And now – Israel goes for African asylum seekers

Ronit Lentin

africans-attacked-in-tel-avivLast night right wing demonstrators, including Israeli membersof Knesset attacked African asylum seekers in the south of Tel Aviv

http://972mag.com/africans-attacked-in-tel-aviv-protest-mks-infiltrators-are-cancer/46537/

The statement by Israel’s Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu last week regarding the ‘infiltration’ of African asylum seekers via the Israel-Egypt border, is indicative not only of Israeli state racism, but also of the West’s approach to asylum seekers in general.

If Israel does not stem the flow of African refugees and illegal immigrants, Netanyahu said in last week’s cabinet meeting, ‘the problem that currently stands at 60,000 could grow to 600,000’, threatening ‘our existence as a Jewish and democratic state, the social fabric of society, national security and national identity.’ Continue reading “And now – Israel goes for African asylum seekers”

Short plays about (racist) Ireland, 2

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Ronit Lentin

micheal-martinMet Micheal Martin (Fianna Fail leader and former minister) at a do in Cork.
I: we did meet before in  2005, on a Questions and Anwers programme after the 2004 Citizenship Referendum, when you told me you knew a Nigerian woman who had quintuplets, had one in Nigeria and hopped on a plane to have the other four in Ireland (see After Optimism, Lentin and McVeigh, 2006, p. 101)

Martin: Oh, yes, I remember. I actually got a letter from an obstetrician about it…

I: But Micheal, how logical can this be?

Martin: No, really… He wrote to me that something had to be done about all these women coming to have babies in Ireland…

I: But…

Martin: Believe me, I can show you the letter

I raise my eyebrows, but Martin is not embarrased at all…

Short plays about (racist) ireland, 1

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Ronit Lentin

dublin-busNo 16 bus, Dublin city centre, 20 April. Bus stationary. Man sits at back of bus and shouts obcsenities.

Bus driver (probably of Indian sub continent origin) speaks on his radio:
I want him to get off the bus…

Man continues to shout. Man gets up and goes to front of bus, shouting:

You want me to get off the bus, you f… black bastard… You f… black bastard.

I: Stop it, stop being racist!!

No passenger comments.

Man gets off the bus.

Elderly woman: Poor man, he was doing nothing, why did he have to get off the bus?

Young woman: Yeah, poor man, what did he do?

Man: He was stinking of drink.

Young woman: Ah.

I: why didn’t you say anything?

On getting off the bus I say to the driver: Sorry about what happened earlier.

Driver: It’s not the first time. It happened many times before. Thanks.