ELINOR OSTROM

“WHAT IS MISSING FROM THE POLICY ANALYST’S TOOL KIT , AND FROM THE SET OF ACCEPTED, WELL-DEVELOPED THEORIES OF HUMAN ORGANISATION, IS AN ADEQUATELY SPECIFIED THEORY OF COLLECTIVE ACTION WHEREBY A GROUP OF PRINCIPALS CAN ORGANIZE THEMSELVES VOLUNTARILY TO RETAIN THE RESIDUALS OF THEIR

OWN EFFORTS,” GOVERNING THE COMMONS (2015)

AMERICAN POLITICAL ECONOMIST

NOBEL PRIZE LAUREATE

THE RIGHT TO A SAFE HEAVEN

INTEGRATION=VALUE

CAROLINE MAKARY LIAM MCGINN WEJDAN ALSUFYANI

MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY BALTIMORE, USA

Figure 1 A native born child reaching out to a refugee child to integrate in the city

What rights do the people of the City deserve?

This is something that should be asked by cities and governments all around the world. If discussed fully, this question would show the inequalities that are present everywhere. There are many groups of people that have a disproportionate number of inequalities against them, one group being Refugees of a young age. Can you imagine the negative impact the Refugee crisis has on this young generation? These children have seen their families killed and have had their childhood ripped away from them. Did you know that “over half of the world’s Refugees are children”?

(UNHCR) Did you know that “only 50% of Refugee children attend primary school” (UNHCR, 2016), compared to “a global average of more than 90%”? (UNESCO, 2017) Did you know that “only 22 % of Refugee adolescents attend secondary school” (UNHCR, 2016), compared to “a global average of 84%” (UNESCO, 2017)? Did you know that “more than 6.6 million Refugees live in camps” (UNHCR)? Did you know that the “top three causes of death in Refugee children under five are neonatal deaths (31%), malaria (8.3%), and lower respiratory tract infections (5.6%)”? (UNHCR) Do you know that this young generation is our future? So why make their path towards this future so dark?

The answer to all these questions should be: all people, especially children, deserve a bright future; they deserve equality.

But what does Equality mean to a young Refugee?

Equality means that every person is entitled to certain basic necessities, with the minimum being: Housing, Healthcare, and Education. Typically, young Refugees do not have access to any of these things. After being forced to flee the home of their birth, they are treated as second-class people. They are not allowed access to necessary education. They are shunned by healthcare professionals. They are forced to live in camps and tents while someone else decides their future.

What does Equality mean to a young Refugee?

If we think about the term “Refugees” in regards to Equality, then we should not refer to them in that way. A better term is “Haven Seekers,” as they are people seeking a safe and peaceful life away, from danger and wars. To reach Equality, we need to start with Integration.

A necessity for Integration is an adequate standard of living. The easiest way to achieve this, is with proper housing. Haven Seekers cannot be placed in areas that are undesirable, like they regularly are. Their housing must be in suitable neighbourhoods, right next to those of the native-born people. For young Haven Seekers to succeed, they must have access to all of the same goods and services. This promotes their Integration; showing them they are on equal footing with the rest of the city. If put in this position, Haven Seekers can begin adding value to the city in their own unique way. This Integration can be implemented by the City’s government.

This integration can be implemented by the City’s government with mixed-income housing that can access all goods and services, as a percentage of each neighbourhood reserved for Haven Seekers.

Healthcare is the integration system that is the most convoluted. Because of the precarious legal status of Haven Seekers, neither they nor healthcare workers are sure what level of care they are entitled to. Their health records are often unclear because of a lack of medical history (Chiarenza, A., 2019). Young Haven Seekers are particularly vulnerable because they do not know their history and there is a language barrier for both them and their parents (Chiarenza, A., 2019). Additionally, they have traumarelated needs and must often deal with longer administrative processes (Chiarenza, A., 2019).

For a young Haven Seeker to truly integrate, healthcare is not an issue they should have to worry about. This is possible with governmental aid from the city. Specifically, by having a healthcare system that does not charge Haven Seekers, and having dedicated personnel that specialises in their health issues. Then, Haven Seekers will be able to focus on their Integration to the city, so they can add their value to it.

For young Haven Seekers, Education is the most important aspect of Integration.

School is where these children develop most of their social skills and really begin to feel like a part of the City.

Unfortunately, this is also one of the areas where they are most disproportionately affected. The legal and administrative processes they go through often restricts them from entering school for long periods, even though they are already lacking Education from their time migrating (Koehler & Schneider, 2019).

This does not even account for the language barriers and psychological trauma that Haven Seekers have to overcome.

Education should be the system that “fosters social inclusion, economic growth and innovation” among young Haven Seekers.

(Koehler & Schneider, 2019).

Education is the best system for allowing Haven Seekers to add value to the city. Therefore, the government should ensure that they are integrated into the educational system with the same consideration as native-born students. This can be done by getting the young Haven Seekers into the system as quickly as possible, with a personalised curriculum to account for the additional support that they need.

Additionally, there are non-profit organisations that play a large role in helping Haven Seekers integrate to the city.

These organisations have programs that support them with money, medical assistance, access to language classes, as well as vocational and employment assistance. These programs help them to feel like they are on equal ground in the city. These are often ethnic, religious or charity organisations. Their only goal is to help Haven Seekers overcome the difficulties they face in this new land. They are treated as a human no matter where they came from, their religion, group, gender, age, or sexual orientation. No person should be persecuted because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, affiliation to a group, or otherwise. Those Haven Seekers are always welcome to our city. Here, they will find a place that prioritises integration, which leads to value for the people and the city.

References

Chiarenza, A., Dauvrin, M., Chiesa, V., Baatout, S., & Verrept, H. (2019). Supporting access to healthcare for refugees and migrants in European countries under particular migratory pressure. Retrieved December 14, 2020, from https:// bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/ articles/10.1186/s12913-019-4353-1 UN (2017). Mobile solutions to empower, educate refugees and displaced persons take spotlight at UN forum. (2017). Retrieved December 2, 2020, from https://www.un.org/youthenvoy/2017/03/mobilesolutions-empower-educate-refugees-displacedpersons-take-spotlight-un-forum/ UNHCR (2016). UNHCR reports crisis in refugee education. Retrieved December 2, 2020, from https://www. unhcr.org/news/press/2016/9/57d7d6f34/unhcrreports-crisis-refugee-education.html UNHCR (n.d.) Children. Retrieved December 2, 2020, from https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/children49c3646c1e8.html UNHCR (n.d.) Public Health. Retrieved December 2, 2020, from https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/public-health.html UNHCR (n.d.) Shelter. Retrieved December 2, 2020, from https:

Koehler, C., nd Schneider, J.(2019). Young refugees in education: The particular challenges of school systems in Europe. Retrieved December 14, 2020, from https://comparativemigrationstudies. springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40878-0190129-3

Here, they will find a place that prioritizes Integration, which leads to Value for the people and

Haven Seekers approaching the warm safety of the city Figure 1: Haven Seekers approaching the warm safety of the city. Illustrated by the group.