This sort of attitude is of the typical Brit today. Someone who will work hard, but ultimately suffers from a superiority complex where they think their country is far better than most. It's easy to see why - who wouldn't think that their country is pretty great when it was once the greatest empire in the world? Who wouldn't be proud of the Olympics and the creation of the Commonwealth Games? Who wouldn't be proud of our once booming industry which made us a superpower in the way China is today?
The problem is, the UK (or as it's better known, Britain) is no longer a superpower, yet the people believe they are. Americans suffer from this same superiority complex, one that makes the people unwelcoming to immigrants unless they are of a certain background, quite like the UK. The typical Brit wouldn't bat an eyelid at an American or French immigrant, but as soon as you introduce a Romanian things turn sour. The same can be said across the pond. US citizens seem to welcome Canadians from the north, but Mexicans from the south make people squirm.
In other words, Brits and Americans are welcoming to those like them - prosperous nations who's people will obviously be hard working as they are from successful countries. These people will be labelled interesting, charming, hard working and cultured. On the other hand, those who are not like them and come from less successful/less developed countries will be labelled far more critically: lazy, devious, sinister, job snatchers. There's a reason why people from the USA and Australia aren't jumping fences at Calais.
They don't have to.
In other words, although it would be ideal for people from first world countries to go elsewhere, at the end of the day they live in a decent country where things are moderately stable. You wouldn't be sprinting up the Eurotunnel if you had a cushy job in Melbourne or if you were watching cable TV from your home in California. The people who are trying to enter Britain aren't doing it because they want to make some quick dosh, they're doing it to survive whether that be economically or literally.
Yet many Brits will believe this mass hysteria about immigrants and believe all the misconceptions about them. These non-stories spurred up by the likes of the Daily Mail and The Sun cause panic in society. The newspaper says it's scary, so it must be. More or less, they achieve what they wanted - to separate human beings from each other by giving them a label: "immigrants".
A few facts to those who are outraged at these immigrants who are trying to enter the UK illegally:
2. Those illegal immigrants who get a job will be paid cash in hand as they have no legal ID to open a bank account. Therefore whoever is employing them is the one who is a) Not legally employing and b) Taking jobs away from people who are unemployed natives. Immigrants aren't the ones who take the jobs away.
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3. Illegal immigrants pay taxes if they ever buy a product whilst they're in the UK. In other words, unless an illegal immigrant is some kind of scary mutant immigrant who doesn't eat, drink or use deodorant, then they contribute to society.
4. Illegal immigrants can have all the children in the world whilst in the UK and still get deported with their children, despite the fact they were born here.
5. Those from poor backgrounds with poor education will find it near impossible to get permanent residence in the UK. This may be an obvious point, but it seems ludicrous to expect someone from Rwanda to have the same opportunity as someone from Japan. Pretty much from the day they are born, they are already the underdog. Even a smart child will struggle in education if their nation's education system is struggling.
Also, if you play under a capitalist model, do not complain when those less fortunate turn up. Everything from your shoes to your bananas are under priced at the expense of the poor in third world areas. Don't complain when the woman who makes your new Nike Airs wants to come into the country.
The old phrase "Divide and Conquer" is exactly what these tabloids achieve. To those who are anti-immigration, these immigrants are not people. They are figures, they are a different species. We are the Gazelle and they are the Lion, waiting to pounce on us when our back is turned. The fact that they come from hardship is too convenient an argument for them. To put it simply, they do not trust people from their own nation.
What they don't see is Adrian leaving his family in Burkina Faso to try and achieve the dream of providing consistently for his wife and kids. They don't see Christian donning his Man Utd top and watching the match with his friends. They don't see Martha's escape from persecution in Syria. They don't see Genzebe helping out her neighbours so that they can all live another day. As soon as you humanise an immigrant legal or not, you realise that they are just people. Like me and you. They laugh, they cry, they experience euphoria, but also deep sadness. The sooner that people get closer to reality and realise this, the sooner we can become a more accepting society.
Don't look at these people trying to "break in" to the UK as villains, they simply want a better life. Some of us are lucky that we at least get the bare essentials, don't stop others from living an equal life.
Don't allow paranoia, selfishness and misinformation to run riot. Instead, be human. Be compassionate. Be generous. Be loving. Be caring. Be supportive. Be thoughtful. If the Bible taught us one thing, it was to Love Thy Neighbour. Surely we can all do that?
Feedback is welcome, please comment below with your opinions.
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