Sociology

History of immigration of the United States and nature of ethnicity

The United States of America is a multicultural country in terms of race and ethnicity. The country comprises 6 officially recognized races, namely, Whites being the racial majority covering 73 % of the United States’ population, African Americans, who make the larger percentage of the minority, Indians, Asians, Native Hawaiian, and others who include Pacific Islanders. The U.S is recognized internationally to be a country of classic immigration; it has had difficulty in limiting the number and type of immigrants who make their way into the country.

The United States of America was originally one of the British colonies and at that period immigration was the main source of slavery. The South was preoccupied with the production of cotton; the white colonials in this region used the blacks as slaves to work on their cotton farms. It is considered that roughly 11% of the African American population during that time had received long-awaited freedom, but at the same time, they still had to face discrimination mainly from the whites.

Between the periods of 1776 to 1865 a record of 10 million immigrants was reported and continued to rise sharply. Immigrants lived in the worst conditions and were also doing the worst jobs; as a result, this led to one of the worst ethnic wars in American history. In the year 1875, and Immigration Control Act was put in place that restricted access of the Chinese, diseased, mentally ill, prostitutes, and most criminals to the country.

Later between the years 1880-1924, the second wave of immigrants was evidenced in the US. This time they were from South and Eastern Europe mainly comprising people from Russia, Poland, Spain, and Italy. Most of these immigrants were poverty-stricken, they were forced to live in houses that were considered not suitable for humans to live in. In addition to these, they were discriminated against while trying to find jobs and, consequently, they suffered extreme poverty, increased child mortality, and most of them were illiterate.

Between the years 1840-1924, the first wave of Asian immigrants was experienced who were flowing from China, and only a small number was allowed to cross the border of the country. Other Asians that were migrating were the Japanese between 1870-1924, who settled as rural farmers and worked under contract in the U.S farms.

Race/ethnicity and changes that have occurred over time

One’s race is mainly determined by the phenotype, which is the external physical appearance and genotype being an internal appearance in terms of heredity. However, in most cases and everyday life race has always been identified by phenotype, in other words, one’s external physical appearance. From the extensive immigration in the U.S, four major races were identified, mainly, the whites who originated from Europe and Russia, blacks who originated from Africa, Asian and Pacific Islanders who originated from Asia and Pacific Islanders, and the Indians who originated from India.

However, other minority ethnicities were not included as part of these races. They include the Hispanics, Asian Indians, Arab Asians, and other bi-racial people. This was mainly because it was difficult to draw differences in their physical appearance in a phenotypical way. Whites, who are considered to be the majority of the population, have continued to diminish in number, and in several decades to come they are going to be outnumbered by minority groups. Most people of European descent have mixed their cultures; some cultures have faded with time or they have been forgotten.

Differences in socioeconomic status and upward mobility of second-generation immigrant minorities

Differences in socio-economic status began shaping up in the early days of immigration. Whites that constituted the majority at that time were considered as the most important ethnic group. They enjoyed a great socioeconomic status in terms of wealth, education, and were associated with the American national identity. Being white had benefits, such as an ability to get high socioeconomic power along with the fact that they did not suffer discrimination like other ethnic minorities. The first immigration laws prevented minorities, such as the Chinese from migrating to the U.S. Blacks, on the other hand, were the minority ethnic group that was mostly discriminated against.

African Americans who were the oldest of the minority descent used to face a lot of discrimination from the whites. Most did unskilled labor and slavery work but with time the perception of being black has changed so nowadays they are treated equally since cultures have assimilated and there has been observed growing intermarriage in the U.S. Asian Americans suffered less discrimination compared to other ethnic minorities because of their skin color and the fact they were considered to be highly skilled professionals. Latin Americans were also less discriminated against as compared to blacks. Asian Americans, however, are still facing glass ceilings in trying to reach top positions.

Racism and discrimination have always been understood in terms of white/black relations. White Americans were blamed for the discrimination that was dominant in the early days. However, discrimination against ethnic minorities has proceeded to a new level, and most whites today feel they have nothing to do with the discrimination that took place in the past.

Blacks have been assimilated culturally in society within time due to intermarriages between different ethnic groups. African American socioeconomic status has dramatically improved in recent periods, particularly because of less discrimination and expansion in the black middle class since the 1960s. Another reason has been the narrowing of disparity between whites and blacks in terms of education.

The upward mobility of second-generation immigrants

The second-generation immigrants comprised the Asian Americans and the Latin Americans, who were considered to be ethnic minorities. A lot of pressure was put on the second-generation children to socioeconomically succeed since they were less discriminated against. Asian Americans have had upward mobility particularly because they were considered to be highly skilled professionally compared to other immigrants. They were considered to be the most successful among ethnic minorities. Their success is attributed to the fact that they were hard-working, excelled in school, and were always ahead without causing any conflict.

However, they still face challenges in trying to break the ceiling to top jobs and positions. In addition to these, they still face discrimination when trying to get intimate with other Americans. Latin Americans are considered to be less socioeconomically successful than Asian Americans being prominent in achievements, such as culture and entertainment, particularly sports and military. They are also less discriminated compared to the blacks hence they have had upward mobility socioeconomically. It is said that as long as they still exist in ethnic categories, discrimination will continue to persist in terms of race and socioeconomic inequality. Second-generation immigrants have also assimilated culturally and socioeconomically, which has made them more acceptable to society.

Introduction

Sex trafficking is a social problem affecting millions of victims. Every day hundreds of women and children fall victim to sexual exploitation for profit without an adequate response from the international community and legal enforcement of local legislation, thus becoming a problem of international dimension.

According to the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act, 2000) established by the U.S government in 2000 to end human trafficking, “sex trafficking means the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act” (sec. 103, 9). Commercial sex is “any sex act on account of which anything of value is given to or received by any person” (sec. 103, 3). United Nations defines sex trafficking as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of a human being by force, fraud, or coercion, for the significance of sexual exploitation (Alexandre et al., 2014). It includes victims who are less than 18 years of age and means that the selling of women or men in brothels and the pimping of young girls on the streets, is sex trafficking. The actual definition of sex trafficking may not require any movement; it can take the form of “prostitution, pornography, stripping, escort services, and other sexual services” (Kotrla, 2010, p. 182).

