Anti immigration and England being 'racist'

[AngryBird6122]

Do people know that this is not just a UK thing? I see so many people saying they are ashamed to be british etc but this is happening the world over. And it can work both ways! I have close family in Japan and there are protests there too and they are being treated very differently - yes, white english! The right are gaining traction there too. Are the Japanese allowed to be proud of their country and fly their flags? What's people's thoughts on this?

I mean, you're welcome to counter my argument....🤷‍♀️

I agree. Ironically, if any ‘foreign’ culture has influenced our own over the past century, I’d say it’s that of the United States, but nobody seems to feel threatened by that.

Not being funny but Farridge seems like a Nartzi himself, but also with a forrin name like that he should deport himself xx

An older chap I used to know said we’re quite simple minded beings, and haven’t evolved as much as we’d think. We instantly see other humans who look like ourselves as safe, anyone who looks different to us is unknown. Even though both are people unknown. He gave an example of his own child at a wedding being a bridesmaid, the child was dark haired and had olive skin, there was a bridesmaid with dark hair and a olive tone and a bridesmaid that was red haired with pale skin. Neither bridesmaid was known to the child but the child instantly went to the one who resembled her, and took a dislike to the other bridesmaid that didn’t.
Unless we’re exposed and mix a lot from an early age it’s difficult to break that psychological factor. It isn’t just on race either of course, it includes disability.

The mad thing is we’re all humans on the same lump of rock hurtling around in an unknown universe and yet we can’t just simply get on.

I just don’t see English as negative or exclusionary. Maybe it’s what we have around us. How we view our culture is probably quite fluid and based on interactions we have.

I’m not saying you are wrong in your experience just that I don’t relate to it, English is more positive for me.

I love a good bit of fact learnin. 👍🏻

So what do you see as the positive aspects of English (as opposed to British or regional) culture?

Lots of towns and villages in England have their own traditions. Cheese rolling in Gloucestershire, Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival in Cambridgeshire, Dickens Festival Rochester, Hocktide in Wiltshire plus many more. A lot of them have historical roots.

I'm always amazed that people think we English don't have any customs or traditions. You'll also find that as well as local traditions there will be the more widespread ones like Morris Dancing and Maypole dancing. These last two seemed to be less common in recent years but glad they are now becoming more popular.

No, you didn't, and I should have said that. However quite a lot of people who are anti immigration and don't like sharing their world with a range of religions and cultures often imply that they think British traditions are under threat, hence the stuff about, for example, not being allowed to celebrate Christmas because "we're being taken over by the Muslims".

All the “very puzzled as to what British culture is” people don’t appear to have been to non British cultures, so think that everything in Britain is actually a worldwide norm. I think they think that everyone all over the world is living the same life. Bizarre.

I think you underestimate people. Of course they realise it goes on and I for one don’t want us to become the same. Why would you assume people don’t understand what goes on in the world? Most people have a wider lens - perhaps this is something you’ve discovered recently.

Why the sarcasm?

It tickled my funny bone! I hope it didn’t offend you. But never mind, aye. We all love a bit of profiling of White Supremacists of a Wednesday lunchtime.

I think there have been more people asking what English, as opposed to British, culture is. But yours is still a valid question. What would you say is specific to British culture, having travelled?

(I have also lived abroad and I have my own list, but I'll let you go first).

I sit in the middle. I’m an Indian woman living in England, moved here since I was 1. Experienced racism, as in actually had bottles thrown at me and my family with the p word shouted at us. I know racism towards ethnic minorities exists. At the same time I also see why the English feel threatened and want to preserve their culture. Same with regard to Japan and any other country. When I talk to people out and about, those who want to engage of course, we have a nice chat. Online is a different story. There are a lot of hateful comments and I am sure not all of them are bots. I am worried for the future.

I’ve also learned to separate civic nationalists or patriots from ethno nationalists. The latter definitely want me gone!

Not offended, just found it a strange response. But I think I know now why you responded in the way you did...

I’m not interested in writing a list, I’m sorry. Do go ahead, though.

That's fair. I mean, you could argue that these are specifically regional rather than universally English, but that's a moot point.

We'll have to be on our guard for hordes of enraged Muslims trying to rush the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance then. They won't be liking any of that. Let alone the cheese rolling.

OK, I'll just assume you don't know what you're talking about.

The cultural differences I have noticed between Britain and the other countries I've lived/ travelled in:

We use washing up bowls, rather than just washing dishes in the sink. Inexplicable to most cultures.

We never had in tram/ bus validation of tickets.

Pubs- pretty much unique.

Far more of a snacking culture on trains 🙄

The ubiquity of public footpaths.

These are the only differences I can think of that make Britain uniquely different to anywhere else.

I wanted to give a smiley react as I am there too and….wooooboy!

Why just the English? Does racism not exist in the rest of the UK and NI?

I think everyone is getting confused and labelling ALL involved in flying the England as racists. How incredibly reductionist and blinkered. Racism is perpetrated by people of all ethnicities, however when acts of violence or discrimination are perpetrated by a person within the Global Majority against a White person it is rarely acknowledged and certainly doesn’t invoke the kind of outrage seen when reversed. There are undoubtedly issues in the UK with migration, in terms of criminal behaviour (especially towards white women), sustainability and cultural changes that directly conflict with UK law There are also areas of the UK where some of the first / second / third generation migrant Muslim population demand absolute tolerance of their beliefs whilst showing zero tolerance for the religions or beliefs held by the native population of the UK.
There are issues with housing, taxation, policing and free speech. Tolerance has to work both ways by the majority of each ‘culture’ to prevent disharmony and radicalization. Many of the people flying England flags simply have no other way of expressing the how they feel towards things like the rapid increase in assaults on women, or Christian street preachers being arrested whilst the Muslim call to prayer is loudly played every day. We are well aware that there are huge social issues with the native population which need addressing, but how will we ever address these problems now? Demonising people for wanting the freedom to be proud of their country is entirely ineffective - rage builds in the persecuted group whilst the opposing group are emboldened. Of course there will be racists within the protests, just as there will be racists within the BLM or Palestine marches. It’s exhausting to watch all the virtue signalling / cognitive dissonance on social media by white people who will happily support anyone who calls a white person racist but are terrified of acknowledging racist acts perpetrated by any GM person. This in itself is racist - judge people on their actions and words, not skin colour, which includes misplaced sympathy. I see so many people who are racist without even knowing it - for example making allowances / justifying harms due to the upbringing and backgrounds of people of colour whilst ridiculing and mocking white people who have grown up in areas of deprivation that make a spelling mistake; are people of lesser education of less value? Should we punish these ‘lower’ white people for their social determiners? Are their feelings, beliefs, views etc invalid because they write ‘are’ instead of ‘our’?. It’s absolutely vile to observe and honestly incredibly weak; repeating a narrative that is safe because you can’t be called a racist whilst ignoring truths or experiences that don’t fit, isn’t brave or virtuous, it is cowardly, naive and biased.

Yep it’s a combination of model minority status and it being ethnically homogeneous while being technologically advanced, closed to outsiders and incredibly patriarchal - the White Nationalist dream.

It’s why they are also obsessed with Japan’s low birth rate.

Christian street preachers being arrested whilst the Muslim call to prayer is loudly played every day.

The equivalent of muslim call to prayer is church bells not street preachers.