TODAY, I conclude my monthslong series of columns on language in migratory contexts and migration linguistics, fittingly so on the day the Roman Catholic Church commemorates the 110th World Day of Migrants and Refugees. We are thus compelled to reflect on the place of migrants in our societies, how they are being treated as members of these and, subsequently, in relation to our foregoing discussion on language and migration, how their language concerns are dealt with.
Every society has been touched by migration. In developed economies with aging populations, reliance on migrants has been notably increasing. In fact, in these societies, it would be impossible for people to carry on with their daily lives without encountering a migrant or, at least, something that resulted from migration. Yet, even with the important roles migrants play in our societies, it has become very easy for many to overlook them, to leave them at the margins. They are often treated as the "other" and not those who "belong."
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