Fifty-one years ago I arrived in Britain after a long journey on the SS Antilles. My trip had begun on the wharves of Port of Spain, Trinidad, picking up passengers in Martinique and Guadeloupe , then on to Calais before finally dropping anchor in Southampton. I was one of thousands of West Indians who left our tiny islands in response to advertisements for workers to travel to the UK. Not even the brutal murder of Kelso Cochrane in the Notting Hill race riots kept us away.

The underground, the buses, the trains, building sites, the Post Office, hospitals, factories, and industrial estates sucked in this avalanche of human labour.

We lived crammed into tiny rooms at the mercy of greedy landlords. And there were those who made it clear that dogs, blacks and the Irish were not welcome.

These policies were encouraged by politicians whom we may well describe as pioneers of racism and of vulgar white nationalism. They are the parents of Ukip. I know of no moment in the last 50 years when the issue of race and immigration did not grab the headlines. The announcement in the Queen's speech of legislation that will force landlords to police the immigration status of potential tenants is just the latest example.

As the new immigrants, we ducked and dived as missiles – verbal and otherwise – came our way. One election slogan then made things as plain and as clear as can be: "if you want a nigger for a neighbour, vote Labour".

I live in south London where the Poles and others from eastern Europe are my neighbours. The are the new immigrants. They are masters of the building trade, restructuring houses that have fallen apart over the years. Along the high streets cash-transfer businesses thrive as Poles send money to their families at home.

If landlords fail in their new duty to ensure they are not housing illegal immigrants, they could be brought to the courts with charges and fines. That is for now. What next? I will not be surprised if fines are to be followed by imprisonment.

This is nationalism gone mad. Democracy is at stake in this green and unpleasant land. We are heading down a steep slope and this journey began when I arrived here more than 50 years ago.

We need immigrants. Requiring my children – and soon my grandchildren – to take the position of the border police in order to stamp on the heads of immigrants who continue to serve our economy so well is not the answer.