Month: September 2020

The country that I will be covering is the United Kingdom, with a focus not just on London, but immigrant communities that live across it.

As of 2019, 612,000 people immigrated to the UK which is about 14% of the total population. The UK ranks fifth in percentage of population that immigrated, with the Russian Federation, Germany, Saudi Arabia and the United States coming before. As of 2019, Poland is the most popular country of origin with 911,000 Polish living in Britain as stated by The Office for National Statistics. Not only is there a large influx of new immigrants, but the need for housing is on the rise. According to the government, it is estimated that by 2025, England will need an additional 200,000 new homes and an additional 750,000 school spaces.

Not everyone is for allowing migrants into the country, fearing too many would weigh down the systems they have in place. Some of the opposers in the UK are the British National Party who made opposition to immigration one of their central policies in the 2010 election. An anti-mass immigration party has suggested that they set up a task force to bring down net immigration. The Conservative party has said they want immigration from the EU and the rest of the world to be drastically decreased.

According to Migration Watch UK, nearly three-quarters of the public supports a large reduction in immigration levels, according to a 2018 Deltapoll. In addition, demos found that “about three-quarters of the public considered that immigration had increased divisions.” A majority of the opponents cite that since 2014, more that 200,000 immigrants enter the country.  Even though they are making a huge contribution to the country, they put a toll on the roads, hospitals, schools, transportation and other resources

Most jobs that are done by immigrants are within the services industry and are by the hour and overnight workers. These employees are a major component in the labor market in the United Kingdom. They mainly work in the manufacturing, retail, the restaurant and hospitality industries.

In addition to hard work, immigrants contribute a great deal to the economy. “Migrants from the EU contribute £2,300 more to the exchequer each year in net terms than the average adult, the analysis for the government has found,” state an article in the Independent. In addition, “over their lifetimes, they pay in £78,000 more than they take out in public services and benefits – while the average UK citizen’s net lifetime contribution is zero.”

On a regular basis, immigrants come to the United Kingdom as foreign nationals who are seeing high-paying jobs and the pursuit of formal studies. According to an article on aantlaw.com, the common reasons for immigrants are “work, family and asylum.”

There are a plethora of agencies and groups that are set up to help out immigrants with their questions an concerns. Some of them are the International Organization for Migration, The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants and Migrant Rights Network are among a few of the advocacy groups in the United Kingdom that look out for the rights of migrants.  Asylum Aid, the British Red Cross, Community Legal Service and Southall Black Sisters are a variety of groups that provide counseling, housing, information, and an assortment of services to help with basic needs and self-care.

Media in the United Kingdom takes on a very interesting form. There are over 240 local and regional newspapers run by Trinity Mirror that include broadsheet, tabloid an freesheet publications. Most towns and cities in the UK have at least one local newspaper. The most prominent publicly owned public service broadcaster is the British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC.

The GDP per capita is $41,030 (nominal; 2019 est.) $46,827 (PPP; 2019 est.). It ranks sixth in the world after Japan, India, and China. The automotive industry, aerospace industry, BAE systems, UK space industry, and pharmaceutical industry plan an important role in the UK economy. The automotive industry employs around 800,000 people and the aerospace industry is the second largest industry in the world.

The UK is a parliamentary democracy that is based on the Westminster System. The system has been in place since 1801. The British were a colonial empire, that lasted over a span of some three centuries and were brought under the sovereignty of the crown of Great Britain  and the administration of the British government.

Based on the above, I have deliberated on three story ideas:

1.) The first is a look at changing demographics across London and the pushback to this. Is the culture of London actually changing? That is what I hope to answer with this story.

2.)The second idea that I want to work on is the placement and process of coming to the United Kingdom. Looking into finding work and settling into the country are all part of the process and I want to understand how difficult or easy this is.

3.) The final story is a look into history of immigration in the United Kingdom spanning from its time as an empire to the present. I am trying to see if migration is constant across this period of time, contributing to the modern United Kingdom.

