Putting US immigration into perspective

The European refugee crisis

Between 2013 and 2018, Europe experienced a refugee crisis as rising numbers of immigrants started arriving in the EU by boats on the Mediterranean Sea or by land, via Southeast Europe, mostly as a result of the Syrian Civil War but also because of difficult economic conditions in several African countries. It is estimated that 1.7 million people came to the EU during the migrant crisis.

In 2015, as a response to the crisis which brought most immigrants to Italy and Greece, the EU established an emergency scheme according to which refugees from Syria, Iraq, and Eritrea would be relocated to different European countries based on a quota system. The quota system was not welcomed by all European countries, with many criticising it or refusing to receive immigrants. The countries that refused to comply with the quota system included central European nations such as Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Hungary even organised a referendum in 2016 asking the population if they accept or reject the quota system, most of which voted ‘reject’.

The creation of the quota system was partially influenced by Italy and Greece’s response to the huge number of immigrants arriving on their shores. On the one hand, officials in both countries stated that they were overwhelmed by the situation. On the other hand, there have also been incidents and scandals regarding the treatment and detention of migrants. Furthermore, Italy’s new government have announced that they will be closing their ports to rescue boats that are not Italian.

Rise of immigration-sceptic parties in Europe

In the past few decades (particularly in the 2010s) Europe has...