Illegals - such a lovely description, don't you think?

Not lets have a little look at this " If you come from Africa to the UK, you're not truly a refugee" How does that work then?

Tell that to my friend from Cameroon, his family massacred in front of him, destitute and his asylum request on hold ( Covid related)

If you've come to the UK from the Middle East, Asia, Africa, etc., you're not truly a refugee.

OK. So the people who are fleeing war, famine, drought, violence and oppression in Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Angola, Mozambique, Cameroon, Somalia, Rwanda, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Vietnam, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Libya just fancied a change of scenery agnurse? They have plenty of food and water. There is no war or conflict in their countries that has raged for years and decimated their lives and homes. Global warming hasn't caused a drought that has stopped rainfall for decades and reduced their agricultural crops to a handful of dust and their cattle to nothing more than skin and bone. Diseases, with no medicines to treat them, are unheard of and they are all living happy, healthy lives, free of fear of death and persecution. There is no corruption in any of these countries where, unless you join their militia, you and your families will "disappear" overnight.

I'm relieved to hear this agnurse, thank you for your reassurance that all is well in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. I can stop worrying about them now.

TXquiltz..I'm not sure how you think my posts and yours are in agreement.

Totally agree Greymar. The child who thought I'd been attacked with a machete was from an African country.

Totally agree Chewbacca

Great post, Chewbacca.

Oh and by the way, he is a dentist, although obviously can't earn a living or volunteer.

Well said chewbacca

You are completely wrong agnurse, they are refugees. Have you any idea about the country they come from.
I suggest that everyone who disagrees spends their time reading The New Odyssey by Patrick Kingsley and then come back on this forum and say they are not refugees.
We take in just a handful and ought to ashamed of ourselves for how we treat them. Take off your rose tinted glasses and spend you time in lockdown educating yourself

Well said, Barmey!

I must admit I have not been hearing much about "illegals" with the pandemic going on and certainly have heard nothing of them trying to come into the U.K
I watched a documentary about refugees that managed to reach Los Bos island in Greece. that was only about a week ago.
There are hundreds of them and the camp amenities are appalling. The Red Cross and island soldiers were spraying them all over and all the separate camp tents were being sprayed and disinfected it was pitiful to watch.
These people are fleeing harsh conditions in their own countries or why would they even attempt to migrate from those areas. Some people do not have compassion and instead only want to know how to report benefit fraud. In the next several months a large proportion of the U.k. will be relying on benefits I expect some will even still complain about welfare handouts.

TxQuiltz - just heard this about crossing the border and immediately becoming a criminal. “Act One” - you may be interested too.
www.thisamericanlife.org/656/let-me-count-the-ways

3nanny6, neither have I heard about refugees or " illegals " spreading the virus !! Food for thought isn't it ?

I really hate the word “illegals”. It’s hugely derogatory and demeaning. It’s de-humanising.

agnurse, if there were ANYWHERE safe for British people to flee to now, thousands would be going. Just because you personally (a complete non-expert, relying on Google for info) don't know their circumstances, doesn't mean they are not genuine.

Barmy, I couldn't agree more.

I've taught a range of immigrant and refugee students over the years (including scholarship students at my current school). Without exception, they have all been respectful, hard working and very, very grateful for the education they're getting. Usually quite unlike the British students in their classes. The saddest one was an Iraqi boy who HAD come in illegally but was immediately registered as an asylum seeker. All his remaining family were killed in an airstrike leaving him an orphan. Lovely, lovely boy.

The author of the book I mentioned, met and traveled with the refugees and he interviewed smuggles over a long period of time. It makes really good reading and has certainly changed my opinion. Before I read the book the only ones I had sympathy with were the ones from the middle east and I had no time for the Africans who i wrongly believed were just coming for a better life. Their journey was horrendous and their conditions back home were even worse most would rather drown than go back.

They're called 'illegals' for a reason. It immediately makes them different to we legal inhabitants. Puts them on the outside of the law which adds an feeling of threat. Dehumanises them because they are not seen to have a back story so are not people. Basically it's a term used to make them seem threatening and not part of us so it's easier to close our eyes to what happens to them when we deport them.

This is the true story of two illegals. One was a child aged 9 and the other was his father. They came from a country that had a majority and minority population. The minority population were not treated as equals. The country was on the white list which meant that our government did not accept any need for it's people to become asylum seekers or refugees. So why were they here? The family had suffered general abuse for years but the crunch came when the boy was beaten up at school, not only by other pupils but by two of the teachers. The father went to the police to report this crime and was beaten by the police. This led to him being hospitalised with brain damage. After that the targeting became worse and finally the father decided they needed to run for their lives. They made their way to the UK because there has been a community from their country here for many, many years. The father declared them at the airport in the UK and they applied for asylum status. This was subsequently declined even though he produced evidence from his country, from UK doctors who confirmed his injuries and photographic evidence of the scars on his and his son's body. So this father and son were now illegals. The community (both his nationality and British) tried to help but the Immigration Authorities knew what his soft spot was so they decided to take the child from school knowing that the father would then turn himself in. Fortunately, because of a very brave woman who warned him and equally brave people who helped, the father and son went on the run. Why am I telling you this story? To show that every illegal has a back story. The term illegal dehumanises them all (including children) and this is just one story amongst many.

On the News either last night or previous night, it was showing how deserted places like Hastings were over the Easter weekend.
Then the item ended with a boat load of I assume asylum seekers who had come over from France. About 17 of them.
All crowded together, police and border force officers masked up having to deal with it all.
Where do they end up, in isolation somewhere until they are deemed clear of any virus, let alone the current one?
And then where do they go?

We never seem to hear what happens to them all eventually.

Some will be granted asylum eventually. Others will be deported.

There is currently a very good series on Radio 4 called American Dirt. It's about a young woman and her little boy who are fleeing for their lives and trying to get to safety in America. It's harrowing to listen to. You can catch the whole of series one on BBC iPlayer if you're strong enough.