Anglo-European Chauvinism in Dealing with Ukrainian Refugees
African students await
evacuation from Ukraine.
During the debate on the
UN General Assembly resolution concerning Ukraine, representatives from
the Caribbean and Africa spoke to the unjust treatment of Ukrainian
refugees of African origin. The representative of Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, for example, expressed dismay that people of African
descent are being singled out unfairly as the refugee crisis unfolds,
calling for equal, fair treatment of all peoples. South Africa's
representative urged European countries to take steps to end the
current situation where African nationals and people of African descent
at the borders of Ukraine were not allowed to cross and move to safety.
For example, African migrants and students in Ukraine were prohibited
from boarding trains and buses that could take them to safety. A group
of Jamaican students was forced to walk 20 kilometres when they were
forced off of a bus en
route to Poland.
Margaret Kimberley,
in a March 2 article in Black Agenda Report,
brought out the racism and chauvinism being promoted by the U.S. and
Europe.
"By now everyone knows that Ukraine's
flag is blue and yellow. It is impossible to miss as the Empire State
Building in New York, the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, and the Eiffel
Tower in Paris have all been bathed in those colors. Nearly every city
and town across the United States has followed suit and politicians
ranging from local legislators to members of congress shout 'Stand with
Ukraine!' at every opportunity," she wrote. Ukrainian flags were also
prevalent at Biden's State of the Union speech.
She continued, "Ukraine is upheld as a bastion of 'civilization' which
is supposed to put it off limits for war and suffering. The quiet part
is now being spoken out loud. We are told that Ukrainians are more
deserving of concern because they are Europeans.
"Ukraine's deputy chief prosecutor said as much in a BBC interview. 'It
is very emotional for me because I see European people with blue eyes
and blonde hair being killed...' He wasn't alone in his assessment. An
NBC reporter was asked why Poland was willing to admit Ukrainians even
as it turned away other refugees. 'Just to put it bluntly, these are
not refugees from Syria, these are refugees from neighbouring Ukraine.
That, quite frankly, is part of it. These are Christians, they are
white, they're ... um... very similar to the people that live in
Poland.'
"CBS followed suit, ‘This
isn't a place, with all due respect, like Iraq or Afghanistan who has
seen conflict rage for decades. This is a relatively civilized,
relatively European -- I have to choose those words carefully -- city
where you wouldn't expect that or hope that it was going to happen.'"
She brings out that war and privation worldwide are a direct
result of U.S./NATO actions. It is the U.S./NATO aggression that
destroyed the nation of Libya, that has attempted to do the same in
Syria, that waged war against Iraq and Afghanistan, that foments war
across African countries with U.S., French and British troops all
there. The U.S. and NATO cause suffering and justify it by saying the
people of Africa, Asia and Latin America are "uncivilized" with no
rights that need to be respected.
A study by the
Watson Institute of Brown University showed that more than 38 million
people in North Africa, Western and Central Asia, and the Horn of
Africa have been displaced by the U.S. and its allies since 2001. The
humanitarian disasters begun years ago are ongoing, as Ukraine,
Afghanistan, Haiti and many other countries show. The U.S. imposes wars
of aggression, sanctions, destroys economies, unleashes chaos, robs
assets and then punishes the many refugees its actions created. All of
it causes more suffering and death as nations are robbed of the ability
to care for their people.
Who is civilized and who is not?
This article was published in
Volume 52 Number 3 - March 6, 2022
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2022/Articles/M520036.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca