How migrants became the scapegoats of contemporary mainstream politics

Longlisted for the 2019 Jhalak Prize. From the 1960s the UK's immigration policy - introduced by both Labour and Tory governments - has been a toxic combination of racism and xenophobia. Maya Goodfellow tracks this history through to the present day, looking at both legislation and rhetoric, to show that distinct forms of racism and dehumanisation have produced a confused and draconian immigration system. She examines the arguments made against immigration in order to dismantle and challenge them. Through interviews with people trying to navigate the system, legal experts, politicians and campaigners, Goodfellow shows the devastating human costs of anti-immigration politics and argues for an alternative.

This new edition includes an additional chapter, which explores the impacts of the 2019 election and the ongoing immigration enforcement during the coronavirus pandemic.

"An essential book...Maya gives an excellent and detailed description of how prejudices against immigration are created through political action, rhetoric and historical legacies." - Ecologist

"Hostile Environment expertly unpicks the background of how 2020's racism has been framed by this process and the widespread failure to challenge the basis of it." - Counterfire

"An excellent companion reading for anyone following the UK Black Lives Matter movement. [Hostile Environment] is a valuable resource, with good references for further reading, for understanding how the government and the media's simplistic interpretation of public opinion have led to the creation of inhumane immigration controls." - Peace News

"Urgently necessary ... a work of diligent scholarship, but also of great humanity, which holds up a mirror to a society that may finally be ready to start truly looking at itself." - New Humanist