Ray Bell on "BNP cannot be ignored"

Ray Bell — Mon, 12 May 2008 16:38:19 +0100

Maybe instead of ignoring the BNP, and repeating "Nazi"* all the time, we should be looking at exactly why they get the votes.

My suggestion is that the following are involved:

1) A feeling of disenfranchisement amongst working class white males.

2) Social deprivation and high crime, which affect all, regardless of ethnicity, but the effects of which are transferred onto ethnic minorities.

3) A high degree of non-integration between various social and ethnic groups, which leads to distrust and mutual animosity. This has been documented well by Darkus Howe and others - and not only applies to white-non-white relations, but between the various other groups e.g. Pakistani-West Indian.

4) A white English underclass, which is largely on benefits and has been unemployed for a long period, and sees jobs going to other groups. (In the same way, the emergence of an unemployed underclass of non-White/non-English origin is equally unhealthy.)

I think all of these things apart from #2 are taboo topics. Unless they are addressed properly, further trouble will develop, which shall be harmful to all working class Londoners, regardless of origin. Just because these things are exploited by the BNP, does not mean that they should be ignored.

* I tend to think this accusation holds a lot of water, but making it continually is tantamount to crying "wolf". Just like violence, repeated exposure tends to "harden" the witness.

BNP cannot be ignored, OurKingdom

Guy Aitchison — Sat, 10 May 2008 13:59:29 +0100

GJ Harris (London): On 1 May 2008, the British National Party won its most high profile office to date with the appointment of the party's mayoral candidate, Richard Barnbrook, to the London Assembly. He came fifth in the contest for mayor but then won his assembly seat through the top-up list, allocated by proportional representation with 5.3% of the vote. Whilst the BNP only narrowly met the 5% threshold needed to secure a place on the London Assebly, the result is perhaps all the more significant, considering the high turnout that was hoped would put the seat beyond their reach. The seat was solace for the party’s failure to capitalise on anti-Labour sentiment in competition with a revitalised Conservatives in the local elections outside London where the party increased its number of councillors by 10 to take its total to 55.

The far right in Britain usually provoke one of two responses: a complacency bordering on neglect, given the barrier to small party success by the British electoral system, or the hysterical ringing of alarm bells at the rise of a resurgent neo-fascism. Both are equally misguided. The BNP's recent political gains pose a problem to the democratic pretensions of a progressive opposition, as Barnbrook was quick to point out in his post election speech. The seat is potentially a stepping stone to gains in the forthcoming 2009 European elections, again allocated through PR. Success here would bring significant publicity and access to public funding, which could offer a real electoral breakthrough on the model of some of its continental cousins. It is a dangerous strategy to rely on the flaws of the democratic system as a bulwark against the illiberal democracy of the Far Right. As the BNP gains an increased pres-ence within the political arena this is a fundamental paradox for their opponents. Read the rest of this post...

open Democracy News Analysis - BNP cannot be ignored, OurKingdom - Comments

Ray Bell on "BNP cannot be ignored"

BNP cannot be ignored, OurKingdom