The Road I

“He is an American, who leaves behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the new

mode of life he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and the new rank he holds”. Michel Crèvecoeur.

Sklair, (1991) wrote that, “The poor in all countries struggle against the domestic and global forces that oppress them and their resistance takes many forms. Where this involves opposition to those who run the global system in their own interests it will naturally involve transnational practices in the economics, political and cultural-ideological spheres” (pp.23-24).

As many of us know and believe, the United States of America is a land of opportunities and people with dreams. However, in many instances to achieve the dream, it is necessary to become a citizen of the United States.

In 1993, Pat Buchanan, a nationally syndicated columnist said that, “Immigration is altering the racial composition of America; by 2050, whites may be near a minority. Consequently, American society is becoming increasingly divided along racial lines. The resulting ethnic tensions could cause the breakup of the United States…” (p. 31). There are some merits to that statement but Americans should be careful because radical views like those of Mr. Buchanan have been complicating the lives of many honorable immigrants in search of better opportunities.

Considering that integration and citizenship in the United States are important issues, this article presents a perspective of a Cape-Verdean immigrant by explaining the necessary procedure to integrate and become an U.S. citizen. Saskia Sassen, (1998) wrote, “I believe that multilateralism is better way to proceed in a broad range of matters, including immigration, because it is essential to create-and-invent-policies that have received and sending countries working together” (p. 116).

Sklair (1999) explained that the global capitalism is the most productive theory in globalization and concluded with a discussion of resistance to globalization. He acknowledged that it is a new idea to the social science community although it has been around for some time within the corporate and international business world. He said that, “Not all globalization researchers entirely accept the existence of a global economy or a global culture. Most accept that local, national and regional economies are undergoing important changes as a result of processes of globalization everywhere there are limits to globalization” (p.145). In his 1991 book, “Sociology of the Global System,” Sklair added that, “Because the world is divided into sovereign states, most with relatively clear and unified national cultures, it is convenient to identify these states as the basic elements of the global system” (p. 2).

Due to the importance of the issue regarding immigrants’ integration, I am particularly interested in explaining about Cape-Verdean people, history, and culture, as well as the relationship between the United States and Cape Verde. I will emphasize the importance of citizenship for those Cape-Verdeans seeking to become U.S. citizens and will help them understand some key insights as to how to succeed in this country.  I will also stress the urgency for all prospective candidates to obtaining U.S. citizenship and inform them the specific steps of the process such as (a) the U.S. political system/structure and the two major political forces, (b) the laws of immigration, including immigrant’s rights and the correct procedure to follow in order to become a citizen, and (c) lived experiences of immigrants (themselves) and native-born Americans who kindly accepted to tell their stories.

As far as I know there are many citizenship guides/resources, but none of them focus specially on the Cape-Verdean people in America except one created by me in 2008 (CD, DVD, or text available upon request). The primary goal is to be able to provide Cape-Verdean immigrants with a culturally adequate document that will help them fulfill their goals during the process of naturalization.

I interviewed several Cape-Verdean immigrants in order to obtain their own personal stories and experiences. The interviewees were able to explain about the “crossroads” and “obstacles” that they found when they went along the road, as well as the aspects of the changes that they went through in terms of their own cultural values as they wend their way deeper into the process of becoming an U.S. citizen.

Eric Wolf (1982) presents an analysis of the new laborers and the way that their arrival speeded up the industrialization in United States. According to him, male immigrants to the United States between 1879 and 1918 outnumbered females roughly two to one. This was because of the traveling expenses and distance, so the majority of the newcomers stayed in America. He spoke about new opportunities that emerged and said that because of the purchase of more machines, more people were able to get jobs and support the growth of the American economy. The system allowed great flexibility in meeting the opportunities and requirements of growth, he added. Most of these workers entered the unskilled, lower-paid levels of industrial occupations and their wages were determined by their social affiliation/status. (pp. 354-383).

As for the majority of Cape-Verdean immigrants, one of their major barriers is the lack of basic knowledge of the English language. When people come from all over the world to the United States, it is crucial that they contact social organizations available to them in order to get information about American society. Needless to say that Cape-Verdean immigrants, like many others in America, first go through a readjustment and then, eventually get “established”. Many of them qualify for naturalization, but in order to become a citizen of the United States, they must learn how to speak, read, and write the basics of the English language in addition to learning of the American history and government. (Part II forthcoming)

 

References

Buchanan, P. (1993). America needs a ‘Time Out’ on immigration. In Bender, D., Leone, B., Koster, K. & Barbour, S. (1995). Immigration policy. (pp. 31-33). San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, Inc

Sassen, S. (1998). America must cooperate with other nations in regulating immigration. In Dudley, W. (2002). Illegal immigration: Oposing viewpoints. (pp. 113-119). San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press: Thomson Gale.

Sklair, L. (1991). Sociology of the global system. The John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.

Sklair, L.  (May, 1998). Transnational practices and the analysis of the global system: Delivered for the transnational communities programme seminar series, 22

Sklair, L. (1999). Competing conceptions of globalization. Journal of World-System Research, Vol. V, 2, 1999, 143-162

Wolf, E. R. (1982). Europe and the people without history. The Regents of the University of California