, & Tseng, 2020).

Combating Xenophobia

For those who have xenophobic attitudes, it may be beneficial to undergo a type of therapy that would alter the incorrect and harmful perceptions they have of others.

A lot of xenophobia could have stemmed from deep-rooted core beliefs that may be difficult to change. If someone with these beliefs wants therapy, the therapists should provide a non-judgemental approach to help the individual.

Cognitive behavioral therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) utilizes methods to challenge unhelpful thoughts and beliefs and aims to adjust these to more realistic or helpful ones.

This could also work if the person with xenophobia experiences anxiety or irrational fears of other people.

Anger management

Also, anger management could be an option for those who are more prone to violent or threatening outbursts towards those who are not a part of their ingroup.

Through anger management, individuals can learn skills to manage their negative emotions like fear and anxiety to overcome this.

Broaden experiences

Otherwise, those who recognize and want to change their xenophobic attitudes may benefit from broadening their experiences. They could travel to other parts of their country or another country where the culture and language are different to help them with their tolerance of people who they consider different from them.

This could relate to exposure therapy, a common practice used with people who have phobias, with the idea that the more exposure one has to something fearful, the less fearful one will be over time.

Individuals could also educate themselves in other ways, such as watching documentaries that discuss other cultures, reading informative books, attending talks, or joining social groups for those wanting to learn more about different cultures, ethnicities, languages, etc.

Consider similarities with the ‘outgroup’

Additionally, when talking to individuals that would have been considered part of the ‘outgroup,’ it may be useful to search for similarities with that person, such as shared interests.

This could increase how much they relate to others as they may notice that there are a lot more similarities between people than they originally thought.

They could also try to learn something from people they encounter, such as understanding situations from another’s perspective.

The less unknown people become, the less likely the individual will feel uncomfortable around them.

Coping With Xenophobia

If someone has experienced xenophobic comments directed towards them and this is affecting their mental health, they may also consider therapy depending on how severely affected they feel.

If individuals are experiencing depression or anxiety because of xenophobia, they could be prescribed anti-depressants to help combat some of the symptoms. However, this may not always be recommended as the first response to mental health issues.

They may also consider counseling or group therapy to discuss how they are feeling and to find ways to manage their negative feelings.

Online communities and support groups are another way to find like-minded individuals who may have had similar experiences. These groups can provide a safe space to be heard and reminded that they are not alone.

For anyone who is noticing xenophobia in society, it may be useful to call out xenophobic comments or intervene if safe to do so. This can inform the person who is being xenophobic that their behavior is problematic, and they may be less likely to repeat their behavior.

Since xenophobic attitudes can begin in childhood, it may be beneficial to educate children at a young age to help prevent deep-rooted xenophobia from taking form.

Speaking honestly with children about xenophobia could help them learn to challenge this behavior if they notice it, such as speaking up for a child in their class who may become a target.

Finally, other ways to tackle xenophobia are to report incidents if safe to do so, both in public and online, share stories about xenophobic experiences to increase awareness, call out news outlets if they are using xenophobic language, and support human rights organizations.

Further Information

Choane, M., Shulika, L. S., & Mthombeni, M. (2011). An analysis of the causes, effects and ramifications of xenophobia in South Africa. Insight on Africa, 3(2), 129-142.

Baumeister, R. F., & Leary, M. R. (1995). The need to belong: desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological bulletin, 117(3), 497.

Bell, C. (2004). Racism: A mental illness?. Psychiatric Services, 55(12), 1343-1343.

Bursztyn, L., Egorov, G., Enikolopov, R., & Petrova, M. (2019). Social media and xenophobia: evidence from Russia (No. w26567). National Bureau of Economic Research.

Corcoran, H., Lader, D., & Smith, K. (2016). Hate Crime, England and Wales . Statistical bulletin, 5, 15.

Dong, X., Chen, R., & Simon, M. A. (2014). Experience of discrimination among US Chinese older adults. Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biomedical Sciences and Medical Sciences, 69 (Suppl_2), S76-S81.

Kocaturk, M., & Bozdag, F. (2020). Xenophobia among University Students: Its Relationship with Five Factor Model and Dark Triad Personality Traits. International Journal of Educational Methodology, 6 (3), 545-554.

Le, T. K., Cha, L., Han, H. R., & Tseng, W. (2020). Anti-Asian xenophobia and Asian American COVID-19 disparities .

Poussaint, A. F. (2002). Yes: it can be a delusional symptom of psychotic disorders. The Western journal of medicine, 176 (1), 4-4.

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

• View all journals
• Explore content
• About the journal
• Publish with us
• Sign up for alerts
• NEWS Q&A
• 14 December 2023

Why hidden xenophobia is surging into the open

• Emma Marris 0

Emma Marris is an environmental writer who lives in Oregon.

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Anti-immigrant sentiment is playing a major part in current events across Europe and North America. Ireland is reeling from destructive far-right riots in Dublin in November. Also last month, the Dutch Party for Freedom, led by Geert Wilders — a staunch and unapologetic opponent of Islam and immigration — won 37 seats in the 150-seat House of Representatives, the nation’s lower house. In the past two years, Sweden, Italy and Finland have elected right-wing governments. And in the United States, a second Donald Trump presidency threatens.

Access options

Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals

Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription

24,99 € / 30 days

cancel any time

Subscribe to this journal

Receive 51 print issues and online access

185,98 € per year

only 3,65 € per issue

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-03973-9

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Scheve, K. F. and Slaughter, M. J. Rev. Econ. Stat. 83 , 1 (2001).

Google Scholar  

Download references

How a tree-hugging protest transformed Indian environmentalism

Comment 26 MAR 24

Scientists under arrest: the researchers taking action over climate change

News Feature 21 FEB 24

Gender bias is more exaggerated in online images than in text

News & Views 14 FEB 24

Overcoming low vision to prove my abilities under pressure

Career Q&A 28 MAR 24

Sam Bankman-Fried sentencing: crypto-funded researchers grapple with FTX collapse

News 28 MAR 24

The ‘Anthropocene’ is here to stay — and it’s better not as a geological epoch

Correspondence 26 MAR 24

Tenure-track Assistant Professor in Ecological and Evolutionary Modeling

Tenure-track Assistant Professor in Ecosystem Ecology linked to IceLab’s Center for modeling adaptive mechanisms in living systems under stress

Umeå, Sweden

Umeå University

Faculty Positions in Westlake University

Founded in 2018, Westlake University is a new type of non-profit research-oriented university in Hangzhou, China, supported by public a...

Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China

Westlake University

Postdoctoral Fellowships-Metabolic control of cell growth and senescence

Postdoctoral positions in the team Cell growth control by nutrients at Inst. Necker, Université Paris Cité, Inserm, Paris, France.

Paris, Ile-de-France (FR)

Inserm DR IDF Paris Centre Nord

Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine on Open Recruitment of Medical Talents and Postdocs

Director of Clinical Department, Professor, Researcher, Post-doctor

The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University

Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Warmly Welcomes Talents Abroad

“Qiushi” Distinguished Scholar, Zhejiang University, including Professor and Physician

No. 3, Qingchun East Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang (CN)

Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital Affiliated with Zhejiang University School of Medicine

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Quick links

• Explore articles by subject
• Guide to authors
• Editorial policies

Get the latest news and stories from Tufts delivered right to your inbox.

Most popular.

