First with the guestworker policies that were implemented directly after World War II, and then with the terms of the Schengen Agreement from 1990 onwards. Besides for the common economic depressions, and the severe wealth gap we are seeing in the world today, Europe has seen economic growth during this period of liberal immigration policy. Not only have these immigrants contributed to Europe’s economic expansion, but also they have contributed to Europe’s own transformation into a melting pot of culture. Much like the United Provinces of old, Europe is a global trade center, where there is an abundance of goods and services from around the world. Europe’s liberal immigration policy began with the guestworker policies of the postwar period. Guestworker policies were a part of the effort to rebuild Europe after the devastation caused by World War II, but only as that.
The major legacy of the interwar years for the question of migration was a generalized fear of return to the massive unemployment of the Great Depression. This fear was one of the major reasons why alien workers could be conceived of only as a temporary compliment to the indigenous work …show more content…
Altruism is found in many animal species, and the origin lies deep in evolutionary history… In nonhuman animals, altruism includes parental care, warning calls, cooperative defense, rescue behavior, and food sharing; it may also involve self-sacrifice…[honeybee] barbs have been described as instruments of altruistic self-sacrifice. Although the individual dies, the bee’s genes, shared in the colony of relatives, survive. Human altruism also originates in, and helps serve, genetic purpose.22
Therefore, to understand xenophobia, one must consider this psychological evidence. Human altruism is not simply empathy or assisting someone in need, but it is a tool we subconsciously use to further our survival. Perhaps that is why we naturally get a good feeling out of helping someone in need. Xenophobic people see their own actions as being altruistic, as preserving their own genes against outside threats. “Selective responding may be highly individualized. By being most altruistic to those who resemble us…we help copies of our own genes to replicate. This makes ‘altruism’ ultimately ‘selfish’ in