Some comments on social media around migrants are so vile – I’m venting in a take down of the top anti migrant ‘gotchas’… God help me.
1. We need security checks!/people in the asylum system are criminals, drug dealers, terrorists, blah blah
The asylum system takes years. You the think government aren’t doing background checks in that time? WTF they doing? And your typical drug dealer or terrorist doesn’t merrily cross by small boat, march up to authorities and intro themselves. Statistically- they’re born here, we make our own.
2. We want border controls!
By having no safe routes you inevitably have irregular ones. You want border controls then have safe routes. Otherwise the ‘Border controls’ translate to border closure which is ineffective – coz you can’t close borders, circle back to small boats…
3. FiRsT sAfE CoUnTrY!!
Still this? Really? Most people stay near their home, and many more stay in France than travel to the UK. But why should France take the UK’s share of people forced to flee? Cue wonderful @ZoeJardiniere & @JCWI_UK
4. What about our homeless, healthcare, schools?
You think if there are no migrants we wouldn’t have any homelessness? Homelessness is about trauma, poverty & capitalism.
Without migrants our healthcare & other public services would cease to operate entirely.
5. You’d soon moan if you had them living next to you!
I was born in London where everyone’s from somewhere and it’s so much more beautiful because of it. Like most cities it was built on migration. Trust me on this. There’s only one type of people I’d hate to live next door to…
6. Well OK just open the borders and see us inundated!!
Firstly, I’ve never said that, nor seen any migrants rights advocate say it.
Process asylum claims – decision making has halved & that’s unacceptable & hugely expensive to us, deeply traumatic to the humans impacted.
But OK, open the borders. Most people want to stay as near to their home as possible – every single stat demonstrates that, including contextually modest numbers from Ukraine despite a visa system.
Believe it or not, not everyone wants to live here. Ask the ‘expat’ migrants…
Maybe that’ll help us consider deconstructing the colonial legacy we’ve inflicted on the world & help make peoples home country what they would have been had we not done that shit.
Or make us lead a genuine global effort to address the need for regular safe migration routes
7. They’re just ‘economic migrants’.
Yeah, £9 a week, no entitlement to state benefits. Great economic plan that. And also – they’re not doing anything wrong by wanting to work here legally & pay their tax. It’s the non doms you wanna watch…
8. I’ve got no problem with ‘legal migrants’… it’s the illegals!!
Honestly this has been done to death.
if you don’t believe us that regularised routes are closed unless you’re v v rich have a look at this TORY MP getting crickets from Braverman on it 👇
9. Migrants are a net cost to us
No, they’re not. It’s true some Refugees struggle to access work after YEARS of inflicted worklessness & poor access to ESOL. But see https://migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk/resources/briefings/the-fiscal-impact-of-immigration-in-the-uk/
P.S. You don’t use evidence of racism in the labour market to prove an absence of racism
And also be sure to factor in paying over £5M a day in hotels, multiplied significantly by immigration detention costs, private housing providers profiteering, failed Rwanda deals and a failing asylum decision-making function. When those folk could be paying tax…
10. They’re all Albanian men.
Firstly, no, they’re not. Here are some facts👇
Secondly, Albania – yeah, it’s not so safe: trafficking, exploitation, blood feuds, Gypsy, Roma and Traveller persecution…
Thirdly – men are forced to flee conscription & other gendered protection needs in some countries & for others often men will travel alone as it’s so dangerous & they naively think they can apply to reunite with their family as a way of getting their partner & kids safe.
11. Veterans! I forgot the ‘what about our veterans?’.
There are very few UK veterans who aren’t eligible for assistance from government and some of the wonderful charities in this space.
Also learn about the Irish, Indian, Caribbean people and other countries that fought for the UK.
12.Child abuse.
Thought hard about including this because it’s so f*cking offensive and such a racist trope. But… go and learn about child abuse – in children’s homes, football clubs, churches, schools, musicians, broadcasters, in our colonial history. We export child abuse.
I’m sure to have forgotten some. But when you strip back to the facts there’s no hiding that all these horrible myths being perpetuated by our politics are centred around far right extremist ideology. Let’s just have some honesty about that.
13 How many do you have living in your house?!
How could I forget that one?!
Honestly – none. Sadly, I can’t host myself, so instead I spend time supporting others that do. Thousands of beautiful people host and hundreds of wonderful charities support them.
