XENOPHOBIA AND SOCIAL INTEGRATION IN THE CONTEXT OF MIGRATION

Abstract

Along with the increase in international migrations and global terrorist incidents, xenophobia has also been frequently mentioned in recent years. Xenophobia can defined as attitudes, prejudices and behaviors that deny, exclude, and disparage persons based on the perception that they are alien to the community, society or national identity. Xenophobia is considered together with racism and discrimination in many sources and is seen as a risk factor in terms of postmigration social integration. In the case of migrants, xenophobia is maintained through a dynamic public rhetoric, which effectively stigmatizes and disparages some or all of the migrant groups by emphasizing the "threat" created by their being and turning them into scapegoat for social problems. In this study, it is aimed to focus on xenophobia and social integration issues in migration context. Within the scope of the study, information about the nature of xenophobia was given, its impact on social integration was addressed and debates on multiculturalism were included. As a result, xenophobia is not a newly emerging situation and, with the support of theses like the clash of civilizations, has become a serious threat to our globalized world. Taking into consideration the situations where social integration can not be provided, it is thought that everyone should contribute to solution of the problem.