On Tuesday, straight after the close of conference business, I went to this meeting which was sponsored jointly by UNISON and the National Assembly Against Racism (NAAR). This was probably the best event that I attended all week.The breadth of speakers was very impressive. Doreen Lawrence (Stephen Lawrence Trust), Sadiq Khan MP, Claude Moraes MEP, Edie Friedman (Jewish Council for Equality), Prof Tariq Modood (Bristol University) Dr Mohammed Abdul Bari (Muslim Council of Britain), Mohammed Azam (NAAR), Chaired by UNISON national black members' committee chair, Bev Miller. The point was well made that Britain has always been a diverse nation. In the first place a coalition of different nationalities (English, Scots, Welsh and Irish who have celebrated their cultural traditions) and religions. Which also has throughout its history received constant flows of new citizens.
Personally, I think it is an imperative for a democratic society to embrace diversity and multiculturalism. This was also dealt with very well at the Euston Manifesto conference in June.
The one problem with the fringe meeting is that there was so many speakers that there was not enough time to ask questions or for them to respond. I did manage to bring up that in Newham, we have an Ultra Left (Respect) and a Far right fundamentalist Christian party (Christian Peoples Alliance) represented on the Council, elements of which both try to racially and religiously divide our communities and promote hatred. However, the meeting had to close before the panel could back with some advice on how to deal with them.
2 comments:
"The point was well made that Britain has always been a diverse nation."
This is a gross distortion of the truth. Britain's previous diversity was mostly within its indigenous population and the "constant flows of new citizens" you mention were actually a few thousand white Europeans, spread over centuries. The idea of comparing it with massive post-war immigration levels is a deliberate lie.
"Personally, I think it is an imperative for a democratic society to embrace diversity and multiculturalism." The truth is that democracy and multiculturalism are incompatible. When laws are introduced that prohibit freedom of speech to protect 'diversity' then true debate is lost. Without freedom of speech there is no democracy.
I notice that native white people were grossly under represented on the panel of speakers at your meeting. Clearly you see white people as an irrelevant nuisance in 'modern Britain'.
Multiculturalism is gradually being exposed as the anti-Western, marxist lie it has always been and thankfully, it is dying.
Hi Anon (I think actually we have “crossed swords before?”)
Come off it, what on earth are you on? “a few thousand white Europeans, spread over centuries.” There has been constant immigration (and emigration) and huge population shifts. Pre-war we enjoyed at least 50,000 Huguenots, tens of thousands of Chinese, Indians, Africans and hundreds of thousands of East European Jews as immigrants. Britain is probably the most diverse country in Europe. This was before the welcome post-war immigration of commonwealth citizens who saved the NHS and our public transport systems.
Shame you can’t debate things without accusing people of “lying” but I suppose this is just part of the course with extremists (which is of course is essentially “unBritish”)
Of course democracy and multiculturalism is compatible, in fact I believe it is essential! The law does not stop people expressing dissent against diversity rather it is about stopping people deliberately provoking racial hatred and violence. It is actually a long established British legal tradition. Have you never heard of “breaking the Queen’s Peace?”
It was actually refreshing to find a panel with a majority of Black speakers. If you look at nearly all the fringes and rallies I report upon there is shamefully very few BME speakers (thankfully not for long).
Anon, pull yourself out of the sewer of racism and bigotry, after all, just think, at the current rate of inter-marriage in this country you could be the proud grandfather at your granddaughter’s Bar Mitzvah or give away your son to his black Muslim fiancé at their civil partnership ceremony.
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