• Activism & Social Justice
• Animal Health & Medicine
• Arts & Humanities
• Business & Economics
• Campus Life
• Climate & Sustainability
• Food & Nutrition
• Global Affairs
• Points of View
• Politics & Voting
• Science & Technology
• Alzheimer’s Disease
• Artificial Intelligence
• Biomedical Science
• Cellular Agriculture
• Cognitive Science
• Computer Science
• Cybersecurity
• Entrepreneurship
• Farming & Agriculture
• Film & Media
• Health Care
• Heart Disease
• Humanitarian Aid
• Immigration
• Infectious Disease
• Life Science
• Lyme Disease
• Mental Health
• Neuroscience
• Oral Health
• Performing Arts
• Public Health
• University News
• Urban Planning
• Visual Arts
• Youth Voting
• Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine
• Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy
• The Fletcher School
• Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
• Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
• Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging
• Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life
• School of Arts and Sciences
• School of Dental Medicine
• School of Engineering
• School of Medicine
• School of the Museum of Fine Arts
• University College
• Australia & Oceania
• Canada, Mexico, & Caribbean
• Central & South America
• Middle East

“I really believe in the power of storytelling to change the ways in which people think about immigration and to challenge xenophobia and racism,” says Erika Lee. Photo by: Lisa Miller/University of Minnesota

The Long History of Xenophobia in America

From colonial times to today, the demonization of outsiders has existed alongside the idea of the U.S. as a nation built by immigrants

The United States has always been a nation of immigrants—and seemingly also always a nation suffused with xenophobia, a fear or hatred of those same immigrants.

In 1750, Benjamin Franklin worried that large numbers of “swarthy” foreigners, speaking their own language among themselves, would swamp the colonies and their British subjects. The dangerous outsiders? They were Germans.

Erika Lee, J91, tells that story, among many others, in her award-winning book America for Americans: A History of Xenophobia in the United States , published last year. Regents Professor and the director of the Immigration History Research Center at the University of Minnesota, Lee says it’s important to know this complex history to be able to overcome it.  

“Xenophobia doesn’t just reveal itself through a bigoted relative who is saying stuff about ‘the Mexicans’ at Thanksgiving dinner,” says Lee. “Xenophobia is a form of racism that has been embedded in our laws.”

One way to overcome the alienation that xenophobia brings is to combat the negative stereotypes about immigrants and refugees, and help see them as fellow human beings just like us, Lee says. She leads an effort to do just that, with the Immigrant Stories digital storytelling project. Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the project’s 350 digital stories profile immigrants as “real people, not stereotypes,” she says.

Xenophobia in America

Video by: Jenna Schad

When Lee was at Tufts as an undergraduate, she focused on history, and created her own major in ethnic studies, with advisor Reed Ueda, a professor of history. She also taught a course on the Civil Rights Movement in the Experimental College , “which made me realize how much I love teaching,” she says. “I’m forever grateful for that education.”

With a parade of anti-immigrant measures coming out of Washington, it’s more important than ever to understand what lies behind the xenophobia in this country, Lee says. Tufts Now spoke with her to learn more about that history—and what can be done to overcome it.

Tufts Now : The United States has a very long history of xenophobia, as you document in your book. And yet most Americans don’t know about it. Why is that?

Erika Lee : This is one of the most important questions to ask, because it speaks to why and how xenophobia can persist and endure. We don’t recognize what a strong and pervasive force it has been—or we discount it or willingly ignore it.

But I think it also speaks to a much larger question about history, memory, and the uses of history in crafting our understanding of ourselves.

One of the most important things about xenophobia is that it’s a shapeshifting, wily thing, just like racism. You think it’s gone away, and it comes back. It evolves so that even though one immigrant group finally gains acceptance, it can easily be applied to another.

And sometimes the group that just made it can be very active in leading the charge against the others. It’s unfortunately one of the ways in which racism and our racial hierarchy are at work in the United States.

Are some classes of Americans more xenophobic than others?

I would say that xenophobia flourishes in every community and in every class. One of the great examples of this is Chinese immigration and exclusion. In the book, I focus on the campaigns to drive Chinese people out of Seattle in the late 1800s. There was mob violence that was led by those whom we have been accustomed to identify as working-class whites.

And then there were the more “polite” campaigns, the ones that were led by judges, lawyers, professionals who basically told the agitators, “We agree with you. The Chinese must go, but do we need to resort to lawlessness? How about we organize a campaign of intimidation? Let’s blacklist the housewives—the employers who hire Chinese people, and publish their names in the newspaper. And let’s make it so just horrific to live in Seattle if you’re Chinese that they will self deport.”

Before studying this history, I don’t think I completely understood the depth of that cross-class racism, and the ways in which it can manifest itself differently.

Is the same true about racism in more recent times?

Yes! There are lots of examples of liberal and progressive xenophobia and racism. When I was researching the history behind 1965 Immigration Act—a law that was praised for formally ending discrimination in immigration law and reopening up the country to immigrants—I was struck by how lawmakers could still restrict immigration from the Western hemisphere in what was essentially a Civil Rights law. They described the U.S. being ‘overrun by black and brown immigrants’ at the same time that they insisted on the need to end discrimination.

It seems that this fear of being displaced pushes some lawmakers and others to double down against certain immigrants, especially those from Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Immigration is treated as a zero-sum game; new immigration is a threat to us already here. We can’t both gain at the same time. Your gain is my loss.

You write in the book that xenophobia is a form of racism. How does that work—and has it changed over time?

Racism identifies certain groups as good and superior to others. In the early 20th century, it was considered a matter of biology. Today, we often talk about it as being a matter of “culture.” There are “good immigrants” and there are “bad immigrants” who are a threat to “us.” The dividing line between “good” and “bad” has been marked by religion, national origin, class, gender, and sexual orientation. But especially race.

This relationship between xenophobia is a legacy of the racism that justified slavery and settler colonialism. In fact, early immigrants were always judged in relationship to their place on that spectrum of whiteness and blackness.

For example, Germans were first labeled “swarthy,” a term that was meant to signify blackness and to imply that German immigration was undesirable. But we never restricted their immigration or their ability to become naturalized citizens.

Cartoons of Irish Catholics from the 19th century make them look very similar to apes. This was effective in marking the Irish as a threat, because African Americans were already drawn in similar stereotypical and dehumanizing ways. But again, we never restricted Irish immigration or prohibited them from becoming naturalized citizens.

But then the Chinese came, and here we can see the difference that race makes. The Chinese were automatically seen as more like Native Americans and African Americans than European immigrants. The Chinese were excluded and barred from becoming naturalized citizens.

Xenophobia has influenced government policy from the time of Benjamin Franklin right up to the present. Do you think it is worse now?

It is, but one of the things that I try to emphasize is that you could not have Donald Trump and his policies without Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. You couldn’t have so many Americans shouting “build the wall” without the 2006 Fence Act that George W. Bush signed into law, and that Barack Obama helped to implement, or without Operation Gatekeeper in 1994, which was put in place by Bill Clinton.

What is worse today is the explicit, unabashed, unapologetic, vitriolic language. That is a centerpiece of President Trump’s campaign, first in 2015 when he said Mexicans are rapists and criminals, to today where he’s doubling down on xenophobia ahead of the 2020 elections. He was just here in Minnesota and one of his favorite targets is Ilhan Omar, a Muslim Black woman—a U.S. citizen and a Democratic Congresswoman who he told to ‘go back’ to where she had come from last year.

Previous presidents’ policies certainly had been xenophobic, but they also gave lip service to the idea of the United States as a nation of immigrants, that diversity is a strength. You don’t get any of that with this president, and it makes a difference.

So this administration is more xenophobic than average?

The immigration policies that have been put into effect during this administration have been so numerous, so broad in their scope, and so cruel that they are unparalleled in any other period or other administration.

They have impacted every category of immigrant—from refugees, asylum seekers, illegal, and legal immigrants. And because they have been put in place by executive order, there has been no debate, no calling of witnesses, no rebuttal, no ability for experts, advocates, or lawmakers on either side to be able to contest the justification of the laws.

And that was before COVID-19. I’ve just finished compiling and analyzing the 63 different immigration-related executive actions that have been put in place since January 30, 2020. Sixty-three! They have effectively ended immigration in all forms under the guise of public health concerns even though the infection rates are much, much higher within our country than in any other. We have already identified this era as the most restrictive immigration era in U.S. history.

