"I have never welcomed the weakening of family ties by politics or pressure" - Nelson Mandela.
"He who travels for love finds a thousand miles no longer than one" - Japanese proverb.
"Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence." - Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
"When people's love is divided by law, it is the law that needs to change". -
David Cameron.

Saturday 4 February 2017

Are these protests all about Trump, or something closer to home?

Today saw more protests sparked by so-called President Trump.  Why is it we are so worried about what is happening across the Atlantic?

A travel ban affecting Muslims is bad enough, but that the Executive Order was signed on Holocaust Memorial Day, was particularly crass.  

A fear that Brexit increases the dependency on USA, whilst taking us further away from our nearest neighbours....a USA where we know we would only be the junior partner, to be led rather than leading.  By TM showing up to greet Trump in his first week, extending a state visit, we have shown our desperation.  Obama was into his third year before he got the red carpet treatment. Bush and Clinton did without for all eight years of their presidency.

 

Or perhaps we are faced with a realisation that the years of anti-migrant hysteria dominating UK headlines and air time (when was the last time there was an episode of Question Time where immigration wasn't mentioned?!) was leading us down the very same path we are horrified to see being tred by our 'very special friend' with whom we 'share a very special relationship'.  Are we rejecting what we were so close to becoming? 


As we become more aware of Trump's failings, and protest in support of those being victimised, we must rise up for the failings closer to home too.

Our Prime Minister caused much devastation in her previous role as Home Secretary.  She knew before the world did, that Trump was going to ban refugees, yet did nothing.  At least she's not a hypocrite though given her own treatment of refugees and migrants - indeed, even British citizens, who she'd rather have living in exile than allow our family to live here, despite it being with no recourse to public funds.


The net migration target continues to elude her, and despite attempts to break up families, force Brits into exile, make UK a hostile environment (Tories even forced a working party named after this policy!), crush our tertiary education sector and leave the EU, this is a target that has not and will not be met.  Not unless UK is turned into the kind of country that none of us want to be in!  There is no way to make living here hostile for migrants, without also making if terrible for citizens.


Theresa May uses Downing Street simply to further the agenda from her Home office days - I envision strings attached to Amber Rudd, pulled by TM.  A Home Secretary in name only.  

In TM, we have a Prime Minister who doesn't know how to lead; obsessive, controlling, unable to delegate, and incapable of compassion.  And in her hands are the reins of our future.



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