🇩🇪 This post has been translated to German
Soon, general elections will take place in Germany. It seems very likely that the extreme right will become the second-strongest party. Much of its public messaging has been on immigration and the challenges that come from it. Much of its public messaging has been full of hate.
My wife was born in the south of Brazil. She has a doctorate in microbiology and came to France on a special visa for highly qualified personnel. I have seen her spend long evenings after work, learning French to a near native level. I have seen her being promoted and helping to protect French society from diseases ever since. And I have seen her ground to tears under the stress, anxiety, and apathy of the European immigration system, from the pressure of having to be exceptional instead of average, from the feeling of having to prove she is one of “the good immigrants.”
From personal experience, I can tell you it is difficult to truly relate to this if you have grown up with a European passport and your only exposure to the topic is the public debate.
I am understandably biased, but I would argue she is a shining example for how immigration changes societies for the better. I believe she is someone Germany would be lucky to have. For a long time, our future was clear - it might take some time, but eventually we would settle in Germany. But more and more, I ask myself: Is there a place for us in a society that votes for politicians that gleefully talk of remigrating her?
If you are concerned about immigration, do not only focus on the stories told to make you angry. Think about people like my wife, and by extension me. Be civil and have respect for the very real humans that will be affected by your words. And when you vote, ask yourself if the party you vote for sends the message that you intend.