Kyerra Henderson

July 11, 2021

SOCW 6361-12
 Synopsis of Social Problem

The social problem I decided to highlight was the continuous problem of immigration. Since

the beginning of time immigration has been a key issue in the United States. From the worry that

immigrants will come over to the United States and take over, to the concern that they will bring

nothing, but violence and crime. There are a lot of discrimination that goes with being an

immigrant and discussing the issue. Within the United States immigrants that are mostly

discriminated against are from places such as Guatemala, African, Syria, and Asia. There are a

common stereotype surrounding these populations. There have been studies that have shown that

Latinos encounter discrimination among all 50 states, despite representing almost half of U.S

immigrant’s population. However, African Americans face the most discrimination, dating even

before slavery. Whether it’s discriminating against the color of their skin, physical features,

language etc. As stated in the text, racial profiling discrimination is based on assumptions about

immigrants' character, physical status, language abilities, and legal status in the US (Demircioglu

& Vivona, 2020). Such discrimination can lead to things such as emotional stress and social

isolation, along with limited opportunities. When thinking about the facility immigrants are

placed while awaiting deportation, they are unfit and unsanitary for any human. There are

approximately 54,000 refugees, asylum-seekers, migrants detained by ICE, 20,000 in custody of

Border Protection and 11,000 with the Dept of health and human services (Palmer et al., 2021).

There aren’t even enough space and or facilities to hold the number of immigrants there

are. Families are separated from each other, and children are abused. facilities are filled far

beyond capacity, with some individuals enduring weeks or more without basic necessities like

access to showers or changes of clothes” (Stenglein, 2021). In the United States, individuals who
are discriminated against often are viewed as being an immigrant. Which is why it is no

coincidence that these individuals often live in low-income areas. Immigrants may live in an area

that has limited jobs, housing, adequate education, hospitals, and other effective resources. In the

United States, the number of Immigrants, which at the time, reached a historical record of 43

million in 2015, experience adverse economic effects because of institutional discrimination

(Demircioglu & Vivona, 2020). Discrimination can be seen on all levels, whether its institutional

or not. Overtime there were different laws and policies created to control what immigrants were

and weren’t doing.

The government enacted laws to restrict all immigrants' employment, limit their mobility,

and prohibited them from purchasing a property. Immigrants are often discriminated against in

housing, education, work, health, and social security. This is to stop the success of the

immigrated family in fear that more immigrants will come. When trying to become a legal

citizen in the United States the process is lengthy and also very pricey, especially for someone

coming over and trying to start a new life. There is not much work for immigrants in the United

States because people do not really want to hire immigrants and because it is very difficult to

work without the proper documentation.

Finding a Solution

There are a wide range of things that can be done to fix the current issue of

discrimination against immigrants. Immigration is already a topic that everyone is very familiar

with and doesn’t really require much attention as far as getting people on board and being aware

of the issue. You can see different reports and broadcast on the news regarding treatment of

immigrants and the different ways they have been treated in the United States. As a social
worker it is important for me to advocate for those that are suffering from this social problem.

This is a population that is vulnerable in many ways. Therefore, it is important that I fight for the

equal rights and social change of immigrants. As a social worker my primary goal is to help

people in need and address social problems (NASW, 2017). I would do this by advocating on a

mezzo and macro level. I would conduct town hall meetings to try and get the attention of

politicians and legislators to hear the concerns of the community. I would also find it very

important to try and normalize the idea of immigrants and someone coming into the United

States for a better life. As this is supposed to be the “land of free” and help people reach new

opportunities. Many people who come into the United States are running from something terrible

in their hometown. For example, I have interacted with many Mexicans who report trying to

escape a warzone in Mexico and being scared of being sent back. Creating a program for people

trying to get into the United States, people with children born in U.S., immigrant children, etc.

would benefit them as it would assist them in obtaining citizenship and showing a sign of “good

faith”. There should be some form of policy that allows immigrants to “work off” their

citizenship by engaging in things such as volunteer work. This work would be like the jobs they

create for people who have a lot of tickets to be paid off. Offering multiple alternatives, efficient

and humane housing, along with trying to normalize immigrants would benefit this population

the most. The programs would also provide the immigrants to resources geared towards them.
 References

Ethics, C., & English, C. (2021). National Association of Social Workers (NASW).

Retrieved 24 June 2021, from https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-

Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English

Demircioglu, M. A., & Vivona, R. (2020). Depoliticizing the European immigration

debate: How to employ public sector innovation to integrate migrants. Research Policy,

104150.

https://libguides.bristolcc.edu/home

Palmer, Park, Gruyter, Kurath, Sukin, L., & Kalan et al. (2021). The United States Treats

Migrants Worse Than Prisoners of War. Retrieved 24 June 2021, from

https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/26/the-united-states-treats-migrants-worse-than-

prisoners-of-war/

Stenglein, J. (2021). How states can improve America’s immigration system. Retrieved

24 June 2021, from https://www.brookings.edu/research/how-states-can-improve-

americas-immigration-system/