Xenophobia In The Global Village: Are Strict Closed Borders Going To Become The New Normal?

As of today, more than 6,50,00,000 people are displaced from their homes due to war and strife. The United Nations put out an alarming report, which showed that lives of thousands of refugees are at risk only because no country is willing to take them in.

This is true, particularly in Europe, where the maximum numbers of Syrian refugees flee to, as recent records demonstrate. Most countries are reluctant to open their borders to these people as their local citizens are unwilling to accept them.

These refugees often die from lack of food and shelter, while waiting to be taken in.

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This racial intolerance is so impactful in today¡¯s times that dictionary.com has declared ¡®Xenophobia¡¯ as the word of the year 2016. It was the most searched word of the year. This indicates an alarming situation.

The dislike towards people who belong to other races is an anomaly in today¡¯s times, where most world leaders are pushing for a world without borders. In a recent example, the Modi government of India allowed for 100 per cent FDI in various sectors, so as to allow ease of functioning to MNCs, and to open up the economy.

On the other hand, Donald Trump won the US presidential election on the promises of pushing out immigrants, and not outsourcing jobs. Prominent American politician Bernie Sanders did not shy away from openly stating that Trump shows signs to pushing programs that support Xenophobia. Major Hollywood actors put out videos and statements making people aware of Trump¡¯s intolerance towards people who were from other cultures. Trump has often publicly endorsed his xenophobic views with statements such as building a wall along the America ¨C Mexico border, to keep Americans out. A Trump supporter in an interview vehemently argued that Americans needed jobs to come back home, and for those who were taking their jobs, to go back home.

TOI

A London School of Economics study by Eric Kaufmann revealed that for most Trump Voters, ¡®immigration¡¯ seems to be the biggest issue faced by the United States, as on date. The results of this study are eerily similar to another recent shocking event - Brexit. Most of the people who voted in favor of the UK leaving the European Union were only concerned with having persons of other countries leave Britain. They seemed to have not considered its implications.

The Euro was created with the idea of easing out trade, and providing more job opportunities in the European Union. Not only did it allow for the flexibility of finding jobs easily and relocating to most places in Europe, it also accounted for about 5% of the GDP of UK (according to the Confederation of British Influence). A European Union membership, along with helping the United Kingdom draw in revenues of around 200 billion pounds (just from exports), was also helping protect its citizens when they travelled across Europe. Yet majority of Britons chose to vote themselves out of the European Union. Experts have predicted that the impact of Britain voting out of the European Union will severely slow down the country¡¯s economic growth and cause loss of jobs and revenues from trade.

This is a classic case of xenophobia outweighing economic considerations.

Indiatimes

Soon after the vote, reports of racist name calling and abuse reached a record high. The Guardian UK chronicled the story of South East Asian, Lakshmi D¡¯ Souza, who has been living in the UK for many years. After the results of UK's referendum vote, she was taking her infant son for a stroll and was told by two different Britishers to ¡®be careful¡¯ and ¡®leave now¡¯.

Forbes lists out ¡®nationalism¡¯ as a strong reason for Britons voting for a Brexit. They state the growing immigrant crisis of Europe as a determining factor- many British citizens were wary of allowing them sanctuary in the UK. People who voted leave showed a general inclination against multiculturalism and a lesser propensity to accept persons of other races. Many voters were completely unaware of the financial implications of their vote.

While the UN and free trade initiatives are trying to demolish walls, and technology is trying to create a world without borders, these global events have brought forward a completely opposite mindset of people.