Country 

The country that I will be reporting on for this semester will be Ireland. I decided on Ireland because I want to learn more about the country that my ancestors are from. 

How Many Live in the US? In the tristate area? How many live in the home country? In the tristate area, where do they live? 

According to Irishcenrtal.com, about 32.3 million or 10% of the people living in the USA claim Irish heritage. The population of Ireland itself is estimated to be just below 5 million, at 4.95 million people. 

The Northeast contains the largest density of Irish people. At least 15% of Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut’s population are of Irish heritage. 

In New York, according to Nerdwallet.com, Long Island remains the stronghold of Irish culture within the state. Half of the top ten most populated Irish places are on Long Island, including towns like Sayville, East and West Islip, Miller Place, and Massapequa. New York City also has historically Irish neighborhoods such as Bainbridge in the Bronx and Five Points in Manhattan. 

What jobs do a significant percentage of them have? 

The Library of Congress writes how Irish immigrants entered the workforce at the bottom of the occupational ladder and took on menial and dangerous jobs that were often avoided by other workers. Many Irish American women became servants or domestic workers, while many Irish men labored in coal mines and built railroads and canals. Over time, many Irish Americans climbed occupational and social ladders through politically appointed positions such as policeman, Fisherman, and teachers. With every passing generation, Irish Americans became more educated and entered circles of power. As for Ireland itself, the most common jobs are in sales, retail and farming. 

Why did they come? When? 

Additionally, the Library of Congress writes that many early Irish immigrants were of Scottish or English descent. These people were pushed out of Ireland religious conflicts, lack of political autonomy, and dire economic conditions. These people, often called “Scotch-Irish” were pulled to America by the promise of land ownership and greater religious freedom. The Scottish-Irish settled predominantly in the middle colonies, especially in Pennsylvania, which we can see now how that has remained that case, being the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania contains has the highest population of Irish Americans in the country.  Most of these people came to America starting in the 1820s. However, it wasn’t till the 1840s when a potato famine hit Ireland that forced many Irish to leave the country. This potato famine plagued Ireland and within five years, a million Irish died and half a million emigrated to America to start a new life. 

Major organizations, advocacy groups, resources 

Irish Network USA, The Ancient Order of Hibernian, the Irish American Cultural Institute (IACI), the Irish Advocacy Network, are just a few major Irish organizations. Also, the Irish Echo is the longest established Irish newspaper in America.

Ireland’s Major Media Houses 

 Some of Ireland’s top media companies are the Independent News and Media (INM), Communicorp, UTV, UPC, the Irish Times, News International and BSkyB. 

US-Ireland Relations 

According to the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, US Relations with Ireland have long been based on common ancestral ties and shared values. The US and Irish governments benefit from a robust slate of exchanges in areas such as commerce, culture, education, and scientific research. With Ireland’s membership in the European Union (EU), discussions of EU trade and economic policies, as well as other aspects of broader EU policy, constitute key elements in the U.S. – Ireland relationship. 

The International Fund for Ireland (IFI), established by the British and Irish governments in 1986, provides funding for projects to sustain the peace process and to generate cross-community engagement and economic opportunity in Northern Ireland (United Kingdom) and the border counties of Ireland. The U.S. government has contributed more than $544 million to the IFI since its establishment. 

GDP Per Capita

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita in Ireland was last recorded to be $79,703.40, in US dollars, in 2019. Ireland ranks top five in the world in GDP in any rankings that you were to look at. 

According to the World Atlas, Ireland is one of the richest countries in the world. The primary industries of Ireland rely on its rich natural resources and include agriculture, mining, forestry and fishing. Additionally, the pharmaceutical and medical industry is one of the fastest growing industries in Ireland as a result of the high demand, steep competition, and emerging start-ups. Trade and export are the main components of the economy in Ireland. All manufactured products must be sold for the country to earn revenue.  

