Are people that want zero immigration racist?

[equalstime]

People that moan about migrants coming to this county - taking our jobs - taking our houses - draining the medical system - not settling in the first country they reach for asylum- they're racist right?

There will always be an element of migration and when you take account of UK born people that leave and non Uk people that enter our country, the net figure is no doubt reasonable. They are often willing to work and contribute to our society and economy - so why the hostility?

Why not accept as a country that we have en element of migration and embrace that, if not because your views are racist?

It doesn't matter how long anyone has been living here. I myself came with my family from an Asian country 8 years ago and was given housing due to having a young family. That is what mattered, not what race anyone is and rightly so. Of course I would like everyone to be given housing, but there needs to be a priority list as some people/families have a more pressing need than others for accommodation. I would support a family of immigrants particularly when children are involved to be prioritised over someone even if they were living here for 1000 years. The time someone has been here is irrelevant in assessing priority.

@woodhill Ever heard of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?

In relation to what?

@IWishItWasChristmas in that case how would you feel if a bigger family than yours arrived in this country and you were told to leave your home as they needed it more?

I'm sorry

It wasn't the right comparison

But I think your expectations are ridiculous

I'm certainly not thick

I've never heard of anyone who wants zero immigration.

As for people who want less immigration, why would they need to be racist? If they don't want immigration because they don't like people of other races, that's racist.

There are lots of reasons people think immigration should be limited. Social cohesion, material infrastructure, the economic effects (which means a lot of things, not just people taking jobs, it also includes things like how it affects training schemes, or unionization), the environmental impact of more people, the ethics of using people trained at the cost of citizens of other countries, the ethics of draining the most talented people from other places which are often in real need of them, etc.

None of those are racist concerns, whether you agree with them or not. It's a bizarre claim that they are.

I think some areas are breaking under the resources being strained. Kent being one. School, NHS. Etc To say people shouldn't complain but welcome it when you're not faced with it daily is something you aren't entitled to do really.

Agreed

Xenophobia rather than racism... immigrants can be white too.

I've got no problem with asylum seekers or people coming on work visa etc but not with people arriving in a dinghy from a safe country. But saying that my argument is with the government who have allowed this to happen . Can't blame them for seeing an opportunity and going for it . If I was them I would too if I thought I would get a more prosperous life .

www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/western-australia-plans-to-steal-31000-british-workers-to-fill-job-vacancies/news-story/81293d04bdea50a8a3d028173b1b0578?amp

Next month Australian representatives are coming to the UK to recruit 31k employees, doctors, nurses, police officer etc. The UK government have objected. But there's nothing to stop them recruiting from abroad.

And white immigrants can also be victims of racism, ethno-religious groups for instance.

The idea that people can just go to any country they want and expect to partake in the social welfare system, with no controls, is completely crazy.

NO developed countries do that. The only places where you can go with no restrictions have no social services on the public dime. If you want to move to any country in Europe, any western country like Canada, Australia, Norway, or developed countries in other places like Japan, or even many other countries with fewer social supports - you need to show you have skills they need, or pay your own way, or make a valid claim as a refugee. Many of those places are more strict than the UK.

Once countries have accepted people they generally give them the same priority as others for things like housing, but that is totally predicated on them being accepted in the first place, which is what people argue about. The immigration management is meant to account for the need to offer things like housing to all. They should not be accepting people if they can't house the people who are already here, or offer them doctors.

That's the point of being a citizen or having permanent residency status - you have access to all or most of the rights of the citizen, and the state has certain responsibilities towards you. You also have certain obligations to the state. Welfare states can't function with completely open borders.

And this is what people who advocate open borders need to be aware of - the welfare state that they are often very keen on will disappear under that kind of pressure, both the economic and social pressures. You might not like that truth, but that's the trade-off.

My parents where immigrants this motte and baily approach to immigration (ie: zero immigration) is not useful, essentially the issue that is happening across the world at the moment is thus

The neoliberal solution to the declining birthrate purposefully engineered by neoliberalism; bring in immigrants to increase population.
The neoliberal solution to people complaining about this; call them nazis.

I’m pretty sure Spain and France are fucked off with the amount of incomers buying up property and changing cute towns into dead holiday home zones, pricing out locals or ghastly tourist traps.
I get hacked off with the amount of Londoners migrating to my town. They complain about everything, don’t respect that being a bit backward/ different is what makes it attractive and not like London.

@DemiColon Can you point to any post on this thread that's actually advocated for "completely open borders...no controls"?

I’m sure there are cases like this. People moving do tend to be motivated

Although now U.K. is out of EU it has to define what immigration means. Countries like Australia (because I know it better) has pretty harsh restrictions on who can move there. Money in accounts and skills. And tough on boats.

Not sure U.K. is ready for all that but without FOM nor controls we’re in a bad middle zone where many feel disgruntled