Those of you that have been blessed with the opportunity to know me, understand that I am foreign and an immigrant. I had the privilege of coming to the United Kingdom at around age four from Pakistan.
This has meant that the many opportunities and quality of life I had differed and still differs severely from those that were and are being raised in Pakistan. This ‘something other’ or ‘difference’ was a minor ideal that I gave little to no thought. However, in a recent encounter with a friend of mine who came from abroad to study in the UK as an undergraduate, I was shocked to have discussed with him how us, British folk, treat and view foreigners.
This colleague of mine works for an ‘agency company’ that is a system where labour is allocated to those seeking employment. What they do is, if a business needs staff at a specific time of the year, month or week then those who are signed up to the agency, usually foreigners, are sent to go work there.
This is the operation within my workplace, usually, on the highest demanding days such as Friday and Saturday, we require an extra set of hands, therefore, agency staff are sent.
This is very useful and I love getting to know people from different walks of life. It never came to mind that within my own workplace and my friend’s workplace, foreigners are not humans but machinery. They are told that they do not learn quickly enough, they have weak communication skills and or they make too many mistakes. We forget the humanity within us all, and how we are much alike.
It is as if an imaginary chalk line is drawn on the ground to divide them from us. This opened my eyes as to how I view foreigners.
This was a snappy wake-up call to all of those who don’t believe in the different treatment administered towards foreigners.
Shambolic Behaviour 