System of Government, when it came into place

Ireland is a parliamentary democracy. Its constitution was assembled in 1937. The country’s head of state, the president, is elected directly by the public for a term of seven years and is eligible for reelection for a second term. The president normally acts on the advice of the government but also consults an advisory Council of State in the exercise of certain functions. The president signs and promulgates bills passed by the Oireachtas. There are  two houses of the Oireachtas – the Dali and the Seanad Eireann (Senate). Chief legislative power is centered in the 158 seat Dali. The Senad may delay bills passed by the Dali, or it may suggest them, but it cannot indefinitely block their passage into law. Executive power is vested in the prime minister, who heads the cabinet and presides over its meetings. The prime minister, deputy prime minister, and the minister of finance must be members of the Dali. 

The local government system comprises five county borough corporations, five borough corporations in major cities, and twenty-nine county councils, as well as numerous urban district councils and boards of town commissioners. 

NY Consul General 

The NY Consul General of Ireland is Ciaran Madden, who took up the role in August 2017. 

 

Three Story Ideas

My first idea is to interview the owner of an Irish pub in Hampton Bays, NY, named Buckley’s Inn Between. I’m thinking the owner of an Irish Pub must be well-versed in Irish culture and the Irish scene out here on Long Island. I could also ask about them about the restaurant and about Irish pubs in general. 

My second idea is to interview my dad and all his relatives. My dad is one of ten brothers and sisters that are Irish. My dad was born and raised in Port Washington. When my dad was in middle school the family moved out to East Hampton. I could ask all my aunts and uncles how the Irish scene was back when they were growing up and comparing it to now. I could ask them how the Irish community has changed over the years on Long Island. 

My third idea is to reach out to the organizers of the Long Island Irish Festival and conduct an interview with them. I could ask them about the significance of the festival, the purpose, the origins, and I could relate it to COVID and ask how it will be conducted this year.

1.Country/corresponding immigrant community:

For the semester I’ll be reporting on the International student community enrolled in American colleges in NYC. This population is also referred to as “F1” students. I picked this community due to the recent ICE order that the Trump administration tried to implement in the summer, that was finally reversed, as well as the COVID-19 crisis. Both these major events have impacted the journey of international students on the American soil and I plan on reporting stories about students who are currently in the states, as well as students who went back to their home country for the semester. If I can find interviewees who are enrolled as freshmen but couldn’t enter the USA and are willing to share their story I would also like to include it in my work. These would compose the three stories I want to report throughout the semester.

The term international students refers to a specific population holding a F1, M1 or J1 visa whose stay in the USA depends on many criteria:

• must be enrolled in an “academic” educational program, a language-training program
• must be approved by the Student Exchange Visitors Program, Immigration & Customs Enforcement
• must be enrolled as a full-time student at the institution (12 credits minimum per semester)
• must be proficient in English or be enrolled in courses leading to English proficiency
• must have sufficient funds available for self-support during the entire proposed course of study (bank statement)
• must maintain a residence abroad which you have no intention of giving up.

2.How many live in the US? In the tristate area? How many in the home country?

According to Educationdata.org, in 2019 the total number of international students enrolled in US colleges was 1,095,299 which represented 5.5% of the total US student body.

When it comes to the tristate area it’s a little complex to say how many students there are, but for the sake of my stories I want to focus on students who are enrolled in the CUNY system, where more data can be found. According to the CUNY official website, there are more than 9,000 F1 students spread out throughout the various CUNY campuses with about 1,600 at Baruch College and over 800 at BMCC (my previous school).

Sources: https://educationdata.org/international-student-enrollment-statistics/

https://www.cuny.edu/academics/international-education/isss/

3.What jobs do a significant percentage of them have?