Analysis

The International Labor Office (2012) in Geneva has estimated that more than 4.5 million children and adults are victims of forced sex servitude (p.13). According to Farley et al. (2003), 82% of sex trafficking victims have been physically assaulted, 78% of these women have been threatened, 60% have been kidnapped, and 40% have been raped more than three times. Edwards, Iritani, and Hallfors (2006) found that the primary causes of sex trafficking are family sexual assaults, dependence on drugs, family dysfunctions, and social failures. The mortality rate of women exposed to sex trafficking is 35% higher than that of women who voluntarily participate in prostitution (Edwards et al., 2006). The victims of sex trafficking are exposed to physical and psychological damages such as sexually transmitted diseases, damaged reproductive organs, and stunted emotional growth.

Prosperity and further development of sex trafficking all over the globe have historical roots. Once the slave trade was legal, and there is no secret that the slaves were often forced to have sexual relations with their masters. Even though slavery was abolished, its forms, such as sexual exploitation and sexual slavery, remained, however, illegally as a part of the black economy (Hunt, 2013, p. 226) being one of its fastest-growing sectors. Another historical reason for sex trafficking is economic globalization:

While sex trafficking has thrived everywhere across the world, three primary origin regions emerged in the 1990s: South Asia, Central, and Eastern Europe, and East Asia. Historical factors in each of these geographic regions helped promote sex slavery: extreme poverty, severe gender bias, and acute minority disenfranchisement. Globalization-related crises exacerbated these factors, leaving tens of millions of individuals vulnerable to exploitation. This vulnerability, coupled with pervasive male demand to purchase sex, provided the perfect environment for the proliferation of sex trafficking. (Kara, 2009, p. 25)

The primary reason for the criminalization of sex trafficking is the economic profitability of such deals because it is a low-cost but high-profit industry. What is more, sex slaves are forced to have numerous sexual contacts during a day, and very often, they are not paid for their work (Robertson, 2012, p. 4). Many stakeholders are contributing to the sex trafficking business from small-time criminals to large, organized criminal groups carrying out activities all over the globe (Kara, 2009, p. 22). Speaking of small-time criminals, they contribute to sex trafficking on a local or regional scale, while organized criminal groups act on larger up to international scales. The area of their business goes far beyond solely sex slavery to trading in drugs, arms, and organs. They can contribute to the sex trafficking problem, but until there is the demand for this kind of service, there is no economic sense to cease the supplies, so they only add to the existing problem of an increasing number of sex slaves. Another problem with their activities is that they invest money gained from their illegal business into legal projects and industry. That is why it becomes unprofitable for the state to outlaw the criminal grouping because they contribute to the development of the national economy.

Another problem with sex trafficking is a steady demand for sex services. What is more, sometimes, clients desire virgins that result in adding to enslaving for sexual purposes children and teenagers (Robertson, 2012, p. 4). Moreover, society often tolerates prostitution, which is why the problem of sex trafficking cannot be addressed and solved (Hunt, 2013, p. 225). However, the most crucial challenge is the lack of adequate response to the problem on the part of the international community. It is characterized by inadequate legislation and underfunding and incoordination of organizations aimed at combating sex trafficking (Kara, 2009, p. 3). Up to 2000, when the United Nations adopted the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, no legislation would provide a comprehensive address to the problem of sex trafficking on the international level (Robertson, 2012, p. 11).

Governments and international organizations can take a series of steps to eradicate the challenge or at least limit to the maximum. First of all, provide further development of international organizations and adopt global documents to control sex trafficking. Second, it is of significant importance to target the demand for the sexual services because without taking such action, none of the above will help eradicate the problem (Robertson, 2012, p. 5). Third, illegalizing prostitution may also have a positive impact on solving sex trafficking because, in the states where prostitution is legal, the number of sex slaves is higher (Hunt, 2013, p. 231). Fourth, it is important to address the media’s problem that would demonstrate the society that sex slavery is the existing danger that can become a concern for every family by shooting documentaries and programs touching the topic that can help lift the society’s tolerance towards prostitution and sex trafficking.

Conclusion

So, sex trafficking is the current configuration of slavery characterized by sexual abuse and exploitation of women and children with the historical background and vast social and economic effects. It is enforced by a steady demand for sex services and pornography; that is why the number of sex slaves is continuously increasing. What is more, it faces inadequate response from the international community that causes additional trouble in solving it.

References

Alexandre, K., Sha, C., Pollock, J., Baier, K., & Johnson, J. (2014). Cross-national coverage of human trafficking: A community structure approach. Atlantic Journal of Communication, 22(3), 160 -174.

Edwards, J., Iritani, B., & Hallfors, D. (2006). Prevalence and correlates of exchanging sex for drugs or money among adolescents in the United States. Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 82(5), 354-358.

Farley, M., Cotton, A., Lynne, J., Zumbeck, S., Spiwak, F., Reyes, M.,…Sezgin, U. (2003). Prostitution and trafficking in nine countries: An update on violence and posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of Trauma Practice, 2(3/4), 33-74.

Hunt, S. (2013). Deconstructing demand: The driving force of sex trafficking. The Brown Journal of World Affairs, 19(2), 225-241.

International Labor Office. (2012). ILO global estimate of forced labor: Results and methodology. Web.

Kara, S. (2009). Sex trafficking: inside the business of modern slavery. New York, NY: Columbia University Press.

Kotrla, K. (2010). Domestic minor sex trafficking in the United States. Social Work, 55(2), 181-187.

Robertson, G. (2012). The injustice of sex trafficking and the efficacy of legislation. Global Tides, 6(1), 1-18.

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (VTVPA) of 2000, Pub. L. 106-386, 114 Stat. 1464, 42 U.S.C. § 106 (2000).

To organize effective communication, it is not enough to hear – it is necessary to listen to people. Developing listening skills is essential to understand one’s interlocutor, to remember previous mistakes, and to avoid them in the future. Without a doubt, listening is one of the crucial skills for those who want to communicate productively.

People may have various strategies and approaches to listening (Downs, 2008). However, the traits making up a good listener are generally the same. A good listener is attentive and polite, does not get distracted or interruptive, and knows how to support the conversation.

The most important trait of a good listener is creating a proper atmosphere. Not all offices are suitable for the listening process. It is necessary to organize a place where the conversation will be held (McIntosh, Luecke, & Davis, 2008). After that, one should get rid of any internal obstacles. Another feature of a good listener is the ability to show interest in what the other person is saying (McIntosh et al., 2008). To do this, it is necessary to keep eye contact, use suitable gestures and mimics, select a proper body position, and avoid taking too many notes.

