Aliens? (the political status of second generation immigrants)

I heard the mayor of Larissa in central Greece saying that yesterday, groups of school kids were attempting to loot shops. A young girl was setting the city's Christmas tree on fire and asking her friends to take pictures of her with their mobile phones. Some people were trying to prevent her, but her group, in turn, were holding them back.

The mayor insisted that these kids, many of whom were second generation immigrants, went somehow out of control. Police and local shopowners actively intervened and arrested one of them. The boy was asked what he thought he was doing and he allegedly responded that he "wanted to force rich people to become involved in the revolt".

Consequently and after more arrests, their parents were contacted. They apparently knew nothing of their children's activities and claimed that they believed them to be attending private evening classes in preparation of university exams.

What a mess! one could say.

I would simply add that politicians and political parties have prepared such behavior by neglecting the rightful settlement of these immigrant kids' legal status who practically remain aliens and do not enjoy full political rights. For years now, many of us have been calling the government to change the law regarding citizenship and settle the status of second generation immigrants. Clearly, our country has let down these citizens who grew up in insecurity and risk becoming irretrievably and truly alienated. This is due, to the lack of foresight concerning the phenomenon of unprecedented immigration that has erupted in recent years. Until the early eighties, Greece was more or less a rather homogeneous society and it was Greeks themselves who were migrating to rich western countries.

Under the circumstances created by the incident of violent police behavior, some second generation immigrant children seem to have combined with equally alienated local youngsters -who know that school is a joke- and they have all got together with other segments of the population, young and old, exposed to the influence of antisocial rhetoric and practices, building up the violent wave of negativity.

Greece is not a fascist country though, on the contrary, it is a country that offers considerable liberty to most of us. The modern Greek state is relatively new, but culturally this is a country with an extremely rich history. It is also a country that fought nazism and has struggled for democratic values. However, many have been left out due to a chronic inefficiency of decision makers. It all boils down to the same question. Can we tackle the obvious problems or will the political parties continue to ignore them, for fear of loosing voters -for example, those more conservative ones who cannot digest a changed social reality?

Unfortunately, recent events, as I have been fearing, do not exactly help to settle these issues. Extremism always produces a reflex of fear and conservatism. It will take some time before passions calm and a new government can proceed to resolve the pressing issues of immigrants. In the meantime we have to avoid the criminalisation of children, we have to stand in the way of the extreme right who have never been too strong in this country, but will certainly try to capitalise on fear.