Over the last few months thousands of immigrants have died trying to come to Europe and yet many parts of the continent are slowly emptying out. According to CNN, Italy has 6,000 so called ghost towns and another 15,000 villages which have lost so much of its population that their viability is under question. The Guardian estimates 3.4 million empty apartments in Spain alone and 11 million across Europe. The Economist says that cities in Eastern Germany have lost as much as fifth or their populations since re-unification and the Baltic states have suffered even more. Over the last few years, analysts and political leaders and even Pope Francis have called attention to Europe’s demographic crisis.
A gift
As I write, there are hundreds of thousands of immigrants risking life and limb to come to Europe and millions more at home thinking about coming. They come from Syria and Iraq, from North Africa, from sub-Saharan Africa. They are white, black and every shade in between. They are Moslem, Christian and profess other faiths.
They all seek a better life for themselves and their children.
European leaders are slowly getting around to thinking about what to do and quibbling about how to distribute a portion of the people who are trying to come. The Washington Post reports that there are 46.3 million displaced people in the world today thanks to the situation in Syria (9.6 million), in specific African countries (8.3 million) and other conflicts.
Lets welcome them.
A plan
Lets see this wave of humanity not as a problem but as a millennial opportunity to jump start Europe’s economy and solve its demographic crisis, at least for the next few decades.
Lets repopulate the ghost towns and fill up the empty apartments with people who need somewhere to go. They are ready to work and will till the fields, work in factories and workshops, open small businesses and do whatever they need to do to learn local languages and get their kids into local schools.
Such an effort will cost money but my guess is it will be cheaper than going to war in the Mid East and Africa and stemming the tide at its source. As these people become productive and join the consumer society, they will have a tremendously positive economic impact. They will also rejuvenate european society and make it broader and more interesting from a cultural perspective.
What is needed is an Ellis Island like solution for Europe perhaps in Lampedusa or in several locations. People need to be screened for health and criminal/terrorist affiliations but my guess is that most of the people trying to come are relatively healthy and honest and just looking for a better life.
Other options?
With all of the commentary and articles around, what I do not hear is a reasonable, moral and practical alternative . There are writers like Caitlin Moran in The Times who agree that immigration is a net plus but most of the comments see the economic pie as fixed and argue that immigrants will somehow compete for our slice.
How can we morally stand by as people drown in the Mediterranean and camp out at train stations across Europe. Like the ridiculous proposal of Donald Trump to deport 11 million people from the United States, the idea of somehow keeping all of these people out f Europe is simply impractical.
Europe’s leaders should pay attention to the Mayor of Barcelona and get in front of this issue and use this opportunity to re-start the european project and have it stand for its ideals!
To raise funds for the pedestal under the stature of liberty in New York’s harbor, Emma Lazarus, wrote a sonnet called The New Colosses. The ending line sums up what I believe Europe needs to say to the world!
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Simple yet powerful!!
Could politicians understand it??
I agree. Europe must act quickly to solve, on the on hand, the emergency of the immigration wave, for humanitarian reasons. On the other hand, our politicians and leaders have to recognize our responsibility in why these people are coming.
Finally, EU countries, UN and would have to design short, mid and long term plans to solve the conflicts behind the humanitarian crisis. Maybe they won’t be able: there are too much interests to maintain an underdeveloped Africa, for instance.
All that comes to mind: what a crap!
Who says that Europe needs those people? That’s the author’s personal opinion and nothing more! Other peple believe that there is no need for those people and there is no such thing as demographic crisis etc.
The author does not properly argue and proof his ideas. Further to that, he does not discuss critical aspects of such a mass immigration.
– Europe is catholic, those people are muslin.
– They have a completely different background than we do. The past and present shows that such people are not willing to accept our habits. Instead, they are creating too much trouble.
– Manye immigrants are never able to find a job and therefore, they depend on social welfare.
– Many European countries suffer from high unemployment, e.g. Spain. Why would Europe import even more unemployment? That simply does not make sense!
– Euope has lots of homeless and other people in need. Europe shall first take care about its own people.
I do not want to pay taxes for such people’s social welfare. I do not want to live in an Islamic Europe. I do not want to change my way of living. To summarize: I do not see any good in such a mass immigration whatsoever!
Instead, the propblems in the people’s home countries shall be solved so that people are willing to stay there. Let’s finally raise the question: WHY are there so many problems around the world? Partly because this is willingly done by the U.S. The Ameircans tend to create war allover the world and in particular in Middle East.
Sorry, but I disagree. Your focus it is not right.
I am European too, but please, answer this question: if we close our borders to everybody coming from other places, who will live in Europe in 2030 or in 2050? A great percentage of old people and only a small portion of young trying to work to maintain the welfare state paying the healthcare system, for instance, of the whole country: it is impossible.
On the one hand, Europe already faces a huge demographic problem, that will become larger during the next years. All the experts and forecasts say the same: there are no enough children. And the worse, in my opinion, is that politicians try to avoid this problem, so it will not be solved.
You say: “I do not want to pay taxes for such people’s social welfare”. Well, ask yourself who will pay your retirement…
Some european countries have a high – enormous – unemployment rate. True. But this situation is the current situation. Let’s think about the future. Some of these countries are recovering economic growth. They suffer other problems too, like inequality. Ok. But Spain – one example you have referred – is in the right way.
On the other hand, we know why things are happening: Western countries – mainly US, UK and France – and Russia – years ago the Soviet Union – have been working hard in creating the current situation. As a consequence, we also have a ethic responsibility in helping immigrants and trying to solve the causes to leave their homes, their villages and their countries in such a risky way.
However, I think European authorities must plan carefully the best way to make it. Obviously, it is a very difficult challenge with the current EU structure.
Is this immigration giant wave a problem? Of course. But, after considering our solidarity duties as human beings, Europe will change dramatically in the next years. Forget your dreams about living in a country like yours. It will dissapear. And evreyone of us are the responsible.
Europe already faces a huge demographic problem, that will become larger during the next years. All the experts and forecasts say the same: there are no enough children. And the worse, in my opinion, is that politicians try to avoid this problem, so it will not be solved.
On the other hand, we know why things are happening: Western countries – mainly US, UK and France – and Russia – years ago the Soviet Union – have been working hard in creating the current situation. As a consequence, we also have a ethic responsibility in helping immigrants and trying to solve the causes to leave their homes, their villages and their countries in such a risky way.
Profesor Rosenberg, thank you for setting an example in generous thinking. We all should realise how fragile our certainties are. Standards should be be clear but humanitarian.Only this way we can advance towards a structured world with as little frontiers as possible. Everyone of us who are reading and commenting your blog could once be a refugee.
Great article, I couldn’t agree more. However, the Syrians are escaping a war, they are not in Europe by their own choice and my concern is that nobody is addressing the root of this issue which is the war in Syria. How long will the EU need to convince Russia, China, USA and the Middle East stakeholders to take a stand? UN needs to intervene in Syria ASAP.