Being able to paraphrase the speaker’s words is also necessary to become a good listener (McIntosh et al., 2008). Paraphrasing shows the speaker that the listener is attentive and gives a chance to clarify anything that one does not understand. One more important feature of a listener is the talent to ask clarifying questions (McIntosh et al., 2008). Such questions help to concentrate on particular issues the listener wants to make clear.

In my practice, I am trying to employ all of these traits. However, I should work more on my ability to show interest in another person’s speech. At the current meeting that I have attended, I noticed the need for developing people’s ability to ask clarifying questions.

Being a good listener is not an easy task. But it is crucial for effective communication. One should be polite and attentive, able to arrange a suitable place for a conversation, and have the ability to paraphrase and ask clarifying questions. When a person cultivates these traits, he/she will become a good listener.

References

Downs, L. J. (2008). Listening skills training. Danvers, MA: ASTD Press.

McIntosh, P., Luecke, R., & Davis, J. H. (2008). Developing listening skills. In P. McIntosh, R. Luecke, & J. H. Davis (Eds.), Interpersonal communication skills in the workplace (pp. 87-95). New York, NY: American Management Association.

Human rights in theory

Human beings are entitled to inalienable fundamental rights. Gavrielatos (2011, p. 24) defines human rights as the indivisible, interdependent and interrelated civil liberties. Human rights are normally guaranteed in the existing laws. These laws can be in form of international laws, general principles, customary international law and treaties. It is worth highlighting at this point that human rights laws are vital in protecting fundamental rights and freedoms.

Human rights are inalienable and universal because they are generally accepted. The demand for human rights has intensified globally with the passage of time. All social groups in society have moved to emphasize the need of ensuring that their demands are neither undermined nor overlooked. Gavrielatos further explains that the need to address all members of society equally cannot be effective without support of a strong human rights legal framework. While it is generally agreeable that a government should provide the necessary support for human rights, lack of supportive laws or constitution make it impossible to implement such rights.

Australia’s international human rights obligation

While it is clear that Australia lacks a legal framework for human rights, it is guided by the international human rights obligation. The latter is founded on various human rights treaties such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention against Torture (CAT) and the Convention on the Rights for Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) (Keeley, 2010, p. 19). Nevertheless, there have been sentiments that the international human rights obligation in Australia is restraining parliament from performing its functions fully.

The problem of citizenship on individuals’ legal status has not been the debate on how Australians will benefit. However, it has been about commitment and levels of loyalty to the nation (Anon. 2010, p. 3). Citizens in Australia possess the right to obtain a passport, service from juries, voting and working. Besides, citizens and non-citizens may work in public offices and also have immunity against deportation. The problem posed on the legal status of Australian citizens by these factors is lack of practicability when it comes to permanent residents. The element fostered by the Australian citizenship legislation is one that strongly supports proceduralism more than an individual’s legal status.

While critically evaluating the problem of citizenship and individuals’ legal status, Gavrielatos (2011, p. 3) argue that they should be addressed from an economic perspective. The reference of minority groups invokes a sense of poor social economic overtone that restricts their ability to move up the social economic hierarchy.

Australia’s human rights legal framework

Australia does not have an overarching human rights legal framework. This may be largely due to the continuous aboriginal deaths, detention of asylum seekers, Northern territory intervention and other human rights concerns. Both the Human Rights Act and the Australian law present major problems toward the efforts of ensuring equitable human rights. According to the latter authors, it is indeed fair for rights of individuals to be considered when making rulings on various issues.

However, lack of a legal framework to enforce a right clearly limits the efforts to protect individuals from vices in society. Ballis (2010, p. 4) concludes by indicating that the rule of law is witnessed in the human rights Act and has the ability to set regulations that rule over the parliament and the government. Besides making the Human rights Act formal and substantive, the rule of law enhances its superiority to other key organs of a nation.

The critical question that ought to be answered is whether or not the established Law Council has any powers to disqualify or make laws due to the incumbent limitation and if it can legislate on its own behalf. The concern demonstrated here clearly points out that the sovereignty of the council has been diminished due to lack of a strong human rights legal framework. The council has been forced to conform to the state laws for many years (Anon. 2010, p. 3).

This attempt has enhanced its effort to ensure protection of refugees. On the other hand, those seeking asylum rights have been undermined. Indeed, reliance on human rights legal framework and human rights act which is a prerequisite in determining cases has many times been suspended and its place given to state laws. This has presented major concerns on what the role of the council will be in the coming years if this trend persists.

However, it is imperative to note that that a law cannot be above an Act and that the council will still be able to provide protection of individual’s rights despite the many setbacks. There is need for the nation to overcome the historical accident of not having a constitutions and legal rights framework. Analysts indicate that this can be crucial in the realization of maximum adherence to various individual, social, political and economical rights.

The bill of rights

According to Ballis (2010, p. 4), the bill of rights is an important document that stipulates the rights of every citizen in a country. It is normally comprehensive and requires all people to be treated equally and in the best way possible. Besides outlining the expected conduct of the public towards each other, it further seeks to prohibit law makers from making laws that may affect the rights of the people.

Notably, Australia happens to be the only country in the Western democracy that lacks a legislative or constitutional bill of rights. However, the nation has been able to sign five different treaties forming the International Bill of Human Rights. While this may be seen a move towards establishing individual rights laws in Australia, the International Bill of Human Rights does not bind Australia legally in any way. It does not provide checks and balances for control of power in Australia.

Analysts are of the view that the alternative bill of right that Australia can adopt is the US Bill of Rights due to the fact that the American model has a strong judicial view and has constitutionally entrenched the bill of rights. Contemporary liberal democracies observe this as a benchmark for their constitutional arrangements. This can be a solution to Australia’s historical accident of exeptionalism over bill of rights.

Instances related to lack of law supporting human rights have led to various problems. One such problem is the current proposal by the administration seeking to infer greater powers to the police in searching criminal suspects’ houses and premises appears to negate individual rights. Every individual should be free from unwarranted search and unreasonable seizure (Keeley, 2010, p. 19). Human activists have indicated their discontent with possibilities of the public privacy being intruded on. Through this has been a matter of speculation, analysts are indicating of possible abuse for the same powers.

Whereas the current administration has received massive praise both locally and internationally because the nation has been able to ensure that various rights of its citizens are protected. It has received major criticism on how it has been dealing with discrimination related issues. Though the administration has not been involved with any act of discrimination, the vice is still evident in some of the public and private sectors (Anon. 2010, p. 3). Needless to say, the vice can be eliminated if adequate and appropriate legislations on anti-discrimination are adopted.

