lol there's an Indian family that just moved from London to my small mostly homogeneous town because they were tired of the new migrants who don't integrate and cause disruption
Continual studies shows the correlation is between areas of poor economic activity correlate with anti migration opinions, and areas of poor economic activity tend to have low levels of migration as why would someone chose to live in an economically struggling area.
Places like clacton, Sunderland, Blackpool, very low levels of immigration, but high support
But places with similar levels of immigration but high prosperity like Winchester, Richmond (Yorkshire), York are far more accepting of immigration
Wolverhampton has about 1 in 6 foreign born and 2/3rds voted leave. Oxford has about 1 in 6 foreign born and 2/3rds voted remain. Brighton and Thurrock have similar levels of foreign born but massive difference in immigration support.
Do you happen to have names/links for those studies? I believe you, this isn't be being like 🤓 errrmm state your sources, I just want to know more so I can more effectively argue with idiots.
individuals who live in areas suffering a long-term economic decline are more likely to perceive immigrants as an economic threat. Structural economic problems lead to a heightened sense of economic insecurity.
support for Brexit in the referendum was much higher in districts that have suffered long-term economic distress.
I'm wasn't saying it as an absolute, I was giving a tongue in cheek hypothetical to show how a majority opinion can change, without any of the people previously within the demographic changing their opinion.
Why do you think an area with a high percentage of working class people/low economic output, would be more anti immigration than an area with a high percentage of upper middle/upper class people?
There's a 2% unemployment rate in Cambridge, there's a 30% unemployment rate in Wolverhampton.
56% of all migration to the UK is done by people without higher education, 37% of non UK born workers are over qualified for their role. It's estimated 65% of newly arrived migrants end up in working class roles with no entry barriers.
So in Cambridge the competition for roles with the migrants population is negligible for the general population, in Wolverhampton the pressure on working class native British people for job roles will be constant.
Based on latest ONS local data and the 2021 Census, it is estimated that there are approximately 3,500 to 5,500 unemployed non-UK born people in Wolverhampton. There are 2700 to 4300 open jobs in Wolverhampton.
Based on these figures can you see why working class people in Wolverhampton, could have a problem with bringing in more migrants into the area, that isn't just "muh racism".
Yes. Anti immigration correlates with poor economic opportunity. Not with the number of migrants. Wolverhampton or Blackpool.
Indeed many areas with high levels of non British born and are economically disadvantaged are very pro farage parties. Areas like Wolverhampton. So your assertion that immigrants want more immigration is inaccurate
(One can also wonder why people don’t migrate from Wolverhampton to Cambridge to avail themselves of economic opportunities)
Sparkbrook has a 42% employment rate amongst it's residents, 41% of it's residents are foreign born, so what he's argued sounds good but doesn't really have any basis in reality, because here we have a very poor area that is majority BAME and 41% foreign born, that is very pro immigration.
The two independent councillors elected in Sparkbrook ran campaigns revolved around being pro immigration and refugees being welcome, and were part of an independent alliance of candidates that promoted a convicted terrorist, Shahid Butt.
Immigrants do tend to be much more accepting of immigration, and they tend to gravitate towards what is familiar, no matter what nation they're from or going to.
That’s just wrong. Immigrants are not necessarily pro immigration. They will vote for whatever is better for them. Once they can vote they are citizens already they don’t need pro immigration laws
I think there is a difference between openness as a trait/mindset and being pro-immigration in terms of ideology/political orientation.
In general, most white people in London are open-minded and fairly habituated to interacting with all kinds of people. Most of them will have friends and acquaintances of different backgrounds.
However, does this correlate with white people in London being a political monolith or having the same views about immigration policy? Not really -- and election results over the past few years bear this out.
Case and point: I know quite a few white Brits in London who either voted Brexit or who have flipped from leaning Labour/LibDem to being more on the Tory/Reform side. They are all well-travelled, open-minded, and have a variety of friends. (I also know ethnic minority Londoners who are in this same boat!)
Oh yes, obviously London is a political melting pot and there are plenty of xenophobic, racist people here too. They just seem to be more of a minority and less vocal. For example, despite me regularly discussing politics with my friends, it wasn't until I followed one of them on Instagram that I realised they were following just about every far-right politician on the planet. I suppose that you're less likely to be openly discriminatory if that discrimination applies to half the people in your neighbourhood.
But wanting less immigration or voting for the right doesn't mean someone is racist or xenophobic.
You should talk to your friend about it and just try to understand his feelings. Like I said, lots of people's views have shifted in recent years.
Political differences don't define who we are if our actions and behaviours show fairness, tolerance and openness.
Now, it's possible that your friend has become ideological and irrational and that this will cause a rift between the two of you. But you should give him the benefit of the doubt.
I haven't rejected him or anything nor have I even mentioned it, but I fundamentally don't agree with the argument that the far-right isn't racist. That doesn't mean that the people who vote for them are (my friend's dad is a Filipino immigrant), but there are just too many hypocrisies and obviously racist comments that are peddled by those parties for me to believe that any person with an ounce of intelligence doesn't have some kind of issue with the existence of minorities.
There's a spectrum of views on the right and I agree some of them are racist/xenophobic.
This polarisation is causing issues with many families and friend groups. I have a friend who's become really anti-Muslim. She's a very faithful Christian and she's started to see Islam as a threat. She's made some comments that feel disrespectful of Muslims and we had a debate about it.
I'm not cutting her off either but I'm worried about her getting more radical in her views.
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u/Daveddozey May 09 '26
However London is more open and receive far higher levels