Introduction
Defining global citizenship is not as easy as it may seem. According to Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, the term "global" is defined as "covering or affecting the whole world." The term "citizenship" is defined as "the legal right to belong to a particular country," "the state of being citizen and accepting the responsibilities of it." Putting together the two definitions "global citizenship" would mean, the legal right to belong to a particular country, here the whole world and the state of being citizen (of the world), and accepting the responsibilities of it. Well, that was easy, at least theoretically, it was. But moving beyond the theoretical definition and understanding the practical meaning of global citizenship is …show more content…
Applied to the global context, it is the legal right to belong to the world. If this is easy for a country, there is no legal right, tangible and formal given to an individual as a global citizen. There are several requirements to be met before a citizenship of a country is granted. Here in the United States, for instance, citizenship is obtained by birth on American soil or outside America from American parents. Foreigners can be naturalized Americans, meaning to become American citizens by legal residency for more than five years, or by marrying an American, among other requirements. In France, another developed country, and in Togo, a small African nation and my native land, the requirements are more or less the same. For Saudi Arabia, a kingdom keen to protecting its cultural values, it is almost impossible to be a naturalized Saudi, even if one was born in the kingdom from foreign parents. From the above revelations, one question comes into my mind. Under which requirements could somebody become a global citizen? The fact that he or she is born in this world should be …show more content…
Restricting Immigration Policies
Restrictive immigration policies stand as a major wall towards global citizenship as freedom to travel is breached. While it may have certain advantages, the disadvantages of such immigration policies cannot be overlooked. Here are a few:
Better Standard of Living
On an individual level, is that people are able to earn a lot more than in their native country and thus, have a better standard of living.
Personal and Professional Growth
Another advantage of immigration is that when people from different cultures, with their own set of values and ways of working, come in contact, they tend to absorb some of the useful and good values and working methods of the others and thus, grow as individuals and
Defining global citizenship is not as easy as it may seem. According to Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, the term "global" is defined as "covering or affecting the whole world." The term "citizenship" is defined as "the legal right to belong to a particular country," "the state of being citizen and accepting the responsibilities of it." Putting together the two definitions "global citizenship" would mean, the legal right to belong to a particular country, here the whole world and the state of being citizen (of the world), and accepting the responsibilities of it. Well, that was easy, at least theoretically, it was. But moving beyond the theoretical definition and understanding the practical meaning of global citizenship is …show more content…
Applied to the global context, it is the legal right to belong to the world. If this is easy for a country, there is no legal right, tangible and formal given to an individual as a global citizen. There are several requirements to be met before a citizenship of a country is granted. Here in the United States, for instance, citizenship is obtained by birth on American soil or outside America from American parents. Foreigners can be naturalized Americans, meaning to become American citizens by legal residency for more than five years, or by marrying an American, among other requirements. In France, another developed country, and in Togo, a small African nation and my native land, the requirements are more or less the same. For Saudi Arabia, a kingdom keen to protecting its cultural values, it is almost impossible to be a naturalized Saudi, even if one was born in the kingdom from foreign parents. From the above revelations, one question comes into my mind. Under which requirements could somebody become a global citizen? The fact that he or she is born in this world should be …show more content…
Restricting Immigration Policies
Restrictive immigration policies stand as a major wall towards global citizenship as freedom to travel is breached. While it may have certain advantages, the disadvantages of such immigration policies cannot be overlooked. Here are a few:
Better Standard of Living
On an individual level, is that people are able to earn a lot more than in their native country and thus, have a better standard of living.
Personal and Professional Growth
Another advantage of immigration is that when people from different cultures, with their own set of values and ways of working, come in contact, they tend to absorb some of the useful and good values and working methods of the others and thus, grow as individuals and