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The Emigrants
Activities
3. Stay or Go? Arguments for and against emigration
While a lot of people leave Northern Portugal to work in other countries many decide not to.
What would you do?
You and your best friend are 14, the same age that the young Portuguese Miria was when she went to work in Switzerland. Your friend is thinking of emigrating too. You know she will get too emotional if you try and talk to her about it, so you write her a short letter.
- Read what Miria had to say about her decision, and what her mother had to say, then put your letter together.
Miria:
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It was very difficult at first and I used to phone my mother every day. As soon as I finished work I would shut myself away and cry my eyes out. I missed the freedom of Portugal because here in Switzerland you must follow set rules. I was used to living in a big house and here all I had was a tiny room. It was so sad. I was used to my parents’ affection, my family home. Then I arrived here and there was nothing, it was hard…it was very hard.
My salary here is three times more than what I would earn at home. The minimum wage in Portugal is almost nothing. The money is the only thing that was worth leaving my country for…I mean, why else would I leave all the things I really love. |
Miria’s mother:
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When I brought up my children, there was widespread misery! Money was worth nothing, absolutely nothing. People only made a tiny amount and they had to save all the time. Everyone had to work in the fields. And there could be weeks and weeks of rain. No one got paid when it rained, so there was no chance to make a living, no way to get money.
My children were right to get themselves out of this trap, to free themselves from working in the fields. They went away to try and sort out their lives and to become adults. |
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