Because of the visa international students hold, which is only valid to study in the states, legally they are allowed to work only for the university’s system they are enrolled in. In consequences many students work as tutors, notes takers, college assistant. Despite the risks of taking a job outside of their university system, (loss of visa) many of them often do so in order to pay their tuitions that is twice the amount of in-state students. In these cases students work as babysitters, bartenders, waiters etc.

4.Why did they come? When?

In a lot of cases, F1 students come to the United-States to get a good education from valued universities. The large selection of majors is also appealing to students who find themselves at lack of interest in their home country, where only a few subjects are made available. For some coming to the USA is  also a way to ensure a more secure future for themselves and their families. Based on interaction I had with students from West African countries, many of them decide to pursue a degree in engineering or architecture with the goal to go back home and help develop their countries. However, according to Statista the majority of F1 students in the USA come from China and India.

5.What are some major organizations/advocacy groups/resources in this community?

In about every school welcoming international students, there are clubs made especially for the international student community. These are student-driven, and allow people to interact while also getting important information regarding how to maintain a visa for instance. From school to school, advocacy groups are also created on social media.

https://www.bmcc.cuny.edu/event/international-coffee-hour-fall-welcome-3/

https://www.bmcc.cuny.edu/admissions/international/

https://studentaffairs.baruch.cuny.edu/studentlife/student-activities/student-clubs-organizations/

The community leader I interviewed is a specialized advisor for international students, who works for BMCC since 3 years and is in charge of the International student office.

The estimated population of Caribbean/West Indians residing in the United States are about 13 million, in comparison as of 2019 approximately 44.42 million total continue to remain in their home country. As for the tri-state areas with the most populated groups include New York, New Jersey, and Florida. The estimated amount ranges between 4-8 million in these areas.     The American dream to them is considered finding better opportunities for themselves to survive in a world that is dominated by their opponents. Their idea of coming to America is to find a job, make a living, and form a family to expand their family tree and legacies. The areas I will be focusing on will be Richmond Hill, Queens and Crown Heights, Brooklyn which is populated by many West Indian-born and decents. They are impacted due to COVID-19 with job losses and less community help from their peers. I will conduct an in person interview with Private Law Office of Kawal P. Totaram, a Guyanese born, who settled in Queens to complete his law degree and form his own practice helping the community which he quotes “recognized little by little.”

My interview will be concise, discuss the opportunities during the pandemic, and how the West Indian community will obtain recognition for helping eachother. Also I will display photographs showing the areas focused on, how attentive Mr. Totaram is, and the purpose as why I chose to  discuss a whole nation that comes together and unified themselves as a community.

Something that I would like to write about would be the several micro loan apps that have become prolific in Nairobi. Interestingly enough there are no caps (that I know of) on the interest rates of the micro loans. While initially seen as an economic incentive for citizens who did not any credit history due to lack of financial opportunities, the micro loans have turned into predatory lending with large interests rates that can lead to never being able to repay the debt.

In some instances individuals commit suicide due to being unable to repay the debts off. In a certain case a 25 year old man committed suicide over a Sh3000 loan he received from a micro loan app, that loan in USD was equivalent to $30 dollars. I think it would be interesting to see how these apps are leading to financial holes that people may never be able to climb out of. Also, to see if there needs to be government intervention to regulate them to ensure the interest rates aren’t over inflated and ensure that the micro loans do not continue any predatory lending to individuals.

This semester the country I would like to focus on is Poland, a country in Europe currently facing a human rights crisis. The current right-wing government and Polish President Andrzej Duda have publicly demonized the LGBTQ+ community making way for dangerous and unfair treatment to citizens. Newly reelected Duda stated in his campaign that “LGBT are not people — they are an ideology” that is “even more destructive than communism.”. Due to this hateful rhetoric, many Polish towns have declared themselves “LGBTQ free” zones, so much so that they have lost funding from the European Union. The E.U.’s commissioner stated that by allowing these zones to be created the Polish government has failed to protect the fundamental rights of its citizens. According to a 2020 survey by ILGA, an international gay rights organization, Poland is currently the most homophobic country in the European Union. Protests have erupted all over the country and are expected to continue. Protestors have been detained on multiple occasions (including prominent activists) and are facing violence from the police.

