The word ‘immigrant’ has become so politically charged that the leader of the USA is willing to destroy the agricultural, tourist and other sectors of the economy in pursuing a policy of terrorising and deporting anyone with a sun tan. We have our own tinpot mini-me Trump on this side of then pond too, the loathsome Nigel Farage, a man who recently testified in Congress that the US should increase tariffs against the UK because it had turned into ‘North Korea’. If it was, he would be ‘disappeared’ on arrival back in the UK. This traitor would sacrifice British people’s jobs and living standards in order to get his hands on the reins of government.

I am the son of immigrants but, of course, I don’t get anyone screaming at me to ‘go back where you come from’ (which would of course be Birmingham). That’s because my family came from Ireland and I am white. However, I clearly remember someone saying just that to my father when I was a kid and of course the sign below was on many boarding houses.

I have had a taste of racism and it has always stayed with me. It is a bitter taste. How people with different skin tones and looks put up with it every day is beyond me. What is also beyond me is how people can virulently hate someone they have never met and know nothing about.

Times are hard and the world is going to hell in a handcart so people are looking for answers. Populist fascists such as Trump and Farage always have a simple and glib solution. The problem isn’t you and what you’ve let happen to the world, it’s all their fault. You know, those over there who look a bit different.

I used to wonder how Germany slipped into becoming a fascist Nazi state but no more. The USA is well on its way as it removes all the democratic guardrails, puts the military on its streets and seeks to shut down any dissenting views. I have despaired at my inability to do anything. It’s like standing on a hillside and seeing two trains coming towards each other at speed on a single track. There is nothing you can do except watch.

However, as before, the Stoics have come to my rescue. Here are two quotes by Epictetus –

‘Some things are in our control and others not. Things in our control are opinion, pursuit, desire, aversion, and, in a word, whatever are our own actions. Things not in our control are body, property, reputation, command, and, in one word, whatever are not our own actions.’

This brings some clarity in that, in trying to improve things in general, you are limited by what you can control. That doesn’t mean not doing anything, however, maintaining your inner peace by knowing what you can actually change is important. When you have done all you can do then feeling anger or despair makes no sense. You are only hurting yourself.

‘Men are disturbed, not by things, but by the principles and notions which they form concerning things.’

This is an incredibly powerful insight. In essence, Epictetus is saying don’t hate the person but the beliefs that they hold. I think that this gives us an inkling as to how we can go forward.

Kaizen (Japanese: 改善; “improvement”) is a Japanese concept in business studies which asserts that significant positive results may be achieved due the cumulative effect of many, often small (and even trivial), improvements to all aspects of a company’s operations. (Wikipedia)

I first came across this concept when I worked in automotive quality and I saw its effects. They were profound. Those big intractable problems that seemed to be a permanent feature of my working life often evaporated by making numerous tiny improvements. Part of this approach is not to ignore problems and to always improve things when and where you can however small that improvement might be. A good example of this was one of the first projects we tried out. The prevalent belief in the workplace was that it wasn’t their responsibility to keep the workplace clean and free from litter. That was the cleaners’ job. We rolled out the project by explaining that cleanliness and having a nice work environment was everyone’s job. Including management. When they saw the CEO walking around picking up and binning trash as he went, they got the idea. We had solved a major problem by encouraging staff to make small contributions but, in reality, we had simply changed their beliefs.

So what has Kaizen got to do with racism and fascism?

The implication of Epictetus’ second quote above is that you should not hate the person but hate their beliefs. Like a sculptor we must constantly chip away so that everyone will eventually see the beauty within. Shouting at people who support fascism and calling them names such as ‘morons’, ‘stupid’, ‘uneducated’ and so on will not help. It is their beliefs we must attack. We must ensure that fascist lies are challenged wherever and whenever they raise their ugly heads. Do whatever you can, give to charities who are doing something to combat racism, stand by someone who is being racially attacked and, as it can be scary, just discreetly videoing an altercation can make a huge splash (remember Karen). If people you know are veering towards fascism try to explain to them why they shouldn’t.

In other words, don’t despair, just do your best and even the smallest actions can mount up to something amazing.

PS However it is always best not to assume. Sitting outside a pub with my son a few days ago, I noticed a group of three men, shaven headed, thick set, tattooed and all of who were white. I immediately concluded that they were just the type of people who would be racist and who would vote for Farage. Not long afterwards a black man arrived. He had a large grin on his face as he approached them and received a huge hug from each of the men. He then sat down and joined them. They were obviously very good friends.

I felt ashamed for thinking what I had thought. So, don’t be like the fascists, judge people by what they do, not what they look like.