US Immigrants to Represent America in the Olympics
21/07/2008 by Tabitha Holland
The Olympic Games showcases the cultural variety of the world's nations, however in today's world these differences are also found within the teams themselves. As immigration numbers rise, more and more teams are represented by foreigners, especially the US.
The Beijing Olympic Games is fast approaching and who will be representing countries as athletes is known to all. The USA has a team of 596 and at least 32 of these medal hopefuls are foreign-born.
Of the foreigners competing on behalf of the US, these athletes were originally born in countries like China, Mexico, Sudan, Kenya, Russia and Britain. Because of this America is using the events as a way to showcase itself as a "melting-pot" nation.
These foreigners contribute to the country, if not by winning a medal but by instilling the pride of the nation, however is this treatment the same for all immigrants? asks www.globalvisas.com.
Jill Geer, USA Track and Field communications director claims that although not born in the US, these athletes are not seen as foreign. As she states, "In USATF, no one considers them anything but American."
But this treatment is also vastly different depending on the circumstances. On the one hand foreign-born US athletes are viewed as locals, while simple workers find it tough to get rid of their immigrant label.
At the root of the immigration debate is whether illegal immigrants should have a way to gain US citizenship. Such talented immigrants have resulted in calls for a more lenient immigration policy, but with border security essential this is highly doubtful.
The number of immigrant athletes in the US Olympic team has risen from the 2004 Games, where 27 represented the country. This comes at a time when US immigration policy is a hot topic.
USA
UK
Australia
Canada
South Africa
New Zealand
Ireland
India
China
Philippines