Since New York is known as fiercely accepting and protecting its LGBTQ+ citizens the contrast between Poland is obvious. I would like to interview members of the large Polish community we have in Greenpoint to hear their opinions and how this movement is affecting any family still in Poland. I think it would be valuable to speak to members of the LGBTQ+ community in New York to talk about how this affects the overall push for equality. The recent arrests of activists in Poland have even sparked protests to take place in front of the NYC Polish consulate to demonstrate solidarity.

For this semester I would like to focus on the country of Cuba. As a Cuban American woman who has visited the country twice, I have my own perspective about the country my parents fled from. I would like to speak to Cubans in NYC whose family may be struggling with the social, economical, and environmental issues that have happened and are still happening in 2020.

The second largest population of Cubans in the U.S. is in New Jersey. However, the only Cuban person I have met in NYC was about 5-6 years ago in the building I used to work in. We had a short conversation about what he experienced when he lived there, in which he mentioned how Fidel himself demanded he leave the country or his family would reap the consequences of disobeying his order. I have heard stories like this before from extended family members or friends of the family but I can never be too sure of their validity.

I have to admit that I do not keep up with news regarding Cuba because I can never be certain if it is true or not. I have also been deflecting because I do have family in Cuba that struggles immensely and hearing about it even in the news makes me uneasy. I want to let go of this mindset and really dive deep and get informed. I have recently been communicating more with my family in Cuba via Facebook and they paint an entirely different image of the current issues they’re facing, vs. that of the media in the U.S. I will use this as my foundation for connecting with other sources in the country that will hopefully lead to more in depth interviews.

Discussion: Ethics in International Reporting

How can we tell the story without being exploitative?

“Anyone Here Been Raped and Speaks English?”

Yazidi women and unethical journalism:
http://www.womensmediacenter.com/women-under-siege/study-85-percent-of-yazidi-women-interviewed-describe-unethical-journalism-practices

Mac Maclelland’s infamous live tweeting of a rape victim’s story: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/07/the-reporter-and-the-rape-victim/242445/

Is it ever okay to name rape victims, especially children?http://www.jinamoore.com/2010/02/05/rape-victims-nick-kristof-replies/

How Photography Exploits the Vulnerable
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/31/opinion/photography-exploitation-opioid.html

Avoiding troublesome tropes and cliches

How to write about Africa:
https://granta.com/how-to-write-about-africa/

https://qz.com/1063558/its-time-to-stop-using-joseph-conrads-heart-of-darkness-as-a-guidebook-for-the-congo/

17 development cliches to avoid: https://brightthemag.com/17-development-clich%C3%A9s-ill-be-avoiding-in-2017-46c2345a507f

---

Asynchronous Assignment: The Beat Memo

First, we’ll  workshop your ideas for semester-long beats together as a class.

Things to consider:

Is there a big enough population here in New York for you to find stories that will sustain you for a semester? If the community and/or you are not in New York, will you be able to get the access you need to do the kind of stories you want to do? (What medium do you intend to use for your stories?Will the time difference make this feasible?)

What’s going on right now in the country/place of origin? If there’s a big ongoing situation/story/crisis, that can often be a good place to begin in terms of finding local angles on these big topics.

Will you be able to get access to this community? Could a language barrier make reporting difficult? Will it take more time than you have to get contacts/sources to open up to you?

Is it reasonably convenient/feasible for you to spend time with this community, location-wise?

---

Assignment: The Beat Memo

Due date: Thursday, Sept. 10 by class time

Answer/fill in the following questions (if applicable). Be thorough; the final product should be at least two pages long, single-spaced.

Country/corresponding immigrant community:

How many live in the US? In the tristate area? How many in the home country?

