These are some of the faces of African immigration to Europe. The other faces are of children, women, elderly. These men were picked up in a plastic boat near the Strait of Gibraltar. Their countries are not identified except as sub-Saharan. They come by the millions after multinational agribusiness & mining companies have forcibly driven them off their lands, real estate developers evicted them from urban slums or when they’ve been displaced with military & paramilitary force (like the US military in Uganda).
Their forced march is a treacherous & long one across the continent of Africa to cross the Mediterranean to Europe to find work. Some can afford the services of a trafficker; most don’t have a pot to piss in. Many will become ill or get infections or even die without access to medical treatment. They cross the Mediterranean in overcrowded inflatable boats which often capsize--making the sea their burial ground & the death of their hopes for a better life. Many are picked up by European ships sent primarily to intercept rather than to rescue. Some will be placed in detention; most will be deported.
The European Union has placed a fortress wall, an iron curtain (including ships, surveillance systems, troops) around Europe to prevent immigration. Meanwhile it sends its corporations & militias to plunder the African continent without mercy. For multinational corporations, globalization means plunder, only goes one way, & requires walls. For working people, internationalism means solidarity which recognizes no boundaries. For us, “An injury to one is an injury to all!”
Immigration is a human right! Tear down the walls! Open up the borders! No human being is illegal!
(Photo by Marcos Moreno/AFP/Getty Images)
No comments:
Post a Comment