I never thought I would come to this conclusion in my lifetime.  I believed the racist comments that are flying around were simply puked by a few Facebook pseudo-warriors. It appears that little in life gives these psychos satisfaction but for the occasional status that helps them vent their bent minds and the primeval instinct so bursting with hatred and abhorrence to other people they consider different.    

I can already ‘hear’ people claiming that I am making a mountain out of a molehill and that the isolated episodes of racist slur are nothing to be troubled by.  But then again, here we are with this nationalistic non-stop blend that is all about black people (mainly) that are ‘taking this, that and the other from us’ lingo.  I am pretty much convinced at this point that many people in Malta, I would say most, have a racist strand running through their veins that is slowly but surely being let off.  Most are convinced, even if not in sophisticated and politically correct terms, that ‘purifying’ our country from ‘difference’ will make us feel better. Unfortunately the proposal by the Imam calling for halal (which I definitely do not subscribe to) rubs salt on the wound and fuels the cynics.

This compounded with the fact that we have a number of politicians (thankfully not all) who are essentially spineless and dance to the tune of these populists makes it even more difficult to sort out.  In fact, I cannot recall too many politicians, whether MPs, MEPs or candidates who openly state that it is incorrect that we have such a dialectic of hate spilling into our community.  No, what we get are candidates riding the crest of popular discontent and these pseudo-honourables continue to fuel moral panic.  The illogicality is that as soon as we see a black little boy or girl with a bloated stomach on TV during a Gurnata Missjunarja we will be the first to fill in the coffers.  But how two-faced can we get! An insincere, hypocritical and false country like no other – at least on this matter. 

This situation when combined with a social media vehicle that is echoing every spew of hatred possible coming out of these xenophobics makes it feel like the situation is at a point of no-return.  This dim-witted intolerance resonates in the Facebook chamber transforming doubts and questions of people who are genuinely interested in knowing more by creating further edginess. These concerns are misshapen into a fear of the unknown and with a vacuum in our political forum it is quickly filling up with discourses of these far-right extremist wolves in sheep's clothing.  These fanatics of abhorrence are being allowed to starch the minds of so many genuinely self-doubting people who feel that their livelihoods are being threatened, that their religious cult is under siege and that their country and neighbourhood will be taken away from them. Ironically, these are the same bigots often seen taking selfies with the Vatican in the background.  This makes it even more paradoxical.   What a dogmatic, opinionated, blinkered line of reasoning! 

We are getting to a stage where we need to face the conundrum that citizens believe black people will obliterate ‘our’ race, that the Catholic religion will be replaced by Islam, that the Maltese language will be eradicated (probably these are the same people that will speak English to their children at home ‘halli ma jkunux hamalli’) and that our Country will be overpopulated with people who are a nuisance.  The truth here is that we have a burning wick that will soon set off a blast.  Hatred is picking up fast. 

I don’t know but maybe we need to be reminded that these people are leaving their countries of origin because of poverty, over-population, war, deprivation, lack of human rights and slavery to name just a few.  

What people seem to miss in all of this is that if someone wants to be displaced from one’s roots that are family, environment and friends - there surely must be a reason.  

If people are ready to face the wrath of open seas in the middle of winter, travelling in the desert for days on end and facing off to Libyan soldiers and all sorts of other hostilities – there definitely must be a cause. 

If people are ready to use up all the money they would have managed to collect or borrow enough to be burdened with loans - they must have an intention for this.

 What is wrong with us Maltese?
What is wrong with our imperceptible political class that has disbanded all that is ‘left’ in it?
Why have we turned into populist dogmatists and phonies? 

The country was reputable for its welcoming attitude.  A nation that was known for the time people take to discuss and share ideas with strangers and foreigners.  We were applauded for being welcoming and now we have turned cold-hearted, vicious and acrimonious when faced with black people.  The same people who spend hours on end at Church, hoisting saints on their backs and feeling sorry for the people shown off on TV during telethons are the same ones who are ready to jerk off all their humanity and justify that people are not rescued because they are in international seas (as if they would know what the maritime law is about).  They are the same people who would rather hang on to their ‘deformed principles’ then secure the livelihood of people who are bobbing up and down for 21 days.   

This is the same counterfeit country that I live in that is getting under my skin.  I am proud of my heritage but that doesn’t mean I need to be malicious and spiteful.  I am so proud of my language, my customs and my surroundings but that doesn’t mean I do not share my life with others. 

I think that it is time for our own metaphorical ‘walk over Washington’.  

We probably need our own civil rights movement in Malta to combat the increasing dissent, the unreasonable discomfort that having black people in Malta creates in the psyche of people.  We need to work towards a struggle for social justice to try and eliminate the devastating effects of racism.    

We are racists, there is no qualms about this and no other way to say it.