Why are we allowing the US to call illegal immigrants “illegal aliens”?

[KimGym]

I find this absolutely sickening!!!! It’s a disgraceful term to use and I feel as though if the US are going to use this disgusting terminology, it should at the very least, be censored in other countries. It is so disrespectful and dehumanising. It’s this sort of language that leads people (hopefully only those who have lacked a basic education) to deem immigrants to be sub human, and paves the way for public acceptance of them being treated in a sub human manner. AIBU to think this is totally abhorrant?

But also the US is built on immigration- immigrant may be a proud word as many in the US are proud of their ethnic background

and words do matter , they do influence emotion , OP is accurate there , alien is a much more negative word especially in the states than immigrant

Wow.

I must be in the minority, but in 2026, I believe we are better than this. Yes, the terms origins may not have been offensive, and it may be the legal term in the US, but the term immigrant, is a derivative of the verb “immigrate”, and much more appropriate. The connotations of the word alien are clearly unpleasant, regardless of whether these are connected to the words other meaning (beings from outer space). It has no linkage to the verb etc. It is extremely “othering” and dehumanising in my opinion, and is easily weaponised by this current racist US government. I believe we should do better!

Of all the things wrong with the USA right now, this is pretty small beer let’s be honest…

Quite shocked to see that people believe that, because a word has always been used, it’s fine to continue its use. What about being progressive?

Maybe this “othering” term has been influential in the fact so many American citizens are content with ICE’s treatment of these individuals???

ICE gangs are knocking on doors and hauling out people based on looks and your focused on the term used? Currently 75 countries are being denied entry to the US, all black and or Muslim countries.
There’s a lot going on there, the language used (how about “low intelligence” people) is the least of your worries.

We don’t need to do better. We don’t use the term.

I'm not sure we are allowing them to do anything, but by the same token can't control what language 340m people in another country use.

But it lays the foundations for these people to be treated as lesser beings! Which is what the US is experiencing right now. Maybe a more respectful term would help citizens to see these individuals as people and humans, who should be treated as such?

There is nothing dehumanising about alien, it just means not from here.

This may be an alien concept to you, but your perception of words separate from their actual meaning carries no weight for anyone but you.
Alien is no better or worse than immigrant or foreigner.

You’ve assumed I mean “we” to refer to the people in the U.K. I mean we, as humans, should do better than to deem this term acceptable.

This is very subjective, and your opinion, others may not have an issue.

Native American’s used to be referred to as “Red Indians” and now I believe American’s (and the rest of the world) use Native American(s) so there can be change.

Firstly we don't get to "allow" them to do anything or not.

Secondly, we really have very little in common with the US anymore and our shared language and vague/ distant shared history is all there is, culturally we are so very different and if it wasn't for our shared language we would all take the blinkers off and see The US for what it is, a religiously fundamentalist country with more traits in common with Iran than with the UK, just a different sky fairy.

And even our shared language has diverged massively now, and 'alien' is just an example of that.

'Sem i' annoys me far more than 'alien' it's like fingernails on a blackboard!!!

I also don’t like the term, and agree that illegal immigrant is more appropriate. But I think they are choosing to say “alien” purely because of the nuance. Let’s not censor anything coming from America as it will be harder to know the truth that way.

The vast majority of us humans don’t believe that there is anything wrong with the term. Nothing “better” needs to be done.

Mumsnet should ban the term and delete posts using it.

It just means a foreigner, someone from somewhere else. It's the illegal bit that grates, no one has proved these aliens are illegal it is just assumed. And a lot of the people being targeted were actually born in the US so the alien part is debateable as well.

I realise I’m in the minority on this thread (ironically!) but I agree with you, OP. It’s an awful way to describe human beings, illegal or not, and just because they’ve used it for years and millions use it, it doesn’t make it right.

You’re being ridiculous.

Thank you @Teanbiscuits33. Just think of where the world would be if we hadn’t moved on from some other terms that were at one point, common place.

‘Progressive’?

Deary me. I find the gender ideology exported from the universities of the USA’s eastern seaboard really bloody ‘othering’ actually, and I find that that interferes with my human rights, and I further think that that ‘progressive’ madness did a huge amount to keep Kamala Harris out of the White House and let Trump and his ICE black shirts run loose.

I’m not a fan of ‘progressive’ propaganda. I’m more of a Marxist materialist socialist, truth be told. The use of Latin etymology is the least of our problems right now.

It's dehumanising in the actual sense of the word 😜
And it's not just OP, it's basic human decency to not refer to illegal immigrant as aliens, at least not in the UK. Aliens has threatening connotations in part due to crap US film exports. But some people may not comprehend these things I suppose.

Alien is no better or worse than immigrant or foreigner. You're wrong about that. imo.

**

I think your idea of progressive is different to mine. I believe we should make progress in how we act and behave. I believe we should always strive to be more respectful to others, from all walks of life.

My views on the trans debate are very much my own, but I do believe biology and science are critical and can’t be ignored. I don’t believe that everything that claims to be “progressive” truly is.