Suffrage and disenfranchisement

The challenge on who is supposed to vote in Australia is one of the difficult issues to address in society due to its internal nature. Analysts indicate that discrimination in terms of voting has seen strong internalization and therefore its application has long term implications due to its widespread nature in the society. People’s attitudes must be effectively changed in order to reflect on the need for all people’s contribution towards their growth and development. Ballis (2010, p. 6) argues that institutions that emphasize on equality as part of the societal cultural development must be developed at all levels.

In Australia, every citizen has the right to vote provided that he/she is eighteen years and above. However, there are a number of limitations that might hinder an individual from voting. Some of them include when and if an individual is serving a jail sentence of three years, if convicted of treason or of unsound mind.

Barnes (2012, p. 13) emphasizes on specific intervention methods for females in the society with a major aim of creating the needed awareness on the existence of gender discrimination. This strategy has however been criticized for being biased and therefore predicted to lack the holistic outlook for addressing the problem. It is important that the strategy incorporate mechanism of facilitating attitude change in the community as the main platform for influencing personality changes.

Though policies over the years appear to have failed in generating the need for equality at all levels in the society, their strengthening would create strong support for other mechanisms to be more effective. Barnes (2012, p. 13) further suggests that with effective policies in the society, elimination of the stereotypically derived voter discrimination would be easily guided. The legislation should particularly seek to facilitate strong cooperation between institutions and organizations both at the local, regional and international levels to create more emphasis and urgency. This legislation was established to promote realization of maxima potential by all the voters in the society.

The act seeks to eliminate discrimination of any kind and therefore giving all the people equal opportunities to cast their votes and elect their preferred leaders. Passing of this legislation was seen as the key fulcrum towards addressing the problem of women discrimination as it sought to increase their involvement in at all levels of development and management in the community.

Indigenous rights movement

Smith (2011, p.14) argue that diversity and equality remain the most important tools for creating social harmony. If all organizations fully embrace the concept of diversity, all groups of people in society would be represented with hatred among them ebbing out. Rights movement is a global movement which consists of three major subcomponents namely legal development, direct action, and philosophical consideration that dictate its constitution and operations. According to Smith, the main concern of indigenous rights is anchored on the need to address effective application of human rights to minimize human suffering.

Indigenous rights movement group ideology in Australia has been inclined fighting for the implementation of the rule of law. Particularly, they seek to liberate suffering individuals and ensure that they are placed in areas with permanent safety. Besides, they seek to infer the necessary destruction to property and other related facilities that anchor human torture. By inducing extreme economic damages to the related subjects, the group seeks to communicate to political leaders on the need to protect the rights of individuals. Besides, the group seeks to infer its international presence where it can have a voice in making decisions related to citizens. However, achievement of these agendas is indeed very dismal, holding to the fact that the group lacks the necessary harmony in terms of leadership and management.

According to Ballis (2010, p. 4), leadership is all about culture and building support for communities in society. Notably, national cultures as outlined by Hofstede in his cultural dimensions model clearly define a country and its people. Mary Jo Hatch’s model of cultural dynamics strongly concurs with Hofstede’s work and points out on the need to appreciate people and their diversity. A leader who fails to appreciate cultural diversity and human rights could consequently be considered doomed.

In full cognizant of this reality, indigenous rights movement groups strongly move to creates ties with cultures in the nation and beyond. Smith (2011, p.14) argues that to women who are highly vulnerable or have been subjected to poor leadership due to stereotypes, the act seeks to restore the needed dignity and respect for them in the society

Through understanding the needs of the nations, indigenous rights movements have been able to embrace change, create the force for progress and ultimately reap the diversity in wisdom and approaches towards conflicts resolutions as well as sustainability.

Gender and human rights

Discrimination against women through gender stereotyping undermines realization of their holistic potential. It also increases the challenges facing them and ultimately stalls societal growth and development. Researchers have indicated their discontent with the high levels of discrimination against women over the years. This consideration is based on the social roles that give greater preference to men. In their view, Ballis (2010, p. 7) expound that though laws and policies in Australia have been passed to address the problem over the years, there is urgent need to re-evaluate their efficacy and therefore facilitate effective contribution by all in society.

In their study on gender issues, Simpson (2010, p. 23) found out that female discrimination in developed countries is less pronounced compared to the case in developing countries. However, it is still evident and has serious implications to the society. In Australia, the department of labor estimates that women working for about 41 hours every week earn an average of about 79% of their male counterparts working for the same period.

Discrimination is perceived to be a major problem by about 40% of the population in the European Union. Besides, Simpson (2010, p. 23) indicates that that in the major top leadership and managerial positions, women were highly discriminated and therefore poorly represented in Australia. They only constitute 5.2% of the total population and 0.3% of the total legislatures in the country. Despite their increasing numbers from different universities, Simpson laments that their input is still minimal in major professions due to discrimination.

Notably, attempts to address the problem of discrimination have been made in Australia to facilitate higher levels of equality and therefore facilitate maximum potential realization in the community. The problem of stereotypes that largely culminated to not only their discrimination in the work place prompted the establishment of Equal Pay Act (1972) in Australia. Most women in various labor considerations received less pay for performing similar types of jobs with men. As a result, Ballis (2010, p. 4) indicate that most women suffered greatly in the hands of men as they were less regarded and even denied key leadership and managerial positions in the country. The act therefore sought to establish a more level operating platform for both genders in the country.

Another Act was the Sex Discrimination Act of 1984. Notably, this legislation provides the description of discrimination against women and therefore seeks to generate their continued inclusion and representation in all areas of social economic developments. Outlining various sectors such as education and employment, non-discriminatory approach is seen as the key for the country’s success. Though the act has impacted greatly on the problem of women discrimination, analysts indicate that there is need to lay more emphasis on the people’s attitude changes in order to address female discrimination related problems.

Refugee rights Right to seek asylum in Australia

Boarder crossing remains a highly gendered phenomenon due to inherent opportunities and risks that have naturally remained especially among refugees. Dangers presented to the refugees have presented resilient and new challenges over the years that tend to be more oppressive to women compared to men. Since many individuals are fleeing their nations due to war, hunger, natural disasters, new vulnerabilities, precarious health outlook, and abusive working environment, there are myriads of underlying issues that affect refugees.

