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Flashmag October 2019 www.flashmag.net
Research shows that far-right activists used testimonies to influence the polls during and after these events in a negative and racist way for political ends. In large part, they have been successful in influencing the political debate in Europe, making it much more difficult to implement proportionate and reasonable responses to migration. At the time, many felt there had been some policy failure. However, this masks more systemic and darker forces at work. The rhetoric about policy failure masks the efficiency of the use of the technological tool by the forces of the far right, which in the United States with the strategist Steve Banon of Breitbart News helped the election of Donald Trump using a provocative and nationalistic approach.
By bringing the immigration debate to the political scene, the far right has scored important points that have brought it back to power in several countries. Under their influence, some European countries withdrew their support for the European migration Pact after a campaign of right-wing activists. Again, we see commentators pointing out the failure of politicians rather than recognizing the effectiveness of right-wing activists who are fighting a battle online based on fear and lies.
At a time when those who make the most noise manage to make their way, sometimes without worrying about the facts, the exploitation of social media platforms for a specific policy change is no longer a secret, when at the same time some countries like the United States require to visa applicants the access to their social networking accounts, to see if their personality fits with the American policy ideal.
However, when immigrants are hated in the northern hemisphere by rogue politicians, the economies of these countries suffer a real blow that very few dare to evoke, in political speeches. In times of relative peace and war in southern countries, the immigrant is often a highly qualified immigrant, besides the survival strategies that would have allowed them to brave the pitfalls of their refugee status, usually those who have a substantial academic curriculum contribute substantially to the technological innovation of their host country.
The Nobel Prize provides an interesting indicator of the contribution of migrants to technological innovation. From its inception until 2016, the Nobel Prize has been awarded 579 times to 911 individuals and organizations. Of the total 350 winners residing in the United States at the time of their award, more than 100 were immigrants