MORE IMMIGRANTS FEELING UNWELCOME IN EUROPE

These people act as if it's their birthright to immigrate illegally. Sound familiar America?

For 35 years, Nura Hadzovic has lived in a gypsy camp on the edge of town, raising four children and working.

Yet this month, for reasons she doesn't fully comprehend, Hadzovic may become one of the latest casualties of the anti-immigrant backlash sweeping Italy and elsewhere in Europe.

Rome's new mayor has vowed to bulldoze 20 immigrant shantytowns in the city, including the one where Hadzovic lives. Giovanni Alemanno — the first right-wing leader to serve as Rome's mayor since fascist Benito Mussolini ruled Italy during World War II — also has promised to expel 20,000 immigrants with criminal records.

In a debate reminiscent of one occurring in the USA, many European leaders are under public pressure to tighten their borders and stop the rising crime and social strain caused by a tide of illegal immigrants.

Alemanno was greeted by some supporters on election night with a stiff-armed salute and cries of duce, or "leader" — open signs of nostalgia for Mussolini, a dictator nicknamed Il Duce who collaborated with Nazi Germany.

Rich western European countries, which have some of the world's highest incomes and most generous social services, are dealing with immigrants from several regions: Africa, south Asia and eastern Europe, where living standards are much lower.

"Migratory pressure on Europe is huge and is destined to increase," says Hugo Brady of the Center for European Reform, a London think tank. "Very few societies welcome large influxes of foreigners. But you'll never stop immigration. What the EU and member states are doing is trying to manage it."

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who becomes the European Union's president July 1, is making a hard-line immigration policy the centerpiece of his six-month rotation to lead the 27-nation bloc.

The EU already is considering rules to allow illegal immigrants to be detained up to 18 months — longer than currently allowed in two-thirds of the member countries.

In Switzerland, where more than 20% of its 7.5 million population is foreign, voters recently rejected a measure that would have made it harder to gain citizenship.

In Italy, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi campaigned to crack down on illegal immigrants, describing them as part of "an army of evil."

Don't let the bastards drag you down.