On Thursday, the United Kingdom decided to leave the European Union. The global consequences of the move are staggering. Following the referendum, the Dow Jones dropped six hundred points on Friday, fearing the collapse of the European Union was imminent. On Friday Morning, prime minister David Cameron, who supported staying in the Europeon Union, announced his resignation from the position. Leaders in Northern Ireland and Scotland, who voted in favor of staying in the EU, are beginning to ponder the option of leaving the United Kingdom. How did we get to this point in a year that is getting crazier by the minute?
The European Union has had a turbulent decade. The global economic crisis in 2008 led some countries in the group to recessions, while others, such as Greece and Spain, have outright collapsed. Greece’s unemployment has been above 25% since June 2012, and has cost the union billions in debt. Spain’s economy has also struggled substantially, as the current unemployment rate is around 23%. Due to most of these countries being on the Euro currency, it has been challenging for some countries to keep up the pace with powerhouses such as Germany. This has led the stronger countries in the EU to collaborate and help out the weaker links, leading to a slowdown of their economic growth. Along with a slow economy, immigration has become a major topic over the past couple of years. Due to the Syrian Refugee Crisis, millions of migrants from the Middle East have tried to escape the quagmire that is their homeland. Europe has struggled to accommodate the migrants, along with integrating them into their society. This is where fear comes in: As many Muslims have struggle to assimilate due to weak integration systems, different cultures have clashed.
With animosity towards the European Union at an all-time high, the United Kingdom decided to take a referendum on whether they should stay in the EU or not. The factions were divided into staying or leave party. The leave group put their platforms based on various viewpoints. First off, citizens felt that being in the EU threatened their sovereignty. [Insert irony here about how Brits, after years of being tyrannical towards other colonies, feel that they are the ones that are being oppressed]. They felt that the EU had made too many decisions for how their country was to be run, as the EU has control over immigration, agricultural, competitive, and patent policy. They viewed the EU to have an extraneous amount of regulations, which limited the success of the countries who were under their rule. And finally, the fears of immigration have engulfed many on the right. There is a feeling among many citizens that they are being ambushed by migrants, and could cause a culture war. Finally, Great Britain sends around nineteen billion dollars to the EU each year. The leave party believes that this money could be used toward better ventures, such as their single payer health care system. All of these points come to one conclusion: Brits fear that as a part of the European Union, they will fall even further from the mighty empire that they once were.
Unfortunately, all of these viewpoints are completely contradictory and been disproved by numerous studies. In terms of immigration, unless they completely cut trading ties with the EU, which is unlikely, they will still take in many migrants as part of the trade agreement. It is true that the UK is most likely taking in too many refugees, as three hundred thousand entered the country last year. It is something though that can be negotiated with the European Union, and is not reason alone for leaving the group. With many in the UK fearing immigrants though, there is an increasing anti muslim sentiment in the country. People fear that Muslims entering the country are extremists, and have potential ties to terrorist groups. These lies are spread by right wing news sources, such as Breitbart and Fox News in America. In fact, Rupert Murdoch, the mastermind behind Fox News and The Sun in England, backed a British exit. Also the tabloids in England, which are notorious for glamorizing events and writing hit pieces, were very much in favor of leaving the EU. One way that right wing new sources have forced the leave by the UK is by pointing to individual cases of Muslims in England, and claiming that they were about to create a giant culture war. This was effective in the rural regions of England, who are less educated than in other parts of the country, and ultimately, more driven by fear and anger.
Economically, studies by numerous English banks have found that staying in the EU has a better economic impact that leaving. This has been proven by the events of Friday: due to the Brexit, the British pound's value has dropped to its lowest value in decades. Stocks Markets across the world collapsed, as there is a feeling that the whole European Union could collapse. We will see over the next couple of months what the global economic impact of Brexit is, but it is probable that the United Kingdom could go through a recession or a depression, depending on other global events that are taking place this year. The EU’s regulations on the economy may have been frustrating to deal with, but they may have actually been good for the United Kingdom's overall well being.
As Americans, we should view what has occurred over the weekend with a very watchful eye. We, too, face an importance this year: whether we go down the same root with a liberal president, or go for someone who is an absolute extremist. It is true that Hillary Clinton is a flawed candidate, as she may be overly faithful to donors in the past. Americans should note that Trump is much more dangerous, and will lead put our countries future into peril. Donald Trump has used the same method that the leave party used in their election: fear tactics. He has declared the American Dream to be dead, our country never wins at anything, most illegal immigrants coming into this country are drug dealers and rapists, that radical Islam is taking over the world, and other global powers,such as Mexico and China, are eating us apart. This has driven deep into our mentality American Exceptionalism: that we have to be the best at everything, and defeat every threat that stands in our way. The media, who first viewed his campaign as a joke, gave the orangutan endless loops of airtime, allowing him to spread his messages of fear and hate. He labels any of the opposing candidates as threats to our national safety, and will kill all of what we have worked for. He is driving a very serious nerve with the American people, a nerve that was strung in the United Kingdom, Nazi Germany, and with so many other revolutions and genocides across the world.
If Trump wins this November, we can officially declare the American Dream dead. We will no longer be a country that has made immigration part of our country's backbone, but instead one that scapegoats them for our complicated problems. We will be a country that is based on hate: hate of anyone who has a different cultural ideologies that white Americans. Lastly, he will all but confirm the global perspective on America: that we are nothing short of bombastic assholes who are stupid, and only care about ourselves. It’s your choice America. Choose Wisely.