Has this very obvious xenophobia throughout U.S. history deterred immigrants?

Absolutely. It’s deterred people, and it has encouraged—even forced—people to return home. One of the other aspects of immigration history that we never focus enough attention on is how 30 percent of immigrants from southern and eastern Europe, and especially amongst certain groups like Italians in the early 20th century, actually returned home. There could be many reasons for that—jobs that didn’t work out, failed marriages—but a lot of it was that they just didn’t feel welcome here.

Have you seen that personally?

One of the saddest things I’ve seen in the past few years is an internalization of xenophobia. I have volunteered in my kids’ public high school, helping mostly refugee students write their college essays. Here in Minneapolis, they are largely from Somalia.

In 2017, some of my students had been in this country for only four years. They learned English and were working two part-time jobs in addition to going to school. They had compelling personal stories, but when I read their essays, I noticed that they did not mention anything about being refugees.

I’d ask them, “Is there a reason why you don’t want to put that part of your story in your college essay? I think it is phenomenal.” They said, “I don’t want to because ‘refugee’ is a bad word, isn’t it? They won’t want me. Right?” And my heart just sank.

So yes, xenophobia absolutely has an impact. There’s the violence of xenophobia. Families being split apart, etc. But even if you’re not at risk of that, it can manifest itself in deeply personal ways.

While there are vocal anti-immigrant groups, who is advocating now for immigrants?

One of the things that has changed in recent years is that people are leading spontaneous and mass protests against many anti-immigrant measures. I’m sure you remember January 27th, 2017, the Friday that the Muslim ban was announced by the Trump administration.

It was late in the afternoon. By that evening, there were lawyers, advocates, and crowds of people at many of the international airports in the United States with “you are welcome here” signs.

This kind of mass protest didn’t happen before when we passed the Exclusion Act, when we deported Mexican and Mexican Americans during the Great Depression, when we interned Japanese Americans during World War II. These challenges and protests today are so fundamental and so important. They give me hope.

And of course, with the elections coming up, we have the chance to vote xenophobic politicians out of office.

And how can the view of immigrants be more positive, especially among those who fear the effects of immigration?

I think about this on a daily basis. I really want to try to change the narrative about immigration, to combat the threat narrative.

I direct the Immigration History Research Center at the University of Minnesota. It started 55 years ago as an immigrant archive. Its founders believed that it was necessary to document the experiences and life histories of what was then called the “new immigration” from southern, central, and eastern Europe. One goal was “to recover the full-bodied humanity of immigrants” through oral histories, research, and archive-building.

We are still working hard to achieve this mission in a new era of global migration. In 2012, I wanted to do the same for this new generation of immigrants and refugees, and especially the young people who were in my classrooms.

So my colleagues and I started the Immigrant Stories digital storytelling project, and it grew nationally and internationally. It’s a digital storytelling website that allows anyone anywhere to create, preserve, and share their story for free with video, audio, and text. There are now over 350 stories in the collection representing 55-plus ethnic groups.

I really believe in the power of storytelling to change the ways in which people think about immigration and to challenge xenophobia and racism. They help us see immigrants and refugees as real people, not stereotypes. And they remind us what unites us, rather than divides us.

Historian Erika Lee to Deliver Commencement Address for Class of 2022

Confronting the Legacy of Anti-Asian Racism in America

Lights, Camera, Activism

• Skip to main content
• Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

Code Switch

• LISTEN & FOLLOW
• Apple Podcasts
• Google Podcasts
• Amazon Music

Your support helps make our show possible and unlocks access to our sponsor-free feed.

When Xenophobia Spreads Like A Virus

Natalie Escobar

The global response to COVID-19 has made clear that the fear of contracting disease has an ugly cousin: xenophobia. As the coronavirus has spread from China to other countries, anti-Asian discrimination has followed closely behind, manifesting in plummeting sales at Chinese restaurants , near-deserted Chinatown districts and racist bullying against people perceived to be Chinese.

We asked our listeners whether they had experienced this kind of coronavirus-related racism and xenophobia firsthand. And judging by the volume of emails, comments and tweets we got in response, the harassment has been intense for Asian Americans across the country — regardless of ethnicity, location or age.

A common theme across our responses: Public transit has been really hostile. Roger Chiang, who works in San Francisco, recalled a white woman glaring at him on the train to work, covering her nose and mouth. When he told her in a joking tone that he didn't have the coronavirus, she replied that she "wasn't racist — she just didn't want to get sick."

Shots - Health News

Pandemic panic these 5 tips can help you regain your calm.

Allison Park from Brooklyn told us that when visiting D.C., she saw a man making faces at her on the Metro train. She tried to move away from him, but he wouldn't stop. After a while, she said, he confronted her outright, saying: "Get out of here. Go back to China. I don't want none of your swine flu here." A week later, on a Muni train in San Francisco, another man yelled the same thing to her — "Go back to China" — and even threatened to shoot her.

Even a single cough or sneeze can trigger harassment. Amy Jiravisitcul from Boston said a man on a bus muttered about "diseased Chinese people" when she sneezed into her sleeve. When she confronted him, he told her: "Cover your fucking mouth." When South San Franciscan Diane Tran sneezed into her elbow in a hallway in a hospital, where she was getting a flu shot, she said a middle-aged white woman yelled a racist slur at her.

Children have been targeted, too — by other children and adults alike. Devin Cabanilla, from Seattle, told us that a Costco food sample vendor told his Korean wife and mixed-race son to "get away" from the samples, questioning whether they had come from China. Company executives later apologized to his family, but he's still shaken. "It just reminds me that when people look at us, they don't see us as American," he said.

Thirteen-year-old Sara Aalgaard told us that since the outbreak, many middle-school classmates of hers have been targeting the small population of Asian Americans at her school in Middletown, Conn. "People call us 'corona,' " she said, or ask if they eat dogs. Rebecca Wen from North Brunswick, N.J., told us that her 9-year-old son reported that his 11-year-old classmate said: "You're Chinese, so you must have the coronavirus."

The anti-Asian harassment isn't limited to the U.S., either. International outlets have reported harassment in majority-white countries like Australia, where parents in Melbourne refused to let Asian doctors treat their children , and Canada, where around 10,000 Toronto-area people signed a petition calling for the local school district to track and isolate Chinese-Canadian students who may have traveled to China for the Lunar New Year.

Is 'Race Science' Making A Comeback?

In Germany, Thea Suh said that when she sat down on her train to work, the person sitting next to turned away from her and covered his face. A few days later, a woman told her to move her "corona-riddled body" elsewhere. Not once did someone step in to help, she said. "I have also not seen or heard any German politician or major influencer coming to our defenses," she said. "And I feel like as a part of the so-called model minority , we are being left alone."

That's another common theme from the responses we got: Witnesses and bystanders were slow to intervene. Allison Park remembers that when the man on the D.C. Metro told her to go back to China, the train was nearly two-thirds full, but no one said anything. At best, she got some sympathetic looks. Amy Jiravisitcul said that the other passengers ignored the yelling, which made her wonder whether they thought she was just making a scene.

And when the harassment has passed, unease still lingers. Jane Hong from New York told us that when she and a fellow Korean American were walking from lunch, she heard a man screaming "yuck" in their direction. Now, she notices whenever people on the street look at her for more than a passing glance.

"I don't know if 'paranoid' is the word," Hong said. "Now it's in my head. I wonder if they are thinking, 'I have to stay away from her, I don't want to walk near her.' Now that the seed has been planted in my head, it's hard to not have that thought cross my mind."

For more on xenophobia and coronavirus, listen to this week's episode of the Code Switch podcast . We hear from some of these folks, as well as Erika Lee, a historian at the University of Minnesota who studies history, immigration and epidemics.

