Global migration rejection increases, but US remains less hostile despite growing anti-immigrant sentiment

As migration increases around the world as a result of social, political and climatic reasons, so has the amount of people who reject welcoming these people, according to a recent poll by Ipsos and reported by Statista.

And even though the United States is part of this trend, with an increase in the amount of people giving this answer, it's still among the countries with the lowest rejection percentages.

Concretely, Ipsos figures show that 33% of respondents said the country would be better off if migration stopped altogether, a figure that had clocked in at 31% in 2021.

It stands in start contrast with the 77% who gave the same answer in Turkey (which topped the list) and Latin American countries like Chile and Colombia (60% and 50%, respectively).

Both of these South American countries have received hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan migrants over the past decade, as the country continues its social and economic decay. However, while rejection of migrants grew in Chile (it was 47% in 2021), it dropped by three percentage points in Colombia.

Mexico has also seen a sharp increase in migrant rejection over the past few years, climbing from 30% to 41% in the latest round of responses. Millions have left Mexico for the United States over the past decades, but lately the country has also become a key migration route for hundreds of thousands of people from other countries who cross The Americas to get to the United States.

Argentina stood in contrast with the trend illustrated by the Ipsos poll, showing a sharp decline in migrant rejection between 2021 and 2023, with the figure dropping from 37% to 29% during the period.

Over 1,000 migrants have died or disappeared in the Americas in 2023, mainly as a result of lacking "options for safe and regular" mobility, a new report by a United Nations agency showed.

The report, by the International Organization for Migration, tallied 1,148 deaths or disappearances last year in the region, saying the aforementioned unsafe context "increases the chances that migrants will take irregular paths that can endanger their lives.

2023 wasn't the deadliest year for migrants in The Americas, but it was for the entire world, the IOM said. "The 2023 death toll represents a tragic increase of 20% compared to 2022, highlighting the urgent need for action to prevent further loss of life," said the global report, which highlighted that the most dangerous path in the world was the Mediterranean Sea, which saw at least 3,129 deaths as migrants attempted to reach Europe.