In the tristate area, where do they live?

What jobs do a significant percentage of them have?

Why did they come? When?

What are some major organizations/advocacy groups/resources in this community?

Do they have local media house/s? If so, list them.

List/link the major media houses in the home country.

How strong are relationships with the home country? How significant are remittances to the home country’s economy?

In the homeland what is the GDP per capita? Where does that rank in the world? What are the major industries?

What is the system of government? When did this system come into place? Was there a colonial power? (Or was it the colonial power?)

Name of the NY consul general. How long has he/she been in the role?

Give three potential story ideas. (Doesn’t need to be a fully fleshed-out pitch yet, but should be well thought-out.)

And finally: Conduct an interview with a community leader. This initial interview should help you get a sense of what some of the issues are in the community, and help you get some story ideas flowing. Perhaps this community leader can recommend some other contacts for you to reach out to. You may use quotes or sound bites from this interview in one of your major story assignments this semester if it ends up being relevant.

Your beat memos should be posted on the class blog. The community leader interviews can be submitted to me either via transcript or audio/video recording, by email or wetransfer.com, which I recommend for large audio/video files.

By the way, if anyone wants a free NYTimes subscription: www.nytimes.com/CUNY

This semester I’ll be telling stories about the impacts of international finance on working people in Argentina. Infamous as an economic anomaly and the IMF’s problem child, the South American country will spend 2020 wrapped in negotiations over public debt issued to a former presidents government. In August, Argentina renegotiated roughly USD$60 billion in privately held sovereign debt. As they begin to tango with the IMF over USD$45 billion, I’d like to tell the stories of people whose lives have been impacted by the country’s prior agreements with multilateral institutions. How does 50% inflation impact ones ability to save for a home? How do stringent capital controls impact an aspiring tech start up? What does a future look like for the young and educated populace whose economic opportunity seems so precarious?

In addition to exploring issues and stories around economic justice, I’d like to report on an issue I find fascinating – the informal, or popular, economy and how the Argentine government is striving to bring more informal workers into the economy. Community workers, essential to fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina’s poorest neighborhoods, are largely without labor rights or a living wage. The Argentine government is attempting to document these workers and provide them with monthly salaries in an endeavor to expand the formal economy and grow the tax base.

I’ll report these stories by talking to sources on the ground in Buenos Aires, as using databases from both the government and international organizations.

 

This semester I am planning on focusing the Philippine Islands mainly, with some input and viewpoints from the local Filipino communities in Queens and Manhattan.

Originally I wanted to tackle censorship and the closing of ABS-CBN in the islands, but upon further research I have grown wary about how easy or accessible information will be since a lot of more vocal sources seem to have become more careful about everything they say and post. A lot of the most outspoken currently are those who are located stateside, which offers a limited viewpoint through a westernized lens. I will continue to look into what routes I can take towards a more serious piece later on in the semester. 

While I work on looking into the aforementioned topic, I plan on doing a feature on Filippino “artistas” breaking into mainstream East Asian media. For a long time many actors and musicians were being snubbed for the fairer skinned Asians. However, some emerging Filipino stars are garnering negative attention for either “not looking Filipino enough” or being of mixed European descent. Aside from the starlets being criticized for their appearance, many critics claim that the media coming from the Philippines is inaccurate and tends to glamourize the Philippines as beautiful rich beaches despite 90% living close to the poverty line. I want to do a dive into the image the Philippines is portraying through music and movies and whether or not it is as detrimental as some claim.

The final topic I have considered covering is how LGBT is represented in the Philippines. Despite the country being quite conservative and strictly upholding Catholic values for the most part, the country is very accepting of homosexuals and mildly accepting of transgender people. Well, as accepting one can be while making these people the butt of the joke more often than not. My last idea would center around whether the acceptance and appreciation of the LGBT community in Philippine media is toxic or misunderstood.