Analysts generally concur that the ramifications presented from different migratory process have increasingly elicited greater focus in the sense that they represent a key mirror of the society. It is generally agreed that they are still highly disadvantaged with statistics shifting as more women continue being involved in immigration. An understanding of the need for migration has therefore been critical in generating further insights into the problem. Most of the refugees often immigrate in search for peaceful environments, run away from oppression, and also search for education. Most of the women are particularly disadvantaged due to lack of the necessary qualifications that culminate to their assumption of low level opportunities in the new countries.

The Australian government has been keen in ensuring maximum protection of the rights of refugees. Being a partner of the Refugee Convention, it applies the principle of non-refoulement to protect them from harm. The nation is also governed by Conventions of the Rights of a Child, Convention against Torture and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. These conventions among other treaties protect refugees and asylum seekers from being sent back to their countries.

However, many asylum seekers and refugees are under detention in Australia. This is due to the fact that they have broken the Migration Act of 1958 that calls for visa acquisition from Australia. This also includes refugees who arrive on boat. It is imperative to mention t that their detention is normally infinite; a consideration that has called for measures to alter detentions and ensure their rights of freedom is maintained.

As such, the Australian government has considered creating bridging visas for detainees in order to offer them community against detentions. This ensures protection of human rights for all immigrants. The Australian Refugee Rights Alliance (ARRA) also plays critical role of ensuring that their needs are catered for according to the law. This has been instrumental in enhancing improved status of refugees.

Public civil and political rights

The class of rights comprising civil and political rights in Australia are founded on the general rules of human rights. These curb repression and discriminations against age, national origin, race, religion, gender and disability. They also allow freedom of movement, press, religion, expression, speech and thought.

An understanding of the concept “freedom of speech” is critical in generating the critical analysis of the internet and the press. According to Smith (2011, p.14), public civil and political rights are a connotation of an individual’s ability to express themselves with minimal limitations or censorship. Freedom of speech is therefore considered to include, reception and imparting of ideas and information needed by the public.

However, the latter notion of the media has increasingly received sharp focus due to possible fears that go along with some visual methodologies. Smith further indicates that under article nineteen of Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICPR), the “freedom of speech” has been recognized as a human right. Besides, article thirteen of American Convention on Human Rights and the African Charter on Humans and People’s Rights equally consider freedom of speech to be part of human rights.

However, unlike most of the cooperating countries and states such as the European Union, the United States and Australia among others, freedom of speech is considered differently (Zadkovich 2010, p. 15). Notably, some countries have strong restrictions for the freedom of speech. This has direct links with democracy and political orientation. Freedom of speech as well as other forms of freedoms under the public civil and political rights is a critical facet that seeks to infer intrinsic consideration by different people in their daily operations.

Since invention of Information Technology, internet has brought international communities closer to each other by anchoring their ability to share ideologies and perceptions on issues affecting them. Notably, provision of speech freedom is highly regarded in Australia while it is least articulated in developing countries. It is worth noting that the ability to share critical information by creating necessary interlink for deliberating issues affecting people at different levels have drastically increased over the last decade.

Arguably, due to high levels of participation and myriads of research activities on the ground, it is no doubt that freedom of speech will indeed be hard to talk about without the application of public’s civil and political rights.

References

Anon 2010, News: In brief Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Ballis, J. 2010, Australia is a human rights laggard, Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Barnes, F. 2012, Federation must campaign for same sex marriage, Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Gavrielatos, A. 2011, ‘Stop playing politics’ with children’s futures, Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Keeley, T. 2010, Education in Prison, Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Simpson, S. 2010, Vale Paula Bloch, Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Smith, M. 2011, Need to educate about diversity, Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Zadkovich, G. 2010, Aboriginal education – a 25-year plan, Surry Hills, Australia, Surry Hills.

Introduction

Analyzing various social and economic indicators of a community in a given population is vital. The analysis provides necessary information that can be used to describe the population in turns of the population distribution, income, marital status,age, employment, housing and medical insurance coverage. Besides, such analysis provides the state with adequate information that can be useful for economic planning. Therefore, the treatise seeks to carry out an analysis of the population of foreign-born Chinese in the United States. Specifically, the paper will analyze the various social, economic and demographic variables of foreign-born Chinese in the United States. The descriptive analysis will be based on secondary data collected from various sources on the internet. However, much of the data will be collected from the website of American Community Survey and United States Census Bureau web sites (United States Census Bureau 1). The analysis will entail presenting graphical depiction of the data collected and a brief description of the data.

Population of the foreign-born Chinese in the United States

The proportion of the total foreign-born residents in the United States is 14.95%. The percentage gives the total number of immigrants into the United States in relation to the total population of the United States. The Chinese residents’ accounts for only 0.73% of the entire population of the United States. Further, foreign-born Chinese in the United States accounts for 3.55% of the foreign-born residents in the United States. Further, out of the entire population of Chinese in the United States (2,292,233), 63.20% are foreign-born while 36.80% are native-born. Thus, it can be observed that the proportion of the foreign-born Chinese in the United States is higher than the proportion of the native-born residents. The distribution of the foreign-born and the native-born Chinese residents in the United States will have an impact on other variables in the economy.

Based on the graph presented above, it can be observed that the proportion of foreign-born Chinese residents in relation to their total population in the United States is higher than the proportion of the foreign-born residents in the United States. Further, it can be observed that the proportion of the foreign-born Chinese to the total foreign-born residents in the United States is quite low. The foreign-born Chinese residents can also be analyzed based on the percentage of the population that immigrated into the United States over time (United States Census Bureau 1). This will be achieved by analyzing the proportion of the population foreign-born who immigrated into the United States over the years. Figure 1.1 shows the percentage of foreign-born and foreign-born Chinese who entered the United States across various time periods.

The graph indicates that foreign-born residents began to enter the United States way before 2000. The statistics indicate that 62.70%of the foreign-born residents entered the United Stated before the year 2000. The large proportion of immigrants can be attributed to the favorable immigration laws that opened borders for the foreign-born from various origins across the world. Further, between 2000 and 2009, 30.40% of the foreign-born residents entered the United States while after the year 2010 only 7.00% of the foreign-born residents entered the United States (Gibson and Jung 28). The declining trend can be attributed to the stiffened immigration laws due to security concerns in the country.

