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Free movement of people
You mean free movement of labour.
xenophobic unions
That one might need some unpacking.
If you really want to take a stand against institutional racism then perhaps you could start by protesting the inherently racist nature of the EU single market. Challenging though given that it barely functions as a democracy.
spiderpie-
Free movement of labour yes, you need a job within 3 months and there a restrictions on benefits.
But after 5 years you get permanent residence and there is right to family reunification. It's a lot more liberal immigration system than what most of the world has.
If unions back "British jobs for British workers" by supporting more restrictions on immigrant labourers like me then xenophobia is perhaps not the right term, but it's hardly solidarity with immigrant workers either. Especially not as controls already exist, see above.
Inherently racist? Em, how so?
JWestland
Free movement of people is the essential issue. It is not by accident that it is one of the four freedoms recognised by the European Community as a fundamental element of free trade. Without free movement of people low wage economies have an advantage which undermines the employment and welfare of workers in the richer countries.
Under the Imperial model beloved of Brexiteers the UK owned the low wage countries and reaped the benefit of black and brown people working for stavation wages (formerly slaves). Under the Emipire only the richest and whitest of the British subjects could exercise our theoretical right of entry and abode in Britain.
At the 1975 EEC referendum I voted no with the left socialists who saw the EEC as a rich capitalist club that excluded the majority of European workers in the socialist eastern and fascist southerrn countries.
Things have changed. In the 1980s along with many thousand others I discovered that free movement allowed Brits to work in Europe. We were the low wage earners like the Romanians and Bulgarians today. Personally I am not entitled to free movement in Europe but I remained resident here crossing the channel 4-6 times a month to earn more, enjoy far better working conditions, benefit from supportive labour regulations and bring money back to impoverished Thather's Britain.
It is saddening that the Labour Left and xenophobic unions have not recognised the benefits of free movement and the potential of improving workers rights and benefits is best achieved through international partnership. Over decades they have disengaged and allowed the globalist capitalists to gain advantage. Over the past couple of decades the expansion of the EU and the botched Euro project have been enormously damaging. That is not an argument for disengagement by Left and progressive forces, it should be an argument for dedicated engagement.
Free movement of people should be welcomed and promoted as the best route for improving workers rights and worker power, across many countries not just in one country. To do otherwise is to play into the xenophobic, anti-immigrant, bigoted agenda of Farage, UKIP and all their racist fellow travellers.