The "Western" Economics of Immigration
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Sivanandan and Rana both discuss the complexities of how nations (UK and Uganda) engage with those who seek to immigrate to their country.
Firstly, Sivanandan highlights the systemic discrimination racialised peoples faced at the hands of the UK government during industrialisation. Sivanandan goes on to state that immigration during this period of the UK's history was very much dictated by the free market and its needs, a legacy of the UK's colonial endeavours. Class also played a heavy role in this system with racialised immigrants being exploited by so many from "the big-time capitalist to the slum landlord - from exploiting his labour, his colour, his customs, his culture." Sivanandan explains how capitalism has underdeveloped many nations and made migration a reality for many, forcing them from their home countries. Furthermore, as a shortage of workers in Europe developed, migrants became economically acceptable but remained socially "undesirable".
This logic can be compared to that discussed by Rana's meditation which explains how after a large number of Asians migrated to Uganda to construct extensive railways lines were forcibly expelled after its completion. This highlights how migrants are only considered "acceptable" when they are depended upon economically, but no longer after that demand is met. Rana's analysis underscores a similar pattern of exploitation of racialised migrants based on economic needs.
Ultimately, both Sivanandan and Rana illustrate how capitalism and other oppressive systems uphold exploitation and exclusion, with the economy deeply affecting the treatment of racialised immigrants across varying historical and geographical backgrounds.