The percentage of the foreign-born Chinese residents who entered the country also followed the same trend. 57.60% of the foreign-born Chinese residents entered the United Stated before the year 2000, 30.20% of the foreign-born Chinese residents entered the United States between 2000 and 2009 and 12.3% of the foreign-born Chinese residents entered the United States after 2010. The Chinese population in the United States can also be analyzed based on the distribution of the citizens and non-citizens. The data show that 56.92% of the Chinese residents in the United States are citizens while 43.08% of the residents are non-citizens. On the other hand, 5.95% of the foreign-born residents in the United States are citizens while the remaining 94.05% of the foreign-born residents in the United States are non-citizens. Thus, it can be concluded that a large proportion of the foreign-born Chinese in the United States are citizens when compared to the proportion of the foreign-born residents in the United States who are citizens (United States Census Bureau 1).

Age distribution and marital status

Analysis of age and marital status of a given population or sub-population is important because it gives data that can be used for various analysis and planning. Based on the data collected, foreign-born Chinese in the United States is made up of 44.6% male and 56.0% female. Therefore, it can be observed that female Chinese residents are the majority. The same trend can be observed when analyzing the proportion of the male and female for the total population of foreign-born in the United States. The foreign-born residents in the United States are made up of 48.70% male and 51.30% female. Thus, the total population of the foreign-born female residents in the United States is higher than the male residents (United States Census Bureau 1). This distribution will affect other variables such as marriage among others.

Apart from the distribution of male and female, the population of foreign-born Chinese in the United States can be analyzed based on the age distribution. Based on the statistics of the population, it can be observed that residents of foreign-born Chinese in the United States have a slightly higher percentage of older people than younger people. This can be justified by the fact that the age distribution indicates that 0.6% of the foreign-born Chinese in the United States are children below five years, 5.9% of the population lies between 5 to 17 years, 10.1% of the population lies between 18 to 24 years, 15.2% of the population lies between 25 to 34 years, 18.1% of the population lies between 35 to 44 years, 19.4% of the population lies between 45 to 54 years, 15.4% of the population lies between 55 to 64 years, 8.3% of the population lies between 65 to 74 years, while 6.9% of the population age 75 year and above.

Thus, it can be observed that the highest percentage of the population falls in the age group 45 to 54 years old. Further, the age distribution also indicates that 68.1% of the foreign-born Chinese in the Unites States are 35 years old and above. Only 30.7% of the population falls under 35 years. A similar trend can be observed in the case of foreign-born residents in the United States. The data collected shows that 0.6% of the foreign-born in the United States are children below five years, 5.7% of the population lies between 5 to 17 years, 7.9% of the population lies between 18 to 24 years, 19.0% of the population lies between 25 to 34 years, 21.9% of the population lies between 35 to 44 years, 18.4% of the population lies between 45 to 54 years, 13.0% of the population lies between 55 to 64 years, 7.7% of the population lies between 65 to 74 years, while 5.7% of the population age 75 year and above.

Thus, it can be observed that the highest percentage of the population falls in the age group 35 to 44 years old. Further, the age distribution also indicates that 66.8% of the foreign-born Chinese in the Unites States are 35 years old and above. Only 33.7% of the population falls under 35 years. (United States Census Bureau 1). The distribution of the population can also be attributed to the immigration laws put in place by the government of the United States. Figure 1.4 shows the distribution of age.

Apart from age distribution the foreign-born Chinese in the United States can also be analyzed based on the median age. Based on the data collected, the foreign-born Chinese have a median age of 45 years. The value of relatively higher than the median age for the native-born Chinese (27 years). Further, the median age of the Chinese citizens is 29 years while the median age of the non-citizen Chinese is 41 years. The median age of the foreign-born Chinese can be compared to the median age of the foreign-born residents in the United States. The data show that the foreign-born residents have a median age of 42.6 years while the native born have a median age of 35.8 years. Further, the median age of the foreign-born citizens is 38.6 years while the median age of the non-citizen Chinese is 36 years (United States Census Bureau 1). On average, it can be noted that the foreign-born resident have a higher median age than the foreign-born Chinese in the United Stated.

A foreign-born population where a large proportion of are aged above 35 years is suitable for the economy because they will be economically productive. The population will provide human capital for the economy and this is essential for growth and development. Besides, a large percentage of immigrants that are aged above 35 years will contribute positively to the economy will because they will contribute to transfer of knowledge in the economy. This knowledge transfer is important for growth of technology and human capital in the US economy. Besides, the population will require little amount of investment in terms of education and training. Thus, the laws which regulate the age and the educational attainment of the foreign born immigrant is suitable for economic growth and development of the country.

The foreign-born Chinese in the United states can also be reviewed based on the marital status. The data collected reveals that 64.30% of the foreign-born Chinese are married while 58.60% of the foreign-born residents in the United States are married. Thus, a high proportion of the foreign-born Chinese are married as compared to the foreign-born residents in the United States. The data also reveal that 38.75% of the native-born Chinese, 51.53% of the Chinese citizens and 65.43% of the Chinese who are non-citizens are married. In the section above, it was indicated that 56.92% of the Chinese residents in the United States are citizens while 43.08% of the residents are non-citizens. However, it can be observed that a higher percentage of the Chinese citizens are married as compared to the Chinese who are non-citizens. The high percentage of the foreign-born Chinese who are married can be explained by the high percentage of older people in the population.

The marriage statistics can also be analyzed based on the proportion of male and female who are married. The data indicate that 67.1% of the foreign-born Chinese male in the United States who aged above 15 years are married while 62.0% of the foreign-born Chinese female in the same age bracket are married. In the case of foreign-born resident in the United States, 56.6% of the foreign-born male in the United States who aged above 15 years are married while 50.6% of the foreign-born female in the same age bracket are married. Thus, there is a large proportion of the male resident is married as compared to the female residents. Besides, the proportion of male and female foreign-born Chinese who are married is higher than the proportion of the male and female foreign-born residents in the United States.

Education

Analyzing educational attainment and enrollment is of necessary because it shows the contribution of the population to the growth and development of an economy. The educational attainment will be classified into four groups. The groups will reveal the percentage of the population that has attained the educational level in that group. The data collected shows that 20.8% of the foreign-born Chinese have attained less than a high school diploma, 15.8% have attained a high school graduate and its equivalents, 13.8% have some college education or associated degree while 49.6% of the population have attained a bachelor’s degree and above.