• asian americans
• coronavirus

Xenophobia in American Society

Xenophobia, racism, and gender discrimination are, unfortunately, common tendencies in the world, which hinder people’s equal rights. This inequality in American society is the most noticeable, since many people face discrimination, disrespect, and even violence because of their skin color or religion at the same time with democratic values’ proclamation. This paradox one can notice throughout history, since the country that is practically formed by immigrants rejects them and fears. Consequently, American xenophobia is a habit of the past that people cannot overcome for centuries.

Modern xenophobia is not much different from the processes that took place centuries ago, although it would seem that progressive American society must overcome its bias and prejudice. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the American government created the conditions for foreigners to fill the labor shortage and boost the American economy. Next, they deported foreigners from their country as soon as labor was no longer needed, and the workers became “job thieves.” Today, the government proposes to build a wall, refuse visas to residents of Arab countries, and does its best to protect America from foreigners carrying threats. These tendencies show deep historical and outdated roots of xenophobia, which were born when tribes feuded for lack of food and perceived any outsider as an enemy.

In modern society, xenophobia does not have enough justification for its existence, since most foreigners come to the country and become Americans despite their religion and skin color. Migrants do not come to the United States to destroy a local culture or devastate the economy, but only to benefit themselves and the society in which they live. They create their ethnic communities in which they honor their traditions, but at the same time, they embrace American culture. I can’t entirely agree that equality and acceptance in the United States is an absolute myth because if it did not exist, it would not be discussed in society. However, the constant debate about immigrants and minorities often reinforces xenophobia even further as they focus on people’s differences. “White America,” defined by white Americans Catholic or non-religious Americans, is afraid of foreigners only because the political forces incite this fear in them and pass laws that turn society into the past.

However, it is true that most often, only migrants who have white skin and are Catholics will eventually be able to get rid of the prejudices and discrimination of society towards them because they “merge” with it. At the same time, although equality exists on a legal level, and a migrant has a chance to build a career and achieve significant success, routine discrimination usually does not disappear if a person’s skin color or religion cannot be hidden. This discrimination can be unintentional, but it shows that a person is perceived as a stranger.

Therefore, xenophobia in contemporary American society is a primitive historical fear of outsiders, combined with a bias that, in most cases, lacks rational justification. This fear is fueled by discussions in which people, for personal reasons, find the negative aspects of migrants, as well as the laws that the government passes to protect their territories and citizens from “outsiders.” As long as there is a concept of “us” and “them” in the world and American society, xenophobia will not disappear, since it will be used as an instrument of influence and political interests.

Cite this paper

• Chicago (N-B)
• Chicago (A-D)

StudyCorgi. (2022, March 10). Xenophobia in American Society. https://studycorgi.com/xenophobia-in-american-society/

"Xenophobia in American Society." StudyCorgi , 10 Mar. 2022, studycorgi.com/xenophobia-in-american-society/.

StudyCorgi . (2022) 'Xenophobia in American Society'. 10 March.

1. StudyCorgi . "Xenophobia in American Society." March 10, 2022. https://studycorgi.com/xenophobia-in-american-society/.

Bibliography

StudyCorgi . "Xenophobia in American Society." March 10, 2022. https://studycorgi.com/xenophobia-in-american-society/.

StudyCorgi . 2022. "Xenophobia in American Society." March 10, 2022. https://studycorgi.com/xenophobia-in-american-society/.

This paper, “Xenophobia in American Society”, was written and voluntary submitted to our free essay database by a straight-A student. Please ensure you properly reference the paper if you're using it to write your assignment.

Before publication, the StudyCorgi editorial team proofread and checked the paper to make sure it meets the highest standards in terms of grammar, punctuation, style, fact accuracy, copyright issues, and inclusive language. Last updated: March 10, 2022 .

If you are the author of this paper and no longer wish to have it published on StudyCorgi, request the removal . Please use the “ Donate your paper ” form to submit an essay.

Advertisement

Supported by

Is Stranger Hatred Hard-Wired Into Humans?

• Share full article

• Apple Books
• Barnes and Noble
• Books-A-Million

When you purchase an independently reviewed book through our site, we earn an affiliate commission.

By Thomas Chatterton Williams

• Sept. 14, 2021

OF FEAR AND STRANGERS A History of Xenophobia By George Makari

Over the summer and fall of 1900, as the Universal Exposition was underway in Paris, French newspapers published a series of reports on a fearsome threat suddenly emerging from China: “ la xénophobie ,” they dubbed it. At the same time that their capital feted the dawn of globalization and the earth’s inexorable flattening, readers in France were informed that conflict with “ les xénophobes ” was a dangerous part of the new reality.

The trouble had begun the previous winter when a group of pauperized villagers from Shandong Province, with an aptitude for martial arts and believing themselves impervious to gunfire, chanted “destroy the foreigners” as they mounted a hopeless insurrection against the European missionaries and colonizers taking over their country. The Boxer Rebellion, George Makari argues in “Of Fear and Strangers: A History of Xenophobia,” his riveting, painstaking and at times maddeningly overextended meditation on a subject that has vexed human society at least since the dawn of consciousness, marked a new and ironic turn in a previously obscure term’s trajectory. “Xenophobia no longer applied to some rare medical illness or a broad rivalry between Western nations,” he observes. “It now served as an explanation of the fearsome trouble Western globalists might encounter in the East, where an irrational, violent hatred of all outsiders might take hold.”

The lack of self-awareness and defensive projection exhibited by the European powers throughout the period of colonial expansion is considerable. As are Makari’s efforts to trace the evolution of his elusive and ambiguous descriptor. This was not the first instance of the ancient Greek terms for “stranger” and “fear” being connected, but the Francophone framing of the Boxer Rebellion was the moment the concept went mainstream and xenophobia became “a clarifying word” to name a phenomenon increasingly relevant in numerous colonial contexts.

Makari, a psychiatrist and historian, weaves together a fascinating if powerfully disturbing series of examples of stranger hatred (and exploitation) alongside the internal dissent such encounters have always prompted. Long before the British, French, Russians, Germans, Americans and Japanese divided up the Qing empire, the Spanish crown had brutalized the Native inhabitants of Hispaniola, excusing the aggression with strikingly similar justifications. The humanizing spirit animating this book and anticipating whatever hard-won progress we can claim looking backward from the 21st century was birthed in this genocidal calamity.

Makari’s admiration of Bartolomé de Las Casas, a man Borges memorably disparaged as “that odd variant on the species philanthropist ,” is infectious. As a boy in the late 1400s, Las Casas was presented with a Black slave when his father returned to Seville from an expedition with Columbus. On turning 18, he also set out for Santo Domingo, where he became a land- and slave owner who initially didn’t think twice about the larger system he was a part of. Though we may all be trapped in the norms and biases of our times, some of us are capable of radical independence. “At some later date, perhaps after witnessing a massacre of Taino Indians in Cuba,” Makari writes, “Las Casas became uneasy.” He freed his vassals, returned to Europe and took his Dominican orders.

Incredibly, during the height of the Inquisition, he managed to publish without punishment accounts denouncing the crimes committed under the auspices of the crown and in the name of Christianity. Perhaps this was because it was practically impossible to convey the magnitude of the orgiastic violence. “Who will believe this?” Makari quotes him lamenting on the page before an illustration taken from Las Casas’ “A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies,” which depicts Spanish soldiers lopping off the hands and noses of countless Native Americans. “I myself an eyewitness writing this, I can hardly believe it.”

His conscience provides an anti-xenophobic template that Makari finds replicated through the ages in both familiar and unexpected places. Voltaire, himself a powerful antisemite and proto-Islamophobe, “turned to Las Casas to help his readers grasp the nature of intolerance.” It is of course easier to spot xenophobia in others than to find it in the mirror, and during the Enlightenment rival European powers flattered themselves with criticism of the Spanish. Leo Tolstoy and Mark Twain were also courageous, early voices against their respective societies’ imperial transgressions.

