Brexit — the right decision?

The EU Referendum was a historical turning point in UK political history. A divided country warring over the ‘weak’ UK influence in the union, the economy and most controversially, immigration. It spiralled rapidly out of control, with accusations of racism, xenophobia and scaremongering being flung from both sides, and in it’s aftermath a deep rift between the older and younger generations of modern British society.

But let’s rewind for a moment. Why did the UK join the EU in the early 1970's?

Simply put, the UK was plummeting towards an economic decline. The British pound had been devalued, and the looming threat of a coal shortage forced the UK government to consider joining the EEC in order to revitalise the straggling economy.

This is why the economy is such a integral factor to consider in the wake of ‘Brexit.’ We as a country have clearly forgotten about the hardships of England pre-EU, and have grown accustomed to the stability the EU gave to us. The value of the pound fell after ONE county — Sunderland — had voted to leave. With the whole country regressing, the value of the pound fell by 7% and it continues to fall, crushing the Brexit argument of a “minimal economic impact.” Markets have collapsed, many have lost their jobs and the Conservative government is up in arms about how to tackle the uncertainty that faces their country’s future.

Higher mortgage costs, rising prices and the removal of free healthcare in EU countries is disastrous for all, but mostly young people. My generation — and the ones which will follow — will be hit harder by the already tough economic climate, and struggle to find their way out of education and into the working world.

As a daughter of two parents who fled to the UK from war torn countries, the Brexit arguments against immigration truly repulsed me in this referendum. After all, it was the EU that permitted my parents entry to the UK, and every person should have the same opportunities my parents were given. Exiting the EU does the exact opposite — it strips these people of a real opportunity to provide for themselves.

Brexiters argued that the increasing number of immigrants has ‘depressed’ native-born British workers, and that immigrants ‘take’ job opportunities away from the British. Yet these concerns have been proven to be irrational; a study found that these assumptions are “built on the false premise that there are a fixed number of jobs in the economy.”

It’s true that an increasing amount of immigrants are being employed. But instead of crying out that these jobs are being ‘stolen’, consider this; immigrants may be more qualified than the average native-born Brit. The UK is, generally speaking, a meritocratic society — we work for what we have. Why should this be any different for an immigrant?

Perhaps the most worrying social effect of Brexit is that BAME (Black Asian Minority Ethnic) people have received backlash from Brexit campaigners who have legitimised racism. The influence from the notoriously divisive UKIP party was merely a microcosm of the racial hatred that Brexit has sparked; it isn’t a coincidence that the vast majority of Brexit supporters were white. Many BAME people, including myself, have been told to “go home” and to “go back to your own country.” This rhetoric endangers the lives of POC even more so than before, and draws startling parallels with the Trump campaign in the 2016 American election. A basic, overarching illustration of this hatred can be seen here, where Metro describes the experience of one young Muslim girl being taunted by chants of ‘get out’.

It isn’t accurate to generalise the entire Brexit campaign as ‘racist’ or xenophobic. A fair amount of people voted leave for entirely valid and non-offensive reasons with practical evidence. Nor is it fair to argue, as I have witnessed on social media, that older people should not be allowed to vote.

But Brexit is not a decision I agree with. The aftermath of this referendum has truly flipped British society on it’s head; what was once a fluid, progressive country has regressed into its 1970’s shell of racism, xenophobia and economic instability.