Crowdfund Thread
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If they could raise $5K, which is their target amount, they could, in theory, live in Spain for a long time. Using it to get to the US might screw them - trapping them in a country where they lack the necessary citizenship to function. The US is NOT a welcoming country, in general. I hope no one has told them that this is a good idea.
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@Mike-Ralston said:
@scottalanmiller Everyone at this point is freaking out to a massive degree, I'm trying to be the voice of reason here, it's not working.
How do you know them? What city!?!? At least what region / state?
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Get them to Germany where there is massive welfare, moderate numbers of jobs and they are already clear to work and don't even need a passport. I've got good friends who just hitchhiked across France with no jobs, no money and did just fine. Like five days ago.
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@scottalanmiller He's closest to Magala(?)
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And it isn't like I don't have connections in the capital. I could really find things out if I had more info.
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@Mike-Ralston said:
@scottalanmiller He's closest to Magala(?)
LOL. Will be in Malaga in four hours. Taking @ryanov to the airport there shortly. Was just there. Got friends arriving there later this morning. They are one province over from me, still in the same state.
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Are they from there? Tell them I am in La Alpujarra, in Granada province.
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Andalucia, which Malaga is in, is the poorest part of the Spain - the hardest hit from the financial crunch. But also the cheapest to live in. Money goes FAR here. Malaga is on the Costa del Sol, the world famous stretch of resorts on Europe's best beaches. It's the largest city of the region and the provincial capital.
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@scottalanmiller it's just the nearest place with an airport I guess
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@Mike-Ralston said:
@scottalanmiller it's just the nearest place with an airport I guess
It's the only airport that could get you to the US from southern Spain. That's why we are there every few days. I'll be there again Monday and again Wednesday.
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The biggest issue is.... without a degree from an accredited university, the US won't consider them. You can't just show up in the US and try to work. That's what people border jumping from Mexico do and you know how well that goes. They'd never make minimum wage and would eventually get caught and deported. Once that happens, they would really be screwed. Then the EU would never help them either, I suspect.
But they are legal to work in Germany, France, Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium, England, Ireland, etc. all without any paperwork (but a passport needed for UK and Ireland, but that is just $25.) All of those places they could be working in right now.
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That they are Spanish speakers and, I presume, can't hide it, they will be taken for illegal Mexicans (instead of illegal Spaniards) in the US and the abuse will be extreme. There is a reason why Spaniards never consider the US as an emigration destination while Brits, Germans and others do. Racism is a major factor in the US and they would be in the worst possible demographic situation on top of their other problems.
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@scottalanmiller One of them is extremely fluent in English, but that's it.
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@Mike-Ralston said:
@scottalanmiller One of them is extremely fluent in English, but that's it.
Fluent is great, but they have to also be able to hide that Spanish is their native tongue. That's hard. If they are fluent in English AND speak Spanish they can work anywhere in Spain, literally. English speaking is the top skill sought in Spain today. Read anything about Spain and they talk about it. The one that speaks English could find work in a day, anywhere if they are fluent.
English speaking will get you work far faster than a PdD with a 4.0. Not $100K work, but easily pay the bills work.
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I have to get to bed as I have to be up in four hours to get to Malaga. But this really should not be the big deal that it is being made out to be. I realize when you are homeless and clueless and don't know how passports, visas and other things work that you are pretty screwed - and I'm rescuing people in a similar boat in a few hours, actually. But they need to understand that if they have English they Can work in Spain, they have the one skill the guarantees work.
They need to understand the Europe has jobs, even if Spain does not (but it does) and that they are legally allowed to do any of them. They need to know that Europe is far more accepting of LGBT than anywhere else. If they don't like it there, they are in tough shape.
They need to understand that getting to the US is going to be a barrier, but nothing compared to coming to the western world's least accepting nation and country with the fewest social systems. And that leaving the EU, which is bigger than the US and has just as many jobs to go to a small country where they can't work, can't get assistance and can't stay over 90 days is suicide.
They also need to understand that the US is dangerous. Dangerous to a degree that no Spaniard would understand. Spain is safe, like Iowa safe. The most dangerous parts of Spain are pretty safe. The US is much scarier than Europe in general and Spain is safe even by European standards. They are in for a safety shock.
Weather will be an issue too. Living outside in Spain is nice. In the US, not so likely.
These are the things that they need to work with. The delusion that the US is a panacea for the woes of Europe could literally get them killed if they are not careful.
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@scottalanmiller Thank you soooooooooooooo much. We're making amends to this ASAP
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Now if they had jobs lined up in a Spanish colony, like Mexico or Argentina, that would make more sense. I could see that. No idea what Spain to Argentina immigration is like, but I imagine it works well. There are lots of LATAM countries not doing too badly. Not great, but there are jobs. But only the EU is beholden to take care of him currently as he is an EU citizen. He needs to leverage that. The EU is there for him, everyone else he has to convince to take care of him.
You want to emigrate from a position of strength, stay put in a position of weakness.
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So my first starting point suggestions are:
- Pursue the passport, don't let England and Ireland be lost as options. Tons of Spaniards fine work in the UK.
- Go to Malaga or Mabella and look for English speaking work. These are big resort cities that cater to English speakers. They are beside each other.
- Look for work teaching English in Spain. This is HUGE. I know that Madrid is loaded with these jobs and AFAIK is one of the most accepting cities in Europe.
- Get to a wealthy EU country (Germany is best) and find crap work doing what Germans don't want to do, like picking grapes along the Rhine.
- Try to find work waiting tables in the UK.
- Look into college options. Germany will likely pay for him to attend college. Yes, Europe does this.
- Look for work on a farm in the north. I know my friends were able to do this in the Netherlands no problem. YOu work the farm and get room and board (no money.) This is very common in Europe. If they start hitchhiking they could pretty easily turn being homeless into being travelers.
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I'll have my friends in Malaga in the morning who have been in Europe for months with basically no money. They were in the UK, then France, Belgium and the Netherlands right now and will be in Spain living with us by tomorrow. They will have some ideas, I am sure, about what to do living cheaply around Europe.
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Oh, another thought, there is a huge hippie commune in Órgiva. Hitchhike there. Lots of people with no money and they all seem to do well there.
