Immigration in Italy: Southern Misery

Rosarno, Italy has recently experienced a wave of anti-immigrant violence targeted at Africans, many of whom work as crop-pickers. Causes of such violence are multi-faceted. An influx of immigrants, many of whom entered illegally, created tensions with the existing population over employment and race. Worsening the situation, cheap citrus imports from countries like Spain and Brazil left Italian citrus growers uncompetitive. Hence, Italian farmers could not afford to hire crop-pickers, who were left unemployed. Meanwhile, the latest episode of violence against immigrants in Rosarno, that of some white youths killing two African farm workers, sparked a riot on January 7th, which spiraled into ever more violence. Now, more than a thousand farm workers have fled or been evacuated after the recent riot. Already suffering from low wages, these men had to pay part of their daily income to overseers suspected of having links to a local organized crime group who may have helped such immigrants enter Italy illegally. In a search for a better life, immigrants are not only at the mercy of local opposition and government policy, but also organized crime and economic trends in foreign countries. – YaleGlobal