I don’t usually watch Question Time because I don’t see the attraction of watching grown men and women squabbling like kids. Last night was an exception. The BBC had decided to allow Nick Griffin of the British National Party (BNP) on the show, and I was curious to see what sort of reception he might get. No doubt many other people tuned in for the exact same reason.
Firstly, I don’t believe the BBC should have even been making a decision on whether to allow him on or not. True, the man is a bigot and his party has an appalling track record of racism, but the fact remains that his party has politicians that have been elected by the people of this country – the same people that pay the BBC’s license fee. If a nation truly believes in equality and free speech then it is only right and proper that all parties are represented and that the BBC does so in an impartial manner. Is this what happened?
Not really. The whole show, bar the last ten minutes was nothing more than a BNP bashing session. Had Mr Griffin not been present, the real issues of the week would have been discussed (the postal strike for instance). Instead, the programme was an all out attack on the BNP and Nick Griffin personally. It was clear that the other politicians in attendance had spent all their time preparing stats and quotes so they could attack him. Jack Straw and David Dimbleby refused to even look at the man, which is nothing short of rudeness. Jack Straw at one point accused Nick Griffin of being evasive in his answers and then did the exact same thing himself when questioned on immigration. Hypocrisy from a politician. Who’d have thought it…?!
Of course, Nick Griffin was exposed to be the racist that he is, regardless of how he and his party may have toned it down to gain more mainstream support. Thanks to the vilification on Question Time though, I imagine many people actually started to feel sorry for him. During the phone-in on Five Live after the programme had aired, a number of people called to express exactly that view. We in Britain do like to support the underdog, so it’s likely that the BNP will do quite well out of Nick’s appearance on the programme.
One interesting point came out of the show for me and that was Nick Griffin’s reference to the “indigenous people of Britain”. Jack Straw was at great pains to twist this expression into “the white people of Britain”, which is not the same thing, and Mr Griffin was laughed at when he said “skin colour is irrelevant”. Of course it’s irrelevant! A white German living in Britain is not indigenous. The “indigenous people of Britain” are white, just like the indigenous people of Australia are black. This is a simple fact, and making reference to an “indigenous people of Britain” is no more racist than it is to refer to the Aborigines as the indigenous people of Australia.
The opposite of “indigenous people” is “ethnic minority”, and that is apparently an acceptable turn of phrase. However, most of the panel were actually trying to deny the existence of an indigenous people in Britain. How bizarre, although not unexpected. I have said before on my blog that white, British, Christian people are the only acceptable target for racism today, and we are certainly targeted on a regular basis.
I guess I recognise myself as “indigenous British”. I’m white and I was born here, as were my ancestors. Does that make me racist? Not at all! I have friends of many different nationalities and races, and I love the diversity that this brings. Do I agree with Nick Griffin that the indigenous people somehow have more rights than the ethnic minorities in Britain? No I don’t. All British citizens should be equal.
Of course we’re not all equal. In its rush to make sure that no member of an “ethnic minority” is ever upset, the Government actively works against the British white population. They introduce racial quotas for job vacancies, that are ostensibly designed to eliminate racism, and in the process of course are completely racist against British white people. Is it right that a less qualified person of Asian ethnicity should be given a job over a more qualified white Briton in order to meet a quota? No, it’s discrimination. The most qualified and experienced applicant should be given the job, regardless of ethnic background, race or religion.
What I’m trying to say is that the mainstream politicians have absolutely no right to accuse the BNP of racism when they are guilty of exactly the same thing themselves. The sooner we get rid of the race card altogether and just see each other as people, the better.
Finally, I thought David Dimbleby was a complete arse. Very rude and obnoxious, and not even remotely impartial in his dealings with Nick Griffin. Frankly, it was a complete shambles. It was perfectly clear that neither Mr Dimbleby nor anybody on the panel really wanted the BNP represented on the show, and they all made themselves look like clowns as a result. Anybody still under the illusion that we live in a democracy or that the BBC impartially represents the different views of the entire nation, should watch the programme again on iPlayer and ask some searching questions. We live in a free society. Freedom of thought. Freedom of speech. Freedom of religion. Nick Griffin may be extremely distasteful to the vast majority of us, but he’s entitled to his views and deserves to be treated with respect as a human being and a British citizen.
Extremist politicians and parties will come and go, and it’s highly unlikely that they will ever gain meaningful power. Why get upset and angry about it? A whole bunch of respectable people made themselves look very small last night for no good reason.
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