The statistics can be compared to the foreign-born residents in the United States; 30.8% of the foreign-born residents have attained less than a high school diploma, 22.2% have attained a high school graduate and its equivalents, 19.1% have some college education or associated degree while only 28% of the population have attained a bachelor’s degree and above. Thus, it can be noted that 79.2% of the foreign-born Chinese residents are high school graduates and above while only 69.2% of the foreign-born residents are high school graduates and above. Thus, foreign-born Chinese residents have a relatively higher educational attainment than the foreign-born residents in the United States (United States Census Bureau 1).

The high educational attainment contributed significantly to the economic growth and development in the United States. Enrollment to various categories of learning also plays an important role in educational attainment and economic growth. The data collected show that 1.6% of the foreign-born residents are enrolled in nursery school, 1.5% of the population is enrolled in the kindergarten, 16.1% are enrolled in elementary school, 12.0% are enrolled in high school and 68.8% of the population is enrolled in 61.8%.

The statistics can be compared to the case of foreign-born residents in the United States; 1.4% of the foreign-born residents are enrolled in nursery school, 1.6% is enrolled in the kindergarten, 22.2% is enrolled in elementary school, 20.9% is enrolled in high school and 68.8% of the population is enrolled in 53.9%. The distribution shows that a higher percentage of foreign-born Chinese have enrolled in colleges and higher learning institution than the foreign-born residents in the United States. This data on enrollment can also explain the high proportion of foreign-born Chinese residents who have attained college education and above (United States Census Bureau 1).

Labor force participation

The data indicates that 61.90% of the foreign-born Chinese participate in the labor force within the US. The value is slightly lower than the percentage of the foreign-born residents who participates in the labor force (66.90%). This can be an indication that there is a higher chance other foreign-born from various origins will participate in the labor force within the United States than the foreign-born Chinese. Further, the statistics show that 35.60% of the native-born Chinese participates in the labor force within the US. This can be an indication that the foreign-born citizens have a higher chance of participating in the labor force than the native born citizen. Further, 47.60% of the Chinese citizens participate in the labor force while 54.70% of Chinese who are non-citizens participates in the labor force. This indicates that the non-citizens have a higher chance of participating in the labor force than the Chinese citizens.

In terms of employment, only 3.90% of the foreign-born Chinese residents are unemployed. The value is slightly higher than the percentage of foreign-born residents who are unemployed (5.70%). The low percentage can be attributed to the high level of education discussed above. Further, 5.60% of the native-born Chinese are unemployed, 6.99% of the Chinese citizens are unemployed and 8.07% of the Chinese who are non-citizens are unemployed.

Medical insurance

The statistics show that 17.70% of the foreign-born Chinese residents do not have medical insurance cover while 32.80% of the entire population of the foreign-born in the United States does not have medical cover.

Earnings

Analyzing earnings of the foreign-born Chinese residents in the United States gives an indication of the economic well-being of the group. The individual per-capita income of a foreign-born Chinese is $35,930. The value is higher than the individual per capita income of a foreign-born resident in the United States ($29,119). Further, the median household income in the past 12 months was $59,874 for foreign-born Chinese and $46,983 for foreign-born in the United States. Also, the median family income was $73,052 for foreign-born Chinese and $50,844 for foreign-born in the United States. Further, earnings can also be analyzed for male and female full time, year round workers.

The data show that the population of male foreign-born Chinese was 471,293 with a median income of $76,575 while the female were 415,980 with a median income of $62,178. In the case of foreign-born residents in the United States, the male foreign-born Chinese were 10,353,300 with a median income of $55,746 while the total number of female workers was 6,454,033 with a median income of $44,622. On average, there is a large number of male Chinese workers in the United States than female workers. Besides, the male earns a higher income than the female. Further, the poverty level for all families of foreign-born Chinese residents was 12.0% while the level for foreign-born residents is 18.4%. Therefore, the Chinese in the United States have a lower poverty level than the foreign-born residents in the country.

Works Cited

Gibson, Campbell, and K. Jung. Foreign-born Population of the United States, 1850 to 2000, United States: Nova Publishers, 2005. Print.

United States Census Bureau 2013, American Community Survey. Web.

Summary

• Gina – 24 years old
• John – 71 years old

The young and older adults inherently displayed various perspectives on life-related aspects. Gina demonstrates a more relaxed approach as her family members are all alive and well. She does not give significant meaning to any childhood memories or activities since they occurred relatively recently. Meanwhile, John exhibits a more reflective approach. As his parents are deceased, he speaks about them with fondness and respect. He mentions that his childhood memories, despite being trivial, seem to have had an impact on his development or character. The memories and interests strongly relate to his parents and how his relationship with them had evolved.

In terms of greatest changes seen since childhood, the young adult recalls financial crisis causing many to go into poverty, since it is the most prominent and impactful event of the latest years. Meanwhile, the older adult notices several social changes and perceptions amongst the population, as well as changes in the workings of the system. There was a strong contrast when discussing personal aspects of their lives including relationships, medical history, jobs, and education.

The young adult demonstrated openness and desire to discuss her life, frequently mentioned her partner, and openly spoke about a serious medical condition that impacted her life. The older adult remained very private, particularly about medical history. He shared basic facts about his family, education, and employment, mentioning that he has been in many cities around the world as part of his job as an auto mechanic. However, while the older adult seemed determined in his answers, the young adult showed insecurity and lack of concrete detail.

When discussing lifestyle and daily routines, both adults did share similar behaviors. Both expressed fondness of spending time with family and partners, their fondest memory being associated with their love interest. Both use exercise and good eating habits as an attempt to practice preventive health, realizing that these choices can impact their lifestyle. Both enjoy relaxing hobbies during free time and mostly socialize with their respective partners. For significant historical events, the older adult mentioned the Vietnam War, while the young adult chose the 2016 Presidential Election. Interestingly, both events had tremendous consequences and significant political outcomes in their respective eras, reflecting the impact of such events.

For more deep topics, both adults shared some commonalities but there were some differences in perception. Both selected a major part of their life (disease and children) as their greatest achievement, feeling that the experiences have made them unique and stronger. In terms of regrets and coping with death or personal mortality, the young adult seems relatively inexperienced and scared of these concepts, referring to the future in aspects as aspirations.

The older man shows certain numbness and acceptance, seemingly not bothered by any of such difficult topics. Finally, when giving advice, the young adult brings a common theme of the current millennial generation of balancing love for oneself and those around you and achieving progress this way. In contrast, the older adult provides the advice of forging one’s own path without attempting to justify excuses based on other people.

