Next spring, when the country is subdued from all that bitter cold of winter, you'll hear MPs throwing blame from their green leather seats at those men and woman who sit across the aisle. And I'll be in Virgina or California or Illinois or New Zealand or China or some boat somewhere in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. Where I won't be is here.
Still those MPs will be talking about me when they admit that no one really knows how many folks are illegally in the country. They'll be talking about me, when they admit that no one is really certain how many students over-stayed their visas, and me when they notice that no one checks to see who has gone over the border, and me when they tell their constituents that they're doing something about the immigrants--they won't mention that they're doing nothing different than the last government.
And I mention this because I want Don Foster, 'my' MP to note that I am leaving tomorrow morning a full 38 days before my visa expires. I am going and the theoretical numbers of immigrants over-staying visas are just that, theoretical. I suspect that it is convenient to let the public believe that all immigrants are here to take advantage of the system.
I say this because as the date of my departure has come increasingly closer, I have heard too many times to count that:
1. I should just get married. Because apparently this is an acceptable way for a white American to remain in the country but not an acceptable way for a desperate woman with a thick accent to remain.
2. That I'm the right kind of immigrant. The right wing is on the rise in the world, and I know this because people I once respected are happy to tell me that I am the 'right' kind of migrant. They are happy to share their once secretly harbored prejudices.
3. That all those immigrants over-staying their visas are what's wrong with this country. But of course those are impossible numbers to confirm or deny. No one will be checking me out of the country in the morning.
I desperately want to remain here. And I, like many others, am following the rules and leaving in the morning.
Oh, I am so sorry that you must leave. I am such an anglophile were I forced to leave it would spell a tiny death for me. But I settled here many many years ago and in those far days it was far simpler. I do wish you happiness whereever you go.
ReplyDeleteI've only just caught up on your blog so apologies for the late response on this! It's amazing how many people here have felt somehow that it was okay to make racist comments about immigrants in front of me because I'm the "right" kind - despite the fact I'm not even caucasion (I'm Puerto Rican) but apparently, my skin is fair enough that there's no threat of me being 'too different'. I don't really understand why it's okay in any setting. *shakes head*
ReplyDeleteAnyway, just so you know, the UK will miss you - we need more expats that break the stereotypes. It's such a shame to lose you from our shores!
I wish you every happiness no matter where you call home. If you set up a blog elsewhere, please do let me know as I've always thought you such a gifted writer and I'd love to follow your adventures wherever they lead :)
xxx