Immigrants\u27 Rights in the Public Sphere: Hannah Arendt\u27s Concepts Reconsidered

Based on Arendt\u27s concepts of public and private spheres, immigration issues can be approached from an emphasis on how the most fundamental of all human rights, which is being denied to immigrants, is the most basic constituent of the human condition: the ability to interact in the public realm through action and speech. The granting of this right would enable immigrants to become unique human beings, with the capacity for transformation. As they are presently deprived of these and other rights, they are confined to the most primitive sphere, that is, the one of pure survival. Therefore, a differentiation must be made between dissimilarities in the nature of reception and treatment of diverse immigrants\u27 groups