Personal Reflection

Personally, my views on adult development did not shift significantly. It was expected that the young adult would be more open, vocal on recent issues, and focus on one’s unique identity or characteristic. One could expect a certain level of naivete and, at particular points, excessive care for seemingly uncontrollable factors. Meanwhile, the older adult exhibits deeper understanding, acceptance, and confidence in his life choices, as well as able to reflect clearly on the wrong and right choices made in life.

I think it is a natural occurrence that one’s personality shifts as one acquires life experience. The most surprising aspect for the young adult was the bravery with which she faced her health problems. She showed a profound understanding and value of life. This could be extended to the older adult, who even at 71 years of age demonstrated remembrance of his parents and regret of being unable to spend more time with them.

The advice given by the younger adult was more relatable to me as I am the same age group. I feel that it is an important concept for our generation to balance the care for ourselves as well as demonstrating empathy to those around us. It helps us, in a healthy manner, to become advocates for positive change and progress. We no longer close our eyes to the many injustices around. However, I can also relate to the advice of the older man.

As a generation, we young adults tend to make excuses and shift blame. In fact, all blame should be placed on us and it should be a motivator for success. The hardcore element of the older generation to pave one’s path is much rarer nowadays.

I think in contrasting these lessons, I have learned much about myself. Throughout, the interview I kept thinking of how I would respond to these questions. I was forced to think about difficult topics. It helped me grow as an individual as I identified my strengths and weaknesses, and my own process of adult development. In a way, I did change my perspective on growing older. I realized that individuals grow wiser but may face similar fears as a child would.

Also, I learned that certain emotions such as love transcend time and often serve as a supporting force for an individual. It became evident that growing older is a learning process, full of mistakes, many of which continue well into adulthood. However, it is our personal experience, knowledge, and beliefs which allow to appropriately deal with challenges to live a fulfilling life.

Introduction

Global communication refers to the exchange of information across international borders that occurs mainly due to the effects of globalization (Kamalipour, 2006). It deals with different types of communication processes between governments, businesses, and people. Today’s business environment is highly influenced by globalization and technology. Therefore, businesses need to expand to other countries and cultures. The need for expansion necessitates the development of exceptional communication skills that harmonize the activities of employees in different regions in which a business operates. Effective global communication is an important aspect of international trade. Companies such as Google, Apple, Microsoft, IBM, Walmart, and other multinational firms operate in different countries and hire employees from different cultures who speak different languages. Enhancing global communication is critical for the harmonization of business operations in different countries.

Strategies for effective global communication

Organizations that employ employees from different cultures and countries encounter challenges in the field of communication. Strategies that can be applied in order to improve global communication include review of business communication principles, analysis of message receiver, evaluation of language needs, and acceptance of other cultures (Krizan, Merrier, Logan & Williams, 2010). It is very important for businesses to review business communication principles in order to facilitate the reception of different messages. This is conducted by analyzing the recipient of the message and choosing an appropriate channel to use. Full knowledge of the recipient’s cultural background is also important in global communication. In order to enhance the delivery of information, it is important to learn about the values, the culture, and the language of the recipient (Krizan et. al, 2010). This aids in deciding the best channel of communication to use.

Another aspect of ensuring that global communication is effective is acceptance of other cultures. It is vital for businesses to understand how various cultures affect the beliefs, values, behaviors, and convictions of their employees (Krizan et. al, 2010). In that regard, respecting and embracing cultural differences enhances communication. Diverse global environments involve people from different countries that speak varied languages. It is necessary for leaders to adopt positive attitudes towards other cultures in order to overcome communication barriers such as cultural differences that strain cross-cultural communication (Schmidt, 2007).

Different communication channels (print, electronic, and face-to-face) are effective in different contexts. For instance, print and electronic media are more effective in global communication because they exclude the need to learn the recipient’s culture. Different cultures use body language differently. Therefore, using communication channels that eradicate the need to master the use of body language by other cultures makes communication faster and more effective. Another important aspect of global communication is simplicity. English is an international language that is spoken in many countries. However, it is absent in certain countries that use native languages. Companies that operate in countries that do not use English find it difficult to communicate to employees because of language barriers. In such cases, messages are translated into languages that employees understand. Keeping messages simple and clear is the key to effective communication in such cases (Schmidt, 2007).

One of the strategies that such companies apply is the use of visual aids such as images, graphics, charts, illustrations, and photos. Well designed visual aids help to overcome language barriers because they simplify information and present it in a form that is comprehensible by people from different cultures (Schmidt, 2007).

An important strategy for improving global communication is proper evaluation of how different people consume information. People consume information differently using varied communication channels. Mediums for communication are not universal and vary from place to place (Schmidt, 2007). For instance, internet is not available in certain countries that have poor technological infrastructure. Therefore, using emails to communicate is ineffective. Finally, understanding and embracing different language patterns is important for effective global communication. Languages use different sentence structures and assign meaning based on context (Kamalipour, 2006). Learning such variations improve global communication because it improves the comprehension of the message by recipients. Moreover, comprehension of language variations eradicates barriers that cause misunderstandings.

Benefits of global communication

Global communication has several benefits that include increased access to business opportunities, enhanced globalization, and access to international markets (Kamalipour, 2006). Businesses get access to more opportunities through global communication because of increased access to people from other cultures. This gives firms an opportunity to attract new customers to buy their products and services. Global communication through technological advancements enhances globalization and makes it easy for businesses to expand to foreign markets (Schmidt, 2007). Electronic communication improves business operations and increases access to customers in different parts of the world.

Conclusion

Global communication involves passage of information across international borders primarily due to the effects of globalization. Through global communication, businesses get access to more business opportunities, expand to other countries, and increase their customer bases. Several strategies are used to enhance global communication. They include acceptance of other cultures, simplicity, constant review of business communication principles, and use of visual aids in communication. Harmonizing the activities of employees in different countries and cultures is an important aspect of effective global communication. Global communication is important in businesses because it expands their scope with regard to the number of customers they serve.

References

Kamalipour, Y. R. (2006). Global Communication. New York, NY: Thomson Wadsworth. Web.

Krizan, A. C., Merrier, P., Logan, J. P., & Williams, K. S. (2010). Business Communication. New York, NY: Cengage Learning. Web.

Schmidt, W. (2007). Communicating Globally: Intercultural Communication and International Business. New York, NY: SAGE Publications. Web.