The North African Move to Italy: How and Why?
Presentation Type
Poster
Full Name of Faculty Mentor
Edurne Beltran de Heredia, Languages and Intercultural Studies
Major
Languages & Intercultural Std
Presentation Abstract
Immigration in Italy dates back to the tenth century. From merchants to philosophers, many would travel far and long to create a new name for themselves or to spread their ideas and share items with the new land. In today’s age, immigration is more than sharing ideas and selling things, people migrate to escape war, poverty, or oppression. For the people of northern Africa, many of them flee their home countries in search of a peaceful land, which happens to be the country that is closest to them across the Mediterranean, Italy. In 2014, over 170,000 immigrants arrived in Italy, and over the last few years, that number has increased to over 500,000 total. These people rely on unsafe boats and raft vessels to take them across the Mediterranean in hopes of landing in Italy and escaping their war-ridden countries. Life across the border into Italy may seem peaceful, however many Italians do not take kindly to these immigrants. Surveys have shown that Italians feel that these immigrants are a burden on their country and many immigrants are labeled as criminals simply for not being Italian born. This project will look into the movies Terraferma and Fire at Sea and a TED Talk by Takaua Ben Mohamed called "Liberi di Essere, Liberi di Diventare" to explore how these immigrants and their children live their lives as an outsider and how they cope with the pressures of Italian society.
Start Date
12-4-2023 4:00 PM
End Date
12-4-2023 6:00 PM
Disciplines
International and Intercultural Communication | Modern Languages
Recommended Citation
DAiello, Mary, "The North African Move to Italy: How and Why?" (2023). Undergraduate Research Competition. 68.
https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/ugrc/2023/fullconference/68
The North African Move to Italy: How and Why?
Immigration in Italy dates back to the tenth century. From merchants to philosophers, many would travel far and long to create a new name for themselves or to spread their ideas and share items with the new land. In today’s age, immigration is more than sharing ideas and selling things, people migrate to escape war, poverty, or oppression. For the people of northern Africa, many of them flee their home countries in search of a peaceful land, which happens to be the country that is closest to them across the Mediterranean, Italy. In 2014, over 170,000 immigrants arrived in Italy, and over the last few years, that number has increased to over 500,000 total. These people rely on unsafe boats and raft vessels to take them across the Mediterranean in hopes of landing in Italy and escaping their war-ridden countries. Life across the border into Italy may seem peaceful, however many Italians do not take kindly to these immigrants. Surveys have shown that Italians feel that these immigrants are a burden on their country and many immigrants are labeled as criminals simply for not being Italian born. This project will look into the movies Terraferma and Fire at Sea and a TED Talk by Takaua Ben Mohamed called "Liberi di Essere, Liberi di Diventare" to explore how these immigrants and their children live their lives as an outsider and how they cope with the pressures of Italian society.