Class politics and anti-racism: reply to John Denham
Posted on Friday 15 January, 2010
Filed Under Immigration
IT’S NOT that I approve of the game John Denham is trying to play off in trading off class politics against anti-racism, as witnessed by the speech and the statement he yesterday delivered on these topics.
New Labour cannot conceivably take on the British National Party in a game of right populist pass the parcel and emerge victorious, and the communities secretary only demeans himself by blatant flirtation with the tactic.
But if you strip the underlying argument away from the shoddy implied conclusion, Denham makes several points that are patently irrefutable. Class remains the central cleavage in capitalist societies, and much discrimination at first sight based on race really does have more to do with social stratification.
No doubt Lakshmi Mittal or Mohamed al Fayed or Swraj Paul can all point to occasions when they have been treated differentially on account of their skin.
Let me tell you about an acquaintance of mine who teaches philosophy at Oxford University. He habitually wears a suit and tie; indeed, I’ve never seen him wear anything else, even at weekends. Every time he opens his mouth, he reveals himself to be the product of a prominent fee-paying school.
But he is visibly of south Asian origin, and was recently subjected to a shocking string of racist calumny and abuse by a complete stranger, simply for the crime of sharing the same railway carriage.
Nevertheless, the kind of racism faced by wealthy upper and middle class Asians and blacks does not compare with the racism faced by working class Asians and blacks, in every significant area of life from housing to education to the jobs market. Their class interests obviously align them with the white working class.
Sorry, did I say white working class? There are some on the left who would dismiss the very concept as an unnecessary concession to national chauvinism. For a class pour soi in the Marxist sense, such distinctions must be obliterated, surely?
Quite. But such a level of abstraction is indicative of a certain level of detachment