Britain’s vote to leave the European Union has been met with surprise, especially from the majority of Millennials who voted to stay within the E.U. However, many are noticing the racist and xenophobic influences that were pushing for the separation.
One of the merits of the separation from the E.U. is that as an individual, the U.K. be bestowed the ability to somewhat control immigration, instead of having an overseeing, omnipresent institution that would’ve controlled it.
To see how racism might’ve played a role in the separation, one just needs to observe the evidence of bigotry stemming from intolerant attitudes in Britain before and after the separation.
Evidence Of Racism
Not only were young Britons scurrying onto Google to understand what the Brexit stood for, but Google Trends also shows a spike of troubling keyword searches on the day that the votes were tallied.
Search terms like “Brexit xenophobia” spiked, with many people on and offline suggesting that racism might’ve been linked to the separation.
Some of those who have supported the separation have shown past behavior that is the textbook definition of racism. Nigel Farage is one of the masterminds behind the United Kingdom Independence Party. Farage has used the N-word before, and has openly admitted to using a racist term to describe Chinese restaurants.
Boris Johnson, the former mayor of London, was accused of racism after calling Barack Obama “half Kenyan” – as if his racial identity has anything to do with his policies.
Johnson was for the separation of Britain and the E.U.
Xenophobia Comes Into Play
It is also worth noting that there is a power-play that is beyond just racial intolerance. One of the key principles of the E.U. is that it allowed those within the E.U. states to move freely.
Next to racism, xenophobia among those who may look similar, but have different cultural identities also fueled the separation, with common monikers like the “polish plumber” being a common stereotypical theme.
Incidents of Racism After Brexit
There has been a spike of racist acts immediately after the referendum, with incidents of racist graffiti saying “no more Polish vermin” scribbled onto public spaces, for example. Another example is the incident of a white man in a market quizzing those in line about their immigration status and racial identity, and telling immigrants that they have 48 hours to leave.
The evidence shows racism and bigotry fueled the separation between Britain and the E.U., with even more evidence showing emboldened racists feeling like it’s appropriate to attack people in public.
What do you think is going to happen from here on out with Britain and its multicultural citizens?
Featured image by Daniel Lobo on Flickr. Available under an Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
