The novel Zebra Crossing by Meg Vandermerwe is about the struggle of a young and vulnerable girl by the name of Chipo who leaves Zimbabwe to South Africa with her brother for a better life. she deals with current events, historical issues, and cultural beliefs depicted in the text as being a refugee, xenophobia, and being albino respectfully. A current even that is happening all around the world today is migration of refugees. For people like Chipo their home country can not support them and/or political violence. Countries are either refusing to let in refugees or accepting refugees to a certain amount. Sometimes people and their governments forget that refugees are people but rather just numbers or even pests. “Refugee sounds like flea. That is how, we are warned, many at Home Affairs view us. Like fleas that needs to have their heads …show more content…
Chipo being albino get treated very badly by her community because they have this cultural belief that albino people are born when there is an unholy marriage/relationships, and that they are linked with witchcraft, thus creating this idea that albino people are not really human and should not be treated like one. “When Mai Mupfudza saw me looking, she spat at her feet and turned her back on me. It was local superstition - spit and you will protect your unborn child from catching the sope’s curse” (Vandermerwe 30). This quote is important because it shows how badly Chipo is treated and that she has to endure and be shameful of her uniqueness because of the cultural belief around the world and specifically in African countries that dehumanize people like her. The fact that she is called a ‘sope’ rather than her name and is connected to witchcraft and superstitions demonstrates dehumanization for people like Chipo. overall this toxic cultural belief is shown in the novel throughout to show readers the struggles albino people go
My essay focuses on discrimination as one of the main challenges that refugees face. I discuss some instances of discrimination that occurred in the book, whether based on race or culture,
The novel immediately projects the fear and misunderstanding felt by the people of Bambara due to the unexpected early changes that are taking place in Africa. “A white man...There’s a white man on the bank of the Joliba” is exclaimed by Dousika’s pregnant wife Sira (Conde 5). The family is instantly struck with a curious mind but also one that is uneasy. The sight of this white man causes great despair already for the man of the house Dousika: “White men come and live in Segu among the Bambara? It seemed impossible, whether they were friends or enemies!”(Conde 10). The unexpected appearance of this white ...
In such a heated topic, it is important to make the distinction between an asylum seeker and refugee. Definitions are disputed, but the UN uses the following definitions. A refugee is a person who has left their country due to legitimate fears of persecution because of race, religion, nationality, political views, or social class. An asylum seeker is someone who claims refugee status but has yet to officially gained said status. Often times, one might seek asylum in times of war or when one feels threatened by their government. It is important to note that while a definition seems straightforward, arge political controversies may arise depending on the...
A refugee is a person who has left his or her native country and cannot or will not return due to war, violence, or persecution (United Nations, 1951). The refugee must have a rational fear of persecution for membership in a specific social group, nationality, political opinion, race or religion. In 2012, the primary reasons for refugees fleeing their home country were ethnic and tribal conflict, religious persecution, and war violence (UNHRC,
Refugees are a specific type of immigration group. As define in section, “a refugee is someone who has been forced to flee his or her country because of persecution, war, or violence. A refugee has a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social
“The thin blue line” is a phrase that many people have heard of yet do not fully understand. It is a name that applies to law enforcement officers and their essential role in society. It shows support to the living law enforcement officers and commemorates the fallen ones. It is usually presented as any black shape or object with a blue line through the middle. The half above the blue line represents the general public and law abiding citizens, and the half below the blue line represents the criminals. The thin blue line symbolizes the officers. The idea behind it is that the police officers are the only thing separating the public from the criminal element of society (Flosi 2016). They work tirelessly to keep these two groups
Refugees have two basic choices. They can return to their home country, or they can try to settle in another country. Most refugees, however, cannot return home because conditions in their native country have not changed sufficiently to eliminate the problems from whi...
According to the 1951 Refugee Convention, refugee is a term applied to anyone who is outside his/her own country and cannot return due to the fear of being persecuted on the basis of race, religion, nationality, membership of a group or political opinion. Many “refugees” that the media and the general public refer to today are known as internally displaced persons, which are people forced to flee their homes to avoid things such as armed conflict, generalized violations of human rights or natural and non-natural disasters. These two groups are distinctly different but fall ...
...tries receiving the stream of refugees. The crisis is generating an avalanche of issues in all countries providing safety to refugees and still receiving more every day. Not only is the inundation of Syrian Refugees to countries such as Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey taking a ruinous toll on the countries’ economies, but it is also causing a range of issues due to overcrowding such as lack of resources and shelter; and the spread of diseases among refugees and their hosts; the refugee crisis is also creating social tensions between refugees and those who are natural citizens of the refugees’ host countries. As the surge of refugees continues reach Syria’s neighboring countries, it is creating many challenges for refugee-aiding countries as they struggle to bear the weight of so many refugees at the same time that they strive to support their own nations’ citizens.
Those who do not fear persecution are not considered in this definition, for instance, people escaping from natural disasters, because they do not have a fear of persecution. In addition, even though the individuals do face persecution, they are not considered as refugees if they are not ‘on the basis of’ of one of the protected grounds. Even those who face persecution on the basis of a protected ground, they cannot be declared as refugees because they are not outside their country of citizenship. The most controversial notion is that those who have been driven from their homes but who have not crossed international borders, so-called ‘Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDPs), are not in the definition of refugee, even though they have all the characteristics of a refugee except that they have not crossed an international border. The UNHCR has played their part in helping such persons in the last thirty or so years, but has still not considered them as refugees which makes them hard to have full benefits of what refugees should get. Hence, Lister aims to portray that these restrictions have a rational
When lines of identity inevitably blend, relative jurisprudence must be exercised. Lines make excluding circles and methods of excluding people from asylum; our international community divides into unwelcome and welcome nations. As discourse, cultural identity means translating beliefs and feelings from one culture to another. In the process of translation, a screen of cultural values filters understanding of the values and experience of the “other.” The simple word “refugee” evokes images and stories particular to a collectively defined identity, invoking “an image of the radicalized other” (Daniel 272).
Noughts and Crosses is an in depth story which explores the issues of racism and prejudice and the effects they can have on society. Blackman has created a world of her own in complete contrast to the society we live in. By doing this she has impacted her readers, challenged our contexts and allowed the reader insight into the effects of racism and the suffering it can cause. Blackman has effectively used a range of narrative techniques to bring her world to life giving the white reader a taste of the discrimination blacks have suffered for centuries, provoking feelings of empathy and understanding. By turning the world upside down, Blackman makes her readers see things more clearly.
The topic that I have been studying is Refugee’s and Migration. According to the Oxford Dictionary, a refugee is “A person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster”. In order to keep their families and themselves a refugee migrates to a different country which. This issue is more of a global problem than it is local. I think that there needs to be more awareness on the problems that refugee’s face from day to day so that if a refugee gets sent to the UK then the government can give more help to support them.
Between January and November of this year more than 750,000 migrants have been estimated crossing into the EU’s borders compared to only 280,000 in the whole year during 2014 (www.bbc.com). This influx of refugees and asylum seekers from the Middle East has become a heavy burden for European Union policy makers. Many state leaders have opposing viewpoints and varying solutions to the crisis that is plaguing their region and as a result there has been little to no actions taken to solve this ever growing problem. This crisis should serve as prime example of global cooperation, and it should highlight the ability to come together internationally and deal with important problems that affect all individuals. The solution of the refugee crisis will