Then, through the figure of Charles Marlow, the narrator of “Heart of Darkness,” the Polish-British novelist Joseph Conrad shattered the facade of colonial innocence. “Conrad masterfully described Marlow’s transformation,” Makari writes, in a scene that anticipates the shift in our understanding of xenophobia — from something barbarous hosts inflict on civilized visitors to our own prejudices and fears projected onto strangers: “What we alluded to as an attack,” Marlow reflects, “was really an attempt at repulse. The action was very far from being aggressive — it was not even defensive, in the usual sense: It was undertaken under the stress of desperation and in its essence was purely protective.” But it was Roger Casement, an Irish acquaintance of Conrad’s in Africa, who carried on the witness-bearing work of Las Casas when, as the British consul in Congo, he began to evaluate claims of abuse that staggered belief, what was described by Edmund Morel in “King Leopold’s Rule in Africa” as “a carnival of massacre.”

As the 20th century wore on and immigrants began to filter back to the cities that had conquered them, xenophobia gradually assumed a three-pronged meaning. Makari distinguishes among “racial xenophobia,” which occurs “when a Western emigrant is met by a reflexive hostility” of a non-European population reacting poorly to being dominated; “xenophobic imperialism,” which occurs “when biased Western imperialists invade lands that they see filled with primitive Oriental and Eastern hosts”; and finally “anti-immigrant xenophobia,” which occurs “when residents in Western nations attack ‘foreign’ minorities as well as immigrants, often refugees or denizens from that country’s colonies.”

Throughout his analysis, Makari brings an impressive range of reading to bear, wearing his learning lightly and interspersing fascinating capsule biographies of transformational figures like Raphael Lemkin, Carl Schmitt and Theodor Adorno with literary commentary on Aldous Huxley, Richard Wright and James Baldwin. The book shifts again when he segues into an introductory psychology course tackling behaviorism, stereotyping and projection. All the material is enthralling. Yet the sheer number of points of access into a subject so all-encompassing eventually becomes a hindrance. By the last third of the book, as the narrative becomes a kind of “ At the Existentialist Café ”-style lightning tour of the postwar intellectual history of the Left Bank, the word “xenophobia” becomes almost meaningless.

“The fear and hatred of strangers,” Makari writes through the lens of Foucault, “not only manifested itself in pogroms and race riots but also lurked in seemingly reasonable places, inside the heart of society, perhaps inside all hearts.” Any quality that can reside in all of us necessarily ceases to be a pathology and simply becomes one more aspect of human nature.

What could be the solution to such an entrenched problem? “Radical egalitarianism poses the greatest threat to xenophobia,” is what he finally ventures. A cynical reader can’t help feeling that we are scarcely closer to understanding how to implement such a policy in the aftermath of Trump and Brexit and Europe’s 2015 migrant crisis than we were at the beginning of Makari’s worthy endeavor. Yet this is less a criticism of the author than of the scale of his genealogical ambition — and of our own stubbornly consistent interpersonal failings. The fact that he cannot land the plane does not render the views we’ve been granted during the course of the flight any less impressive.

Thomas Chatterton Williams is a contributing writer at The Times Magazine, a columnist at Harper’s and a nonresident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is the author, most recently, of “Self-Portrait in Black and White: Unlearning Race.”

OF FEAR AND STRANGERS A History of Xenophobia By George Makari Illustrated. 346 pp. W.W. Norton & Company. $27.95.

Explore More in Books

Want to know about the best books to read and the latest news start here..

James McBride’s novel sold a million copies, and he isn’t sure how he feels about that, as he considers the critical and commercial success  of “The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store.”

How did gender become a scary word? Judith Butler, the theorist who got us talking about the subject , has answers.

You never know what’s going to go wrong in these graphic novels, where Circus tigers, giant spiders, shifting borders and motherhood all threaten to end life as we know it .

When the author Tommy Orange received an impassioned email from a teacher in the Bronx, he dropped everything to visit the students  who inspired it.

Do you want to be a better reader?   Here’s some helpful advice to show you how to get the most out of your literary endeavor .

Each week, top authors and critics join the Book Review’s podcast to talk about the latest news in the literary world. Listen here .

Xenophobia – The Fear of Foreigners Essay

Introduction, illustrations of xenophobia.

Someone somewhere is afraid of wolves while another one is afraid of spiders. There are people who are afraid of water, plants, light, bad smell and even other people. People live in constant fear of diverse things, actions and even emotions. Some of these fears are normal while others are quite abnormal. Why do people develop fears? People develop fears because as they interact with various things in the universe, they tend to develop some psychological detachments that may end up producing a certain kind of antipathy towards some objects (Bourne 9). This kind of fear generates hatred towards the specific object and any encounter with the said object will elicit irrational behaviors from the subject.

Fear is also called phobia and one of the most common phobias is called Xenophobia. Xenophobia is associated with foreigners. It is also associated with guests and even strangers. The feeling of high levels of antipathy or fear towards foreigners is called xenophobia (Wolpe 111). This fear is usually irrational and is associated with some emotional problems though sometimes it can be exhibited by people who are emotionally sound. People with post-traumatic stress disorder are likely to exhibit this irrational fear. In most cases, this fear is connected with past associations with members of the grouping that the foreigner or the stranger comes from.

For example, there was a white woman in the UK who was brutally attacked by two black men. They left her with a deformed wrist. After the incident, whenever she came across any black person, she would develop panic attacks and run away from the people (Kessler 12). This fear is irrational because it tends to associate people of a certain group with a past action. This reaction of the woman is xenophobic because it highlights fear and hatred of people of another race emanating. Xenophobia is not just a fear of persons whom the subject considers foreigners or strangers. It also entails any aversion to the cultures, the norms, values, belief systems and the practices of the strangers or the foreigners in question.

This means that it is a very wide concept that entails things like origin, linguistic conventions, ways of life, habits and even religious dispositions (Latimer 45). Xenophobia is not racism, but racism is a subset of xenophobia. This is because not all people of a different race are foreigners but someone may hate a foreigner just because of his or her racial background. Xenophobia in most cases has to do with nationalities though in some cases, the issue of race creeps in.

There are cases where xenophobia and racism are used to refer to the same thing especially in Eastern Europe where there are very few natives from other races. In this case, every person of another race is considered to be a foreigner and the fear and hate directed to that person is actually based on racial grounds. However, Xenophobia transcends race and culture because this irrational fear can be extended to people on very many other grounds.

Xenophobia is a concept of fear that has two vital components. The first component is a sub-set of a population that is usually not part of a larger society. This subset represents the immigrants. The immigrants may be recent immigrants or past immigrants that have already been integrated into that society. Xenophobia emanating from this component is very dangerous because it can degenerate into violence or even genocide. There have been cases of mass expulsion of immigrants and foreigners due to this fear of foreigners in some parts of the world recently. The best example of xenophobic reactions was witnessed in South Africa, where foreigners were expunged from major cities by the locals.

The reason behind these xenophobic attacks in South Africa was that the immigrants had taken over the jobs that were meant for the natives and these foreigners were also creating competition for business and economic activities.

The success of the immigrant populations in South Africa intimidated the locals and they feared that the foreigners were going to eclipse them economically. The xenophobic tensions lasted for the better part of the year 2000 leading to hundreds of deaths and massive displacements of immigrants from other parts of Africa (Audie 23). The main targets were Zimbabweans who had run away from the economic crisis that had hit their country then. Other targets of the xenophobic attacks included Somalis, Kenyans and Zambians who were excelling economically in South Africa.

The second component of xenophobia entails the fear of cultures and the main target of this form of xenophobia is some behaviors and practices that are considered to be strange. Every culture has some influences from the outside. There are some cultures that are considered impure because they do not conform to the native cultures and the owners of these cultures can be victims of xenophobia. This is one problem that faces Indians.

