Political Science

Nowadays, immigration, or simply moving to another country, is regarded as one of the most common events in todays modern way of living. Most of the people now are not just traveling for leisure and vacation purposes. Some are intended to move and leave their native lands in order to seek for good fortune and prefer to work thousand miles away from their home to provide for the needs of their families. In most instances, financial needs and poverty are viewed as two of the primary reasons why people opted to go abroad and explore the boundaries of their native homeland. A lot of people from third world countries where there is a relatively poor economic stability are leaving their families behind to seek for greener pastures in other countries with the hope of bringing back the promise that would save them from indigence.

There are a lot of philosophies and views involved in migration. Using the book that written by Sonia Nazario, a multi-awarded and well respected author, entitled  Enriques Journey,  this paper would primarily analyze the common challenges of migration and the usual attitudes towards the immigrants. More so, the paper would analyze how migration is viewed in different countries, based on the experience of the main characters in Nazarios book.

Enriques Journey  mainly narrates the story of struggles and hardships associated with immigration and external migration of people from one country to another. More so, it discusses the narrative of sacrifices and load of challenges that most of the migrant families are facing in order to establish a new way of life in a foreign country and away from the comfort of their homeland (Karnasiewicz).

The book presents a true-to-life story of a Honduran mother and child namely Lourdes and Enrique, who have been separated from each other for such a long period of time. Due to extreme poverty and the hope of giving Enrique the best kind of life that he deserve, Lourdes have decided to move out of Honduras and migrate to the United States in order to earn more, which would enable her to give all the assistance and support that her son needs (Zimmerman). Migration or the decision to move to another country in order to work and earn more maybe acceptable, more especially among those countries that are badly drowned by poverty.

The story of Lourdes and Enrique may not sound as unusual or unique neither may it seem to be one of kind. Rather, it presents a wonderful story of courage, love and triumph amidst of all the negativities associated with migration and immigrants. Given that Nazarios book showcases three different settings that begins in Honduras and runs throughout the strange lands of Mexico towards the United States, it presents a pretty diverse outlook with regard to migration and the life of immigrants. Thus, Lourdes and Enrique have experienced varied attitudes and perceptions towards migration and them as immigrants.

In Honduras, it is evident that the attitude of the majority towards migration and immigrants is more open and liberated. With the fact that most of the cities and small villages in this country are living in extreme poverty with a destabilizing hope for a better future, Lourdes and Enrique did not have that much of a problem in justifying their decision to move out of their homeland.

Though the Honduran migration officials strictly works in  Keeping the family together-even if they are poor,  it is certain that most of people in Honduras, more especially those who are living with no more than a pair of slippers  and a starving stomach, view migration as a diamond shining in the middle of the dark, which represents life and hope in course of light-less battle against poverty (Nazario 250). As immigrants, Lourdes and Enrique are viewed as people who bravely faces the challenges life and made their way out of poverty in their homeland.

Mexico, on the other hand, represents a more different and violent view with regard to migration and treated immigrants who have illegally entered their main land differently. Though the majority of the book only presents the narrative of Enrique and his dreadful journey throughout the lands of Mexico, it is certain that they have both experienced the violent attitude of most Mexicans against the illegal immigrants and migration.

In Mexico, Enrique has experienced the worst dream that he could ever imagine. In here, he encountered the heartless perception of people towards migration, which let him suffer physically and endure severe emotional distress. Unlike the situation in the United States, Mexico has a more furious attitude towards migration and harboring immigrants. Apart from giving distasteful punishments for those who have entered their land illegally, they do not really care about the welfare of illegal immigrants from Central America, even if they might get killed in the whole process of crossing the border. Just like Lourdes and Enrique, immigrants are viewed in Mexico as an added economical burden that would create a great threat in stealing jobs from their native people.

Unlike what they have encountered in Mexico, Lourdes and Enrique have found a more different views and attitudes towards migration and treating immigrants in the United States. Definitely, Americans have a more acceptable and liberated views with regard to migration, compared to other third world countries outside their borders. In the US, immigrants have an equal opportunity in getting a job despite of their illegal immigrant status. With the fact that paying for an undocumented worker in US is relatively lower than employing a legal worker, migration and illegal immigrants have earned their place in the American society, just like what Lourdes and Enrique have done in this country that they once regarded as the promise land and their answer in battling extreme poverty in their native country (Urrea).