LETTER Tito Boeri Corriere della Sera
This letter is very interesting, Tito Boeri , economist, director of Corriere della Sera about the immigration issue. Dear Editor
the terrible events of Rosarno show unequivocally that it was crucial the issue of integration of immigrants into Italian society, on which she decided in order to open a debate on its forward-looking newspaper. We are told that migration flows are not only a source of great economic benefits, but also to serious social tensions for the communities that host them. While demonstrating that it is simplistic (and intellectually dishonest) to confine religious dimension of the problem of integration.
The thesis on the 'impossible integration of Muslims "has been supported on columns with its historical references say the least (it is not true that Muslims have imposed their faith by force in India under the Moghul empire, is not it that only the Islamic culture has produced people you kill to kill, just think about suicide or Tamil warriors) and texts by authors such as Toynbee, who disappeared 35 years ago, therefore unable to study the long process of integration of Islamic minorities in contemporary European societies. Not a single figure has been quoted in support of this thesis so demanding. Neither were taken into account the statistics that I provided that document and that the integration of Muslim minorities in countries with the oldest immigration is difficult, but far from impossible. The task of a scholar is to provide information on typical cases, large numbers (is full of anecdotes and exceptions in our daily lives).
then take advantage of this space to re- about the data, this time on the reality of immigration in our country, in the light of the first representative survey of illegal immigrants conducted in Italy, by the Fondazione Rodolfo Debenedetti, in November-December 2009. First up: an Italian in three would not want a Muslim as a neighbor, a few less of those extremists do not want (right or left) or AIDS patients next door, three times the percentage of Italians who would not want Jews as neighbors home. Second fact: immigrants coming from Muslim countries often speak more Italian, send their children to public school and have more frequent contacts with other Italian minorities, especially the Chinese. Third fact: immigrants of all ethnic groups, they work more than the Italians (their employment rate is 15 percent higher than ours) although about a quarter of them is present in our country illegally, did not permit and regulate employment contract.
The first fact explains many reactions of readers, does also reflect the behavior of those who, after having welcomed the vox populi, count the number of favorable comments collected on the website of his newspaper. The second opens up hopes on the integration of Muslims in our country, especially if we invest, as in other countries, in the school system as a means of transmitting our cultural identity. Raises doubts about decision to impose a ceiling of 30 percent for immigrants in our schools. There are municipalities where 80 percent of the population is foreign: Should we prevent children of these immigrants to go to school? The third reading is crucial to understand how to really tackle illegal immigration, in deeds and not words. Strengthening controls on jobs to counter the use of black immigrants may be more effective than new laws (such as establishing the crime of illegal immigration) is not intended to be applied. I do not rock the certainty of some of its columnists who have answers on everything from constitutional reform, the relationship between Islam and immigration, the way in which to save the Earth from the effects of climate change. Being arguably more limited, I'm afraid I do not have answers to many questions from readers.
But one thing I am convinced that these answers can not feed on prejudices nor be found (albeit influential) pages of books written several decades ago. We should all have the humility to doubt, to observe to learn, get help from the data and numbers. Basically this is what I find interesting in my work.
Thank you again for the space they kindly allowed me.
Tito Boeri