Their cultures and practices are usually considered strange in many parts of the world and they have increasingly become victims of xenophobia especially in Europe. However, this type of xenophobia is mild and in most cases, it does not elicit aggression.

The fear of foreigners from a racist perspective is another common form in the world. The form of racism that the Anglo Americans suffer in the United States of America is not xenophobic. There is no fear in this racism. However, the form of racism that is extended to the Latinos in the United States of America is xenophobic. The Latinos are feared and loathed by the natives in the US and they are usually regarded as criminals. This xenophobia emanated from the concept of illegal immigration. Most of the Latinos that are in the United States of America are illegal immigrants mostly from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba and many other Central and South American countries.

Illegal immigration is considered a crime in the US and anyone who gets to the country without the required immigration paperwork is considered to be a criminal. This means that the Latinos, because of the fact that most of them are illegal immigrants, are viewed as criminals by the natives of the United States of America. This has presented a big problem to the Latino population in the United States of America because the natives have developed an irrational fear of the Latinos and in case of an incident of crime, the Latinos are usually implicated.

This fear of the Latinos has generated hate that has seen a lot of negative stereotypes emerge about the Latinos in the US. Apart from the criminal stereotype, Latinos are also considered to be very unintelligent and this stereotype emanates from the fact that most criminals are people who never made it to school. This means that the people of the United States of America believe that Latinos are not intelligent because they are criminals.

Is xenophobia justified, especially in the 21 st century? This is the time that the world should be celebrating cultural diversity but lurking in the shadow is this black menace called xenophobia. The future of the world lies in the acceptance of diversity that is there in the universe and showing utmost tolerance to other people, their practices and belief systems. The world we are living in is different from the world that was there a century ago. In the past, people used to live under geographical confines and it was hard to come across foreigners or people whose values and practices were not in tandem with those of the locality.

However, the world has changed and in this era of globalization, movement from one point of the world to another is very common. This means that the chances of having an encounter with a foreigner are very high. The world has reached a point where it is inevitable to live without foreigners which means that if there is to be peaceful co-existence in the world, then the tolerance of other foreigners and their entire cultural systems must be practiced. There are some forms of fear of foreigners that are justifiable because of the psychological connections that are there but there are some that can be fought (Crozier 67).

This is because some instances of xenophobia emanate from attitudes that are formed against people of certain origins. This means that if these attitudes are quashed, these forms of xenophobia can be eradicated. For example, the fear of foreigners especially people from specific African countries by South Africans was a result of the formation of attitudes towards those people. Instead of appreciating that these people are working hard to uplift the economy of their country, they develop fears that the increasing numbers of African immigrants in South Africa are threatening economic and business opportunities.

The fear of the Latinos in the United States of America is also based on a false belief that all Latinos are criminals because they entered the country in a manner that is considered criminal. Xenophobia is very harmful to a society or a country. It can easily lead to violent reactions or even genocide. This is because intensive fear generates hate which leads to anti-social practices against the targeted population (Audie 23). The genocidal killings that took place in Europe during the Third Reich were partly because of the irrational fear of the Jews and their geographic expansion which led to a war against them that saw their near extermination by the Nazi regime.

The fear of foreigners is something that is supposed to be unheard of in the 21 st century yet cases of xenophobia are increasingly being reported. In the UK and the US, xenophobia or the fear of foreigners has taken a religious twist and it has become Islamophobia. Their fear of Muslims nationalities has heightened and this has led to the development of a climate that is unconducive for the Muslims in the two countries.

Muslims have become targets of antisocial behaviors including exclusion and even bullying. In the UK, this fear was aggravated by the London bombings in the middle of the last decade while in the United States of America, this xenophobia widened after the catastrophic terrorist bombings of September 11, 2001. In the two countries, a person from an Islamic background is always viewed as a potential terrorist. The fear of the Muslims in the two countries is evidenced by the specialized checks that the Muslims undergo at the airports before they can be allowed into the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

This action by the two countries has elicited the same kind of response towards American citizens living in Islamic countries. Americans living in Islamic countries have been victims of xenophobic attacks. To start with, the Americans are usually considered to be spies sent on a mission to track terrorists meaning that the nationals in the Islamic countries especially in the Middle East live in fear of the Americans who live in their countries. Secondly, the tensions between the Islamic countries and the United States of America have generated hatred towards the Americans living in those countries and this has heightened xenophobia that is directed towards them.

In conclusion, human beings will continue to live in fear of different things depending on the nature of interactions between them and those things but the worst form of fear is the fear of the other human beings. This is because this is the fear that can have the most dangerous consequences.

Apart from the emotional trauma arising from the aftermath of the actions that are triggered by this fear, xenophobia has led to the wiping off of millions of people from the face of the earth during various instances of genocides. In the 21 st century when the world is said to be a global village, the levels of hatred and intolerance that are brought by xenophobia can be very dangerous especially towards the dream of integration of cultures that is expected to unite the people of the world.

Audie, Katherine. “International Relations and Migration in Southern Africa”. Institute for Security Studies: African Security Review Vol 6 no 3, 1997.

Bourne, Edmund. The Anxiety & Phobia Workbook. New Jersey: New Harbinger Publications. 2005.

Kessler, Edward. Prevalence, Severity, and Comorbidity of 12-Month DSM-IV Disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication , 2005, Archive of General Psychiatry, Volume 20.

Crozier, Ray. International Handbook of Social Anxiety: Concepts, Research, and Interventions Relating to the Self and Shyness . New York: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 2000.

Latimer, Paul. Phobia and psychology: NY: Sage. 2009.

Wolpe, Joseph. Psychotherapy by reciprocal inhibition. Washington: Stanford University Press.

• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2021, December 21). Xenophobia - The Fear of Foreigners. https://ivypanda.com/essays/xenophobia-the-fear-of-foreigners/

"Xenophobia - The Fear of Foreigners." IvyPanda , 21 Dec. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/xenophobia-the-fear-of-foreigners/.

IvyPanda . (2021) 'Xenophobia - The Fear of Foreigners'. 21 December.

IvyPanda . 2021. "Xenophobia - The Fear of Foreigners." December 21, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/xenophobia-the-fear-of-foreigners/.

1. IvyPanda . "Xenophobia - The Fear of Foreigners." December 21, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/xenophobia-the-fear-of-foreigners/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Xenophobia - The Fear of Foreigners." December 21, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/xenophobia-the-fear-of-foreigners/.

• “Race, Refugees, and International Law” by Achiume
• Life in the Kenya Refugee Camp
• Racial Issues and Immigration Policy in the US
• The Importance of Humanities, Arts and Sciences
• Institutional Racism Through the Lenses of Housing Policy
• The Concept of Classism: Definition, Examples, and Prevention
• Attitudes Toward Newly Arrived Refugees: Theories and Models
• Islamophobia Is on the Rise in Germany
• Business and Intercultural Communication
• Nativism Sentiments in the 19th Century
• Legalizing Abortion in the USA: Pros and Cons
• Framing Class: Reading Comprehension
• Girls in Gangs: Reasons that Make Girls Join the Gang
• Divorce Rate in the United States
• Child Pornography and Its Regulation

• How It Works
• Affiliate program

Globalization and Xenophobia Argumentative Essay

Introduction.

(Gains the audience’s interest) Xenophobia is defined as a strong feeling of dislike to other people who are from other countries. Thus xenophobia is an absurd fear and refuse to consent people from foreign countries. It is believed that man’s evolution is characterized by xenophobia. With time, psychologists suggest that all forms of discrimination based on nationality, sex, religion and race will be tossed out of man’s reminiscence. These aliens are normally people from diverse ethnicity and cultural background. Al- Rodhan states categorically in his book that aliens are never receive a cordial welcome in xenophobic nations. If such kind of discrimination culminates into serious repercussions such as hatred and violence, then xenophobia will inevitably become a security concern in such nations (Demonstrates the topic’s relevance.).  “When the differences between people seen as a problem they risk becoming the vector of discrimination, violence and conflict” Al Rodhan said.

