I Am An Immigrant – Voices

If people immigrate to other countries, they receive better opportunities abroad and at home. After studying abroad in California my English got much better, so when I returned home I was able to get a good job in a coffee cafe near a tourist area. I was successful in the job because I was able to understand English speaking customers and translate for them. Not as many people immigrate to Japan as in the United States. I see a lot of people come to Japan for vacation, but not a lot of foreigners move to Japan permanently, unless you marry a Japanese citizen or go temporarily for work. Many people move from Japan to the United States, and then back again. We call them returnees. Primarily they move with their families because of work and then come back afterward. This is popular because the U.S. offers more of a variety of jobs. The older generations don’t approve of the returnees. There is a negative impression of immigration, but at the same time, because of globalization, many young people are encouraged to go to America to learn English so we can keep up with other countries. I find the U.S. and its President’s view on immigration interesting. In American history, the British came here and then declared independence. Later, on waves, foreigners immigrated here. Everyone in the U.S. is here because someone in their family immigrated, but now Trump says he’s going to build a wall and ban all immigrants, yet everyone here is an immigrant in some way. I understand what he’s saying but it’s sad because there’s lots of innocent people that want opportunities for immigrating. He can’t stop terrorist attacks or crime from happening even if he bans certain groups of people. Unlike him, in Japan, I would welcome people that want to move there for an opportunity.