The whole furore over immigrant workers in the UK, and more recently in Italy seems to me to show a side of human nature that all of us would prefer not to see.

Italy, as does Spain, is perhaps more prone to immigrants coming into their borders and onto their shores. They are situated in an unenviable position on the map in that their southern borders are exposed to the North coast of Africa, and hence policing of such a vast swath of coastline is perhaps next to impossible. This means that those looking to find a better life and work often meander their way to being washed up along the coastlines of the Alboran or Mediterranean seas and onto the beaches of either country.

It is surprising, or rather not, then that both countries have been exposed on the International stage in recent years of tolerating, and even condoning racism, Italy just this week and Spain a while ago when England played the country in a friendly International football match. Who could forget those pictures of Mother, Father and Son stood in unison aiming monkey chants and faces at England footballer Ashley Cole? Although abhorrent in this country, and indeed most other western nations similar racist behaviour has been exposed this week in the South of Italy.

This week saw protests and subsequent deportations of over 1300 migrant workers in the town of Rosarno, immigrant workers follow a loose pattern of working wherever the season takes them within Italy, and the farmers exploit this, paying them as little as €2 per hour, the immigrant workers at this time of year were in Rosarno, picking Oranges. What sparked the protests were the apparent indiscriminate shootings of a few of these workers, it has now been claimed that these shootings were premeditated and aimed at those workers who were refusing to pay a €5 daily protection fee to the local Mafia.

The aftermath of the drama, the rounding up of over 1300 African workers involved in the protests, and the xenophobic statements released by the Italian government are indicative of a country that is searching for a part of society to blame for rising social problems and one that is not exactly backgrounds in going right-wing with their views.

Immigration is being fingered for the collapse of the economy

As the economy, unemployment, house prices and taxes continue to shuttle-cock around the world immigrant workers are increasingly becoming a very easy target. Government, in the case of Italy and opposition party’s here in the UK and in Australia, are hitching a ride on people’s uneasiness and displeasure in the way the world is at the moment and conveniently affixing the blame for it on immigrants. The only country that seems to have any sense in regards to immigrant workers is Canada, whose government is constantly on record as thanking the immigrants in their country for making it what it is.

In the case of Italy it is very clear that the immigrant workers were not displacing any Italians within the workforce, as quite clearly no Italian would be working for €2 an hour. The economy in Italy and across every region that hires the immigrant workers operate on a basis of cheap labour. The problem has not arisen because of immigrant workers but more because of rising unemployment and a diversion of the social anger shown by the working classes towards an easy target, by the powers that be.

If I hear another argument about immigrant workers taking or displacing the workforce I will implode. The immigrant workforce has a very strong work-ethic, they often come to a country having not had the opportunity to work before, and they work for next to nothing, why? Because they have not previously had the chance to work, and compared to their home countries the wages are high. This gives them the chance to save and send money back to their families. They do the crappiest jobs imaginable because they are the only jobs available, catering assistant-washing crud off of plates and standing over a sink for 9 hours. Parking attendant-hated by everyone and has to walk the streets for 8 hours of the day. Street sweepers-similar to parking attendants. These are the jobs immigrants take in the UK, who else is going to do those jobs? These people cannot speak very good English, they are not going to take preference to an English person going for the same job – they have the job because no English person wants it.

It is time the working classes in this country and abroad woke up and smelt the strong smell of the countryside, the economy is not the fault of immigration but the fault of bad government policy. Blame the government, hold them responsible, and do not fall into the trap of becoming an ignorant xenophobe under their guidance.

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