Globalization is the act of making the whole world accessible in economic, social, political and technological realm. With increased levels of hostility towards foreigners in host countries, there is need to cut down on xenophobia to promote safety and security of aliens in the host countries. (Provides a thesis that clearly contains SOS). Some would say that globalization and xenophobia are likened to robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Background Information

(Incorporates the audience survey results) According to the U.N, it is estimated that the rate of immigration in developed country will reach a steady rate of 2.2 million per year by 2050. How would one feel if all the businesses in town are owned by foreigners? When people meet foreigners in their host country, the question that rings in their minds is what must have made them leave their native country. (Answers most obvious audience questions). The feeling of dislike that crosses one’s mind at such a time is what is referred to as xenophobia. Globalization is the conversion of the world into a global village.( Provides enough background information to establish baseline knowledge) It has been the answer to the increased immigrations in the developed nations. Thus globalization has facilitated xenophobia in the host countries. (Details multiple perspectives) Globalization changed the public societies that made racism, ethnocentrism as well as xenophobia as an unacceptable or inappropriate attitude. Even though, it doesn’t eliminate them, it just made them, to some extent, hidden in the public while the majority of people still hold these attitudes. As have mentioned, globalization have an effect on xenophobia and this effect is contradictory. The contradiction is that globalization can both increase and decrease xenophobia. (Provides a clear statement of the problem.) It increase it by making media that inflame xenophobia such as criminal and hate publication widely available and increasing the chance for different cultures to clash in certain situations. However, globalization also decreases xenophobia by making the learning in immersion much easier.

First Argument

(Provides one argument for your topic from your T-chart.) The media and mass communication has promoted globalization and so dos it to xenophobia. To begin with, the media has made public how different political leaders view other countries. For instance, countries that are known to have high prevalence for HIV/ AIDs tend to be a disgrace to the whole world. So to say that those immigrants from such nations are thought to spread the dangerous malady to the host countries and this impression worsens the already existing xenophobia. (Supports the argument with no less than one valid and reliable source.)

The use of the media therefore has promoted the spread of people’s views, attitudes and perceptions about people from other nations thus aggravating xenophobia, especially the crimes publications or extremist groups. The print media in South Africa for example is known to publish more than what the public can stomach about foreigners. This act of negativity has cultivated a soiled relationship between the native and the foreigners. This is not different from what xenophobia is.

Second Argument

(Provides a second argument for your topic from your T-chart.) Globalization has promoted migration of people from their native countries to other foreign nations. It is thus inevitable that the diversity of culture and international relation will determine whether xenophobia is exhibited or not. For instance, students who get a chance to study in the U.S are looked down upon. They reciprocate the same to the host citizens can become xenophobic too. Supports the argument with no less than one valid and reliable source.

The second type of culture clash, that lead to xenophobia, is not because the cultural differences or ignorant but because of conflict between this cultures or countries. Nations in the Middle East for instance Israelites and Palestinians have war conflict that has culminated into xenophobia. This is not news as such nations cannot have good relation any time soon for obvious reasons. “RAW: Pro-Palestinian protesters clash with Pro-Israelis in Berlin” Published by RT. 

Objection and Responses

Identifies one audience objection to your argument from your T-chart. In contrast, globalization has promoted human interaction in various ways. First, it has promoted a sense of understanding between different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. It is presumed that students who study in foreign countries have a better understanding of the natives and so do the natives get to learn more pertaining the way of life of such students in their respective native countries. According to research conducted by Crampton, Dowell, Parkin & Thompson “Cultural immersion, an approach based on the principle that immersion in culture and language is an effective means of learning about oneself and about another culture, provides opportunities for students to learn some of the principles associated with cultural safety.” These students will understand and learn the culture that they immerged on it as well as give an opportunity to the people in where they study to understand their culture, which will reduce xenophobia in both sides.

However, some cultural differences cannot be immersed. For instance Israel and Palestine. Responds and supports your rebuttal with at least one valid and reliable

On the same note, travelling to foreign countries has promoted cultural immersion among different states. As a matter of fact, xenophobia has been perceived to be a normal way in which man views people on their first encounter. “If we unaware of the cultural system that inform identity and behavior, it can be all too easy to prejudge behavior before we understand the basis of it. This may lead to xenophobia and ethnocentrism.” Al Rodhan. Identifies a second audience objection to your argument from your T-chart.

Globalization has promoted xenophobia by exposing people of different cultures to new cultures through the social media, education system, travelling and other written materials. This exposure is a viable breeding ground for xenophobia as cultural clashes result into hatred and hostility between diverse ethnicities.     The previous video, and too many others, shows examples of the clash cultures because of the conflict between them. These clashes wouldn’t happen before the globalization. Travel, as mentioned, became easy and necessary in some situations, which led these cultures to clash in many in different parts of the world, which increase xenophobia. Language difficulties thus create a complex xenophobia, where both native people and foreigners are xenophobic.

“LEP [limited of English proficiency] made social interactions with Americans difficult… speaking to Americans was reported as nerve-wracking. Some teenagers perceived that their “poor English” could irritate Americans peer.” Hsin and Tsai wrote.  Responds and supports your rebuttal with at least one valid and reliable source.

Best Argument

Provides your best argument for your topic from your T-chart. When you ask people why they dislike foreigners, most of them say that the foreigners are a source of unfair competition to the host citizens. For instance, foreigners who tend to excel both academically and economically in foreign countries are disliked. Imagine all businesses in a close town being owned by foreigners. The natives would miss the opportunities for investments and thus become resentful to the aliens. Some of the well renown public speakers in the U.K such as John Mills, underscores that the foreigners put unabated strains on the local resources and social amenities such as schools and hospitals. “There is a huge immigration flow coming into this country and it puts an enormous strain on all our public services – our hospitals, our (doctors’) practices, our schools,” Mills says.

The strain on resources secondary to increased immigration has bred Xenophobia in many countries. South Africa is best cited example for this. It is documented that  substantial number of the local population ganged up to attack foreigners with the claim that they put strain on the country’s economy and post a stiff competition in the job market to the local population. 

Unique Solution

Reducing the levels of xenophobia will be the best way to foster human interaction. It hurts to say that we cannot reduce globalization to counter xenophobia yet globalization is said to be the mother of xenophobia. The best way to counter xenophobia is by encouraging interaction between different nations through sports and settling the disputes in the most peaceful why possible. This will reduce cultural clashes between nations. More importantly, the number of immigrants and emigrants should be regulated in each state so as to avoid resentful sentiments between states. More evidently, nations such as Britain, France and Australia have opted to reduce the number of immigrants in their countries annually. According to the U.N, it is estimated that the rate of immigration in developed country will reach a steady rate of 2.2 million per year by 2050. Reminds readers of your unique solution from the thesis.  It thus becomes necessary to cut short the number of immigrants to prevent exploitation of host resources. This will reduce xenophobia to zero rates. Presents a source that demonstrates how and why the solution is likely to work.

Identifies the weaknesses in the currently existing solutions. There is no clear record on the existing ways that have been put in place to counter xenophobia. However, improved security to the foreigners has been one of the ways. This has reduced the risks of attacks by the resentful local population. However, provision of adequate security to foreigners may not happen especially for the developing countries. Thus cutting down on the number of immigrants and emigrants should be regulated in each state so as to avoid resentful sentiments between states.

Addresses and responds to any potential objections to the unique solution. In contrast, objection to this idea of limiting immigration and emigration has come up strongly. Some nations say that it will reduce exposure and thus increase the level of strangeness between people of diverse cultural backdrops. However, research has shown that too much connectedness is the major source of conflict just like the way familiarity breeds contempt.

Implementation of Solution

Achieving the goal of zero xenophobia rates is not easy. Bryan S. T. supposes that the struggle needs to come from the state government to limit the number of emigration in each year. Besides, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) will be of great importance if it provided a hand of help to the developing countries about this idea of emigration.

