I’m an immigrant, why do you hate me so much?

One of the most depressing things I’ve seen this election season is the pro-immigration poster campaign with a range of immigrants listing their achievements.

It was tragic to see people listing their skills and experiences as if they were mail-order brides waiting to be purchased by the highest bidder. Immigrants had been divided into two groups. The good ones, who can teach English and save lives – “don’t target us! #notallimmigrants.” And the ones who don’t make it onto the posters, who are the ones UKIP really hates.

I promise I’ll be good

Immigrants pay as much tax as anyone else, all the while receiving fewer benefits. They have to start life afresh with very little knowledge of their new environment, while leaving pretty much everyone they knew behind. If you think Cambridge is hard, imagine Cambridge with your family and friends thousands of miles away.

Immigrants don’t come here to suffer – they’re doing their best to make the most of the opportunities available. Immigrants overall positively benefit the economy; foreign students financially prop up every UK university, and huge employment vacuums in every sector are filled by those educated in foreign countries, because at some point the British government forgot to train enough nurses and scientists. And it’s often those who have to work the hardest that are being hit the hardest by ever stricter immigration rules. But non-naturalised immigrants don’t have the vote, putting them in the same category as children, prisoners and dead people, so why would anyone ever bother to make their lives easier?

Not the kind of support we were hoping for

The silence of the left suggests they’re more interested in attacking the right at any given opportunity than actually fighting for some of the most powerless and hardworking people in our society. Why is it that every time immigration is brought up, the arguments so frequently boil down to simply “they’re stealing our jobs and taking our homes and benefits,” countered with “you’re just being racist”? I mean, they are. But surely there is something more to defending immigrants than simply accusing the right of racism? Or is there really nothing immigrants can bring to Britain, and should I go back to wherever I came from, feeling sorry for the person whose place at Cambridge I took?

Sorry guys

Every poll shows Nigel Farage as a political force to be reckoned with, and 53% of the population would rate immigration as one of the top three issues facing the country. Meanwhile other parties skirt around the subject, occasionally letting out a “that was racist” whimper, though never leading the charge on the issue. Where are the campaigns fighting for the average immigrant? It’s as if Farage is the only person bothered to convince the country of something.

Please, for the love of God, talk about immigration. Do something beyond calling out the Right for the sake of political image. Lead the conversation and help make immigrants’ lives a little bit easier.