Analysis Of The Film Well-Founded Fear

“Their bodies lie bare and afloat only to announce their coming but never their presence.” The life of an immigrant is often in danger, physically or mentally. Whether crossing the US/Mexico border, barely staying afloat in the Mediterranean, reliving their trauma while applying for citizenship, or leaving their loved ones behind, almost every experience of migration is unimaginably difficult. Refugees and other immigrants though have become a highly scrutinized population in recent years because Europe and the Untied States have created the idea of a refugee crisis. The issue at hand though, is that the large number of refugees has prompted host countries to minimize, trivialize, and ignore the lives and wellbeing of them. This negative impact …show more content…
The film Well-Founded Fear provides insight to the Immigration and Naturalization Service, often deemed, “the 21st century Ellis Island,” and the process for seeking asylum. The whole process is based on the evaluation of the refugee’s worth. Have they suffered enough? Are they worthy of this ‘desirable’ status? What can they do for us? Are they worth this investment? A refugee must prove themselves to American judges who have no concept of their homeland and a very different geographic imagination in order to be defined as a refugee. Often those who are more educated are more likely to be granted because of their greater economic capital. And those with a translator or a poor lawyer are subject to the mercy of their skill. The value of these people is rested in the opinion of a judge, which is, “an inherently human system” yet still has little sympathy due to state-issued quotas and …show more content…
Their migrations require intense mental stamina and drive to retain a sense of self and worth throughout their journey. From being owned by smugglers to knowing they will not be worth saving on their perilous journeys, or they might not have valid enough reasons to enter a new country, refugees especially are constantly under scrutiny for their worth in society. Currently they are devalued and dehumanized as a way of othering them from the start to perpetuate failure and struggle. States and systems set up a self-fulfilling prophecy for immigrants: deem them worthless and make them feel worthless. This perpetuates negative feelings toward mass migrations movements, and quashes much empathy. The anxiety, fear, and lack of self-worth impact immigrants far more than most, they must constantly worry about their wealth, because the simple fact they are a human trying to seek a better life is not a worthy enough reason to be where they