File spoon-archives/postcolonial.archive/postcolonial_2000/postcolonial.0007, message 260


From: "Dave Cummings" <dc29-AT-ukc.ac.uk>
Subject: Re: Racism, culture amd immigration, continued
Date: Fri, 28 Jul 2000 12:19:57 +0100



David Cummings
Post-Colonial Studies
School of English
Rutherford College
University of Kent, at Canterbury

>
> HOW MANY FOREIGNERS DO YOU LET IN?
> One central question is: can any nation cope with large numbers of
> immigrants, whatever the original cause of their coming? There seems to be
a
> basic unwillingness by people to discuss this crucial issue. Any attempt
at
> rational discussion of this point usually turns into criticism of the
Right
> wing for using emotive phrases such as "swamped". But there the discussion
> usually grinds to a halt. Has the Left any solutions to this one? Using
> Josna's word, when do immigrants cease to be "curiosities" and become
> perceived as a threat

Here perhaps we have the crunch point of Capital. The rhetoric of right wing
political parties is seemingly out of step with the demands of Capital. I
recall reading in 'The Economist' (hardly a left-wing flag waving magazine),
that the EU had a demographic time bomb, and that it needed a large number
(sorry can't remember the number) of immigrants just to keep the economy
going. I don't think the 'Left' has a solution, because frankly what is this
homogenous 'left' anyway.

I realise this is a quite facile point, but I must get back to Foucault....



     --- from list postcolonial-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---

   

Driftline Main Page

 

Display software: ArchTracker © Malgosia Askanas, 2000-2005