The EU referendum results, a short comment

The last few days have been quite upsetting. It is not the winning of Leave campaign, but the fear and  bigotry from the remain campaign.

I have voted Remain, and although I strongly believe that the EU is not fit for purpose but I feel Remaining in has more positive impact than Leaving it.

More than 17 million people voted to Leave the EU, and regardless of percentages, 17 million is a very large number. And in percentage that is a huge proportion of the British public. To say that those who have voted Leave are racist, xenophobic, uneducated, or any other label or stereotyping is in itself racist.

For a start, I have many friends and colleagues who voted Leave, and I am certain that they do not have a racist bone in their bodies. I know their motives, which without going into details, I agree with most of it, but I see a different approach to address these issues. And I think a good proportion of those who voted to leave were motivated by the same reasons.

 

Immigration, is the main reason why many people voted Leave. I am an immigrant and I do not think having anti- immigration views mean you are racist. I know for sure that 52% of British people are not racist. I have lived in the UK for over 15 years and know that the British people are tolerant and open to diversity, unlike most of the European countries we share the EU with.

 

I advocate immigration and its positive impact on the society and the economy, and it is worth noting that although net migration is at its highest, unemployment is at its lowest, so migrants are needed to run the country. But I cannot turn a blind eye to changes of demographics and strains on public sector services (that is more due to lack of investment not immigration) and pretending there is no problem, or supressing these valid concerns is wrong.

In Arabic we have a saying: if two people tell you your head is not where it should be, you should check it out! So when millions (let us say at least 12 out of the 17) say we have a problem with immigration, they should be listened to.

After every referendum anywhere in the world a strong sense of nationalism and national pride emerges. Which is not necessarily a bad thing, but given the circumstances that preceded the referendum, specifically the gruesome  and shocking killing of Jo Cox, you can sense that the nationalism in certain and limited sectors of the society has reached fascism and this is bad, dangerous, and very worrying. The bigotry and repulsive lies form some of the politicians have escalated a feeling of hatred towards “those bloody foreigners” taking over “our" country, and democratically,  the referendum was a chance to regain “our independence”. Luckily, they have won the referendum, and they can now be proven wrong and they can no longer feed on these feelings of oppression.

 

I cannot deny that I am slightly sadden by the outcome because we will suffer for next few years- economically. But I am happy with the outcome because despite the economic costs, it will expose those who have been exploiting many of the peoples genuine concerns for their own benefits. I can see the feeling are running high, sense of euphoria and sense of depression.

 

The United Kingdom belongs to its citizens, regardless of their race, faith or political views. This division in society is sad but it shows that we care about this country and we want the best for the country, for us, and the generations to come. So I hope peoples’ interest in politics is not temporary, and the believe that we can make a change through our democratic processes is stronger than ever.

Finally, let us think of what unites us, what makes us stronger and

Bring me my bow of burning gold:
Bring me my arrows of desire:
Bring me my spear: O clouds unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire.

I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land.

 (William Blake: Jerusalem)