Anti-immigrant parties sweep across Europe

Not since the years leading up to the 2nd World War during the 1930’s have we witnessed such an unprecedented anti –migrant sentiment across Europe. In two of the three major European countries –France and the United Kingdom,- anti-immigration, anti-Europe, Far Right political parties won the popular vote in the EU elections. In other smaller countries such as Denmark and Hungary Far Right parties also won a significant proportion of the popular vote.

One alarming event that occurred during the weekend that cannot be seen in isolation of this xenophobic move to the Right was the cold blooded murder of four Jewish individuals at a Jewish Museum in Brussels.

That there is any doubt about Marine Le Penn’s racist credentials; even Ukip’s Nigel Farage stated he would not be joining a coalition with her Party France National, because of their ‘anti-Semitic’ views. And that’s from a man who said he would not want a ‘Romanian living next door’ to him.

Here in the UK Ukip vastly increased their number of MEP’s from 13- 22 with the 28% of the popular vote. Labour trailed in second place and the Conservatives third. With the exception of one MEP, the Liberal Democrats in the UK were wiped out losing 10 MEP’s including Sarah Lundford in London.

Nick Griffin and his British National Front Party were wiped out, which means they have no elected officials anyway at any level of Government.

But what now for the main stream parties facing nation states turning inward on themselves? The greatest fear for the 20 million or so Black European citizens is that anti-immigrant is usually translated as ‘anti-Black’ and or anti-Muslim feeling, even though the largest migration of EU residents are white Christians.

There is no doubt that the rise of the anti-immigrant sentiment is due to people feeling of the effects of severe austerity measures that began in 2008 with the banking crises. The blame game from that fall out has largely rested not with the casino banking industry but with ‘those over there, taking our jobs’ meaning immigrants. It is an easy pernicious political sell to a public looking for simple answers.

One area of the UK that didn’t buy that message was the most diverse area in Europe today, London. Locally, with the exception of one MEP, London stayed Ukip free.

In the year ahead if the UK isn’t to be consumed with the small island mentality, politicians will have to confront the easy sell of bigotry, with hard facts and a passion for fairness and decency.

Sadly our political class in some areas have lacked both.

Simon Woolley