Immigrants and Facebook

The Guardian on Sunday published a (long) article titled: "End of the Road" about how the recent economic downturn is threatening to spark another round of immigration from the Emerald Isle. It's an interesting piece, but what struck me was a paragraph about a third of the way through that talked about how new technologies like Skype and Facebook are helping young people to pack up and leave.

Traditionally bonds of family and culture have been powerful forces in keeping would-be immigrants at home, or at least in bringing them back home. But now, thanks to communication technologies like Skype and virtual communities like Facebook, people who leave their villages, according to the Guardian, are finding they're able to feel like they are still part of their community back home. In fact, one soon-to-be immigrant in the Guardian article suggests that traditional networks of friends now active on Facebook are actually helping to lure people away from Ireland.

It’s another interesting example of how the new technologies are shaping our world in unexpected ways.