Burnham: New Rhetoric, Same Attacks on Migrants
David Santos (London)
Andy Burnham has sought to show a change in policy in many areas since becoming prime minister, but the nationalistic and racist attack on migrants is one area of Labour policy that Burnham seems committed to seeing through. In the cabinet reshuffle, Shabana Mahmood, who led the latest racist immigration policy under Starmer, was one of the few ministers to keep her role. Burnham and Mahmood turn to social media to make regular boasts about ‘stopping boats’, carrying out immigration raids, and deporting people, branding these activities as ‘cracking down on gangs’, and ‘removing illegal migrants’. This sick, depraved rhetoric is pouring fuel on the fire of racism and division in Britain.
Optics and Statistics Strip Away Humanity
Perceiving the electoral threat in the surge to the right, the Labour government is desperately trying to prove itself through optics and statistics. ‘Over 80,000’ deportations; ‘crossings down by half’; ‘record numbers of raids’; these were some of the boasts made by Mahmood in a TikTok video on 7th September. The government’s new measures were even found to be unlawful in the courts, after they sought to deny asylum seekers to make appeals on human trafficking claims. The government’s policy is absolute dehumanisation, seeking to strip all dignity from people to exploit them as statistics to satisfy the racist thirst in the media.
Reality Is Another Story
The human reality is, of course, a world away from the story told by the media and Labour government. Families seek a safe place to raise their children. Young people seek a chance to study and develop themselves, or to escape war, drought or persecution. Each person entering the asylum or immigration system in this country has their own story, aspirations and passions, and cannot be reduced to the narrative presented by the far-right and their accomplices in the Labour Party.
The Ugly Head of a Movement
Yet the ugly results of government narrative and policy are becoming ever more extreme. After the riots and pogroms of the last couple of years, this September we saw highly organised groups of hundreds blocking major infrastructure in Dover. The following day, people again sought to block roads to prevent the entry of people rescued at sea. The government might condemn these movements when they grow the confidence to disobey the police, but they are absolutely aligned when it comes to the attack on migrants. The black-clad protestors are merely the most developed expression of a sentiment taking deep root across the country.
No One Is Illegal!
Our response cannot be limited to warm words about shared humanity and human rights. Migration is the direct and foreseeable consequence of an imperialist system that drives war, impoverishment and climate breakdown, forcing people out of their homes. And whilst the government and media have succeeded in creating the illusion that migration is a threat to workers, the reality is a world away. Division in the working class ensures the rich keep getting richer whilst the poor get poorer. Migrants’ struggles have always been part of working-class struggles; in fact, they have been some of the most important. The workers’ movement should not just have to support refugees as ‘helpless victims’, or make specific claims for some migrants because of their ‘contribution to the country’. We need to undermine the current trend with an unapologetic defence of a policy of no borders, for full rights for all immigrants, and for class solidarity against the ruthless attempts to divide us!
Kick Hate Out
The ISL and Rebuild4Palestine organised a 5-a-side football tournament in Liverpool on 22nd August with ten diverse teams from across Merseyside. The idea to combine a political campaign and cultural event came from discussions at a Sudanese Iftar about building connections across communities to overcome experiences of exclusion and racism.
Liverpool is famous for its love of football, football clubs and the football anthem ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone,’ so the idea of holding a ‘Kick Out Hate’ tournament was a ‘no-brainer.’
More than 100 people joined from diverse communities, making it a fantastic day, especially for the winning team, also helped by the clement weather! There was naturally a lot of passion with fiercely competitive football, but friendly and engaging contact off the pitch where many issues were raised and discussed, not to mention the offside rule!
Together people discussed their concerns about visa refusals to Sudanese students, work-place problems, racism commonly experienced by immigrant taxi-drivers, and alienation faced by many women.
Lesson from day: football is an equaliser – focussed on football nevertheless united in resolve to oppose racism and oppression, recognising most problems affect us all: an injury to one is an injury to all.
Uniting communities culturally is crucial to building the fight against oppression and the growth of the far-right. The ISL and Rebuild4Palestine are committed to building on the day – we are all one working class. The tournament was made possible with support and funding from the Tranmere Rovers over-40s, trade union branches, and community groups in Liverpool.