Quote of the Day - Rick Barter (a Naturalised Brit's Brexit Remarks)

This one is actually on my facebook page from an American who is now a naturalised Brit living in the UK (and runs my local bookshop). It concerns Brexit, the loss of EU citizens in the wake of the racist outbursts, and was in answer to a great CNN article about the brain drain and academic loss that Brexit has commenced.

Sorry, but the immigrant (c'est moi!) needs to weigh in on this. I *chose* to be British, and I *chose* to be European. Part of my chosen identity was taken away by the vote. Which I accept -- but 48-52 is hardly a sweeping mandate btw. On the legal side, my view is crystal clear that we need either a vote on whatever the ultimate "deal" with Brussels turns out to be -- or we need a general election to give a government a mandate to negotiate terms they set out in their manifesto. The Tories (along with all of the other major and nationalist parties save UKIP) did not include leaving Europe in their last manifesto. And, for what it's worth, two of the four nations that make up the UK voted against Brexit, along with London and Gibraltar. That said, it's where we are. Now, as to the other point: Yes, there has always been racism in the UK, as there is sadly everywhere. But something has changed because of Brexit. The racism and xenophobia is noticeably more open now, as if it has somehow been made almost acceptable -- not unlike the effect the Trump campaign has had in America. I have not spoken to any other non-native-born Britons (like myself), nor foreigners resident here, who do not feel the same. Not one. So, if the article is trying to realistically portray the attitudes of that community, I think he gets it spot on I laughed in recognition when the article described the man who can hide his "difference" by simply keeping his mouth shut. One of the advantages of my ex-husband (and there weren't many! LOL) was that I could (and often did) use him as a "buffer" if I felt my being foreign (which, I repeat, I'm not) was going to cause difficulties in a particular situation. As to the "see, the sky has not fallen" argument that one hears post-referendum, that's because we're in a period a bit like the Phony War. I fear that whatever ultimately happens, Hard Brexit or Soft Brexit, "we" are going to be blamed and scapegoated. My personal guess is that Europe will not budge (nor should they, imho) on the four basic principles of the EU and that we will only get free movement of goods, services, and capital if we accept free movement of people -- and that, like Norway and others, we will still have to pay into the EU even though we're not members. And when many misled Brexit supporters figure out that nothing much is really going to change, I suspect their rage will be awful. Alternatively, we bite the bullet go Hard Brexit and just revert to WTO rules, which mean our exports to Europe, our biggest market, become more expensive (and less competitive) and our massive financial services industry drifts away to Frankfurt, or wherever. Along with money for scientific research, development, and the like. Pretty much a clusterfuck. And, yes, most "foreigners" I know here (whether EU citizens, or naturalised Brits like myself) ARE watching very carefully, and at least thinking about (if not yet planning) a worst-case-scenario escape plan. Why else do you think I'm leaving Hampshire and moving back to London?? And, finally, I cannot tell you how many times I've been told, "Oh, we don't mean people like you" during and since the referendum -- only to be greeted by an uncomfortable silence when I inevitably reply "Well, who DO you mean?" I was born in an America that was still racially segregated, and grew up in a country that struggled (and still does) to deal with racial equality. I know "dog whistle" language when I hear it.... <end of rant>