But it goes beyond words, of course. I, an Anglo man, have Chinese and Afro-American friends, as well as friends born in foreigh lands, (I'm in the USA) all of whom have faced xenophobia here in this supposedly "enlightened" country, this supposed "melting pot" of the world.
Such xenophobia is universal, I fear. My sister's husband is black, of mixed German/Ghanaian descent, I think, though raised in NZ. When househunting, they often found that apartments available for rent when she went to view them had suddenly been taken by the time she went back with her husband. Just last year, an Nigerian man was badly beaten on a beach in Christchurh (the spiritual hearland of white supremacy in NZ) while hundreds of people just watched. A corner store run by Indians in my hometown was forced to close after repeated acts of intimidation and violence, the last of which was firebomb thrown into the shop while it was being staffed by a 14 year-old girl. Such overt acts of xenophobia are the fruits that grow from the seeds sown in the language of hate.