Presents a brief overview of the actions necessary for the implementation of your solutions First, the state government for developing countries would give an order that the citizens who are in foreign countries without a substantial reason to return home. Thereafter, the number of immigrants and emigrants would be recorded and a certain threshold drawn so that it becomes binding to the state on the actual number of immigrants and emigrants that the country can sustain without economic challenges. Social cohesion between nations would as well be encouraged to avoid cultural clashes among nations.

Reduction of emigration can be done by increasing the flight rates to the levels where only a few can afford. This will definitely force the local population to remain in their states due to increased travelling expenses. For those who can afford, a maximum number of emigrants as well as the frequency of travelling should be agreed upon. This will also limit the rate of immigration.

Provides suggestions for future research. Future researchers have a task to undertake. There is need to determine the various reasons for xenophobia and thus a discussion on how to curb the most common causes. Conferences have to be dealt to aid in brainstorming on how this issue can be dealt with accordingly.

In conclusion, xenophobia is a common kind of phobias that might its root back to human survivor. Xenophobia and its composition has changed nowadays because of the changes of human’s life throughout the history. One of these major changes was globalization. Globalization changed xenophobia in contradictory way, where it increases and decreases it in the same time. Media that publish stuff that inflame xenophobia such criminal and hate publications, which is widely available now, as well as the high chance of clash cultures are increase xenophobia. In contrast, globalization made learning and immersion in cultures easier, which reduce xenophobia. Reminds the audience of the relevance of the problem.  If it is said that xenophobia has its bad and negative effects that may lead to serious consequences every individual should head.  Everyone should unite and cooperate against xenophobia. The media should deal with its publication wisely and focusing on publications that build communities’ awareness and rationality. Also, authorities and governments should provide good educational opportunities such as quality education that give a good picture about the different cultures and studying abroad programs.

This proposed solution if implemented will impact positively by releasing the strains on the natural resources and social amenities in the host countries. Thus the local population is anticipated to resent much less.  Summarizes the benefits of your proposed solution

If this issue remains unattended to, the rate of xenophobia is likely to escalate to levels where every foreigner will be a threat to the host state security thus increased mistrust and suspicion I the entire human race. Identifies potential negative consequences if your solution is not implemented

Globalization has worked to the disadvantage of the developing nations. First, those affluent citizens migrate to foreign developed countries to enjoy their wealth and lifestyle changes. On the other hand, the affluent individuals in the foreign nations migrate to the developing countries to grab opportunities for investments. This has created a vicious cycle and thus multiplied the xenophobia that existed before. As stated earlier, man cannot reverse globalization. Instead, restrictions based on immigrations and emigrations would work for better outcomes as far as xenophobia is concerned. It is also thought that xenophobia, being man’s way of reacting to strangers, will soon submerge with continual connectedness and interactions with people from diverse ethnic and cultural backdrops. (Ties your conclusion to the introduction in a powerful and memorable way)

Related essays

• Ways to Help Children Succeed in School
• The Economic Impacts of Marine Litter
• Psychology, Science or Pseudoscience
• Should Teachers Be Allowed to Carry Firearms in Schools?
• Target Canada Case Discussion Brief

if you have ordered more than 30 pages

Intermediate

if you have ordered more than 50 pages

if you have ordered more than 100 pages

1st time order

for the first time order with code: mywriting15

Essay on Xenophobia

Students are often asked to write an essay on Xenophobia in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Xenophobia

Understanding xenophobia.

Xenophobia is the fear or hatred of strangers or foreigners. It’s a complex issue that can lead to discrimination, violence, and social conflict.

Causes of Xenophobia

Xenophobia can stem from various factors like cultural differences, economic competition, or historical conflicts. It’s often fueled by stereotypes and misinformation.

Impacts of Xenophobia

Xenophobia can harm individuals and communities, leading to social division and conflict. It can also hinder cultural diversity and mutual understanding.

Addressing Xenophobia

To combat xenophobia, it’s important to promote tolerance, diversity, and understanding. Education and open dialogue can play a key role in this process.

Also check:

• 10 Lines on Xenophobia

250 Words Essay on Xenophobia

Defining xenophobia.

Xenophobia, derived from the Greek words ‘xenos’ (strange) and ‘phobos’ (fear), is the irrational or unreasoned fear of that which is perceived as different or foreign. It is a social phenomenon that manifests in numerous ways, primarily through attitudes of prejudice and discrimination.

The Roots of Xenophobia

Xenophobia is deeply rooted in human psychology and societal structures. It can be traced back to our evolutionary past, where in-group favouritism and out-group hostility were survival mechanisms. In modern times, xenophobia often arises from economic, political, and social insecurities, creating scapegoats for complex issues.

Xenophobia’s Impact on Society

Xenophobia’s impact is far-reaching and detrimental. It fosters social division, fuels hate crimes, and hinders cultural exchange and mutual understanding. Additionally, it can lead to policies that are discriminatory and violate human rights.

Combating Xenophobia

Addressing xenophobia requires a multi-faceted approach. Education plays a crucial role in challenging stereotypes and fostering understanding. Policies promoting diversity and inclusivity can also help. Moreover, media has a responsibility to portray diverse groups accurately and sensitively.

In an increasingly globalized world, xenophobia is a hurdle to unity and progress. As we strive for a more inclusive and understanding society, it is paramount to confront and challenge xenophobic attitudes wherever they appear.

500 Words Essay on Xenophobia

Introduction.

Xenophobia, derived from the Greek words ‘xenos’ meaning ‘stranger’ or ‘foreigner’ and ‘phobos’ meaning ‘fear’, is an intense or irrational dislike or fear of people from other countries. It manifests in many ways, ranging from bias and prejudice to violence and hate crimes. Xenophobia is a complex and multifaceted issue that has significant socio-cultural and political implications.

Historical Context and Causes

Xenophobia is not a new phenomenon. It has been prevalent throughout history, often exacerbated during times of economic hardship, political instability, or when a society feels its identity is under threat. The causes of xenophobia are multifaceted, often rooted in ignorance, misinformation, and fear. It can stem from a perceived threat to a community’s economic status, cultural identity, or social cohesion.

The impacts of xenophobia are far-reaching and destructive, affecting individuals and communities on multiple levels. At an individual level, victims of xenophobia can experience psychological trauma, social isolation, and economic disadvantage. On a societal level, xenophobia can lead to social division, conflict, and can undermine social cohesion. It can also negatively impact a nation’s reputation and relationships with other countries.

Xenophobia and Globalization

In the age of globalization, where the world is more interconnected than ever, xenophobia poses a significant challenge. As people move across borders for work, education, or refuge, they often encounter unfamiliar cultures and societies. This increased diversity can lead to tension and fear, fueling xenophobia. However, globalization also provides an opportunity for increased understanding and tolerance, as exposure to different cultures can challenge pre-existing stereotypes and biases.

Addressing xenophobia requires a multifaceted approach. Education plays a crucial role in combating ignorance and misinformation that often fuels xenophobia. Schools and universities should promote cultural understanding and tolerance, encouraging students to challenge their biases and stereotypes. Governments have a responsibility to enact and enforce laws that protect individuals from hate crimes and discrimination. The media also plays a critical role in shaping public opinion and should strive to present balanced and accurate depictions of different cultures and communities.

Xenophobia is a complex and pervasive issue with significant implications for individuals and societies. It is a product of fear and ignorance, often exacerbated by economic hardship and political instability. However, through education, legislation, and responsible media representation, it is possible to challenge xenophobia and promote a more inclusive and tolerant society. In the age of globalization, it is more important than ever to address xenophobia and strive for a world where diversity is celebrated rather than feared.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

• Essay on Xenia
• Essay on Xbox
• Essay on X-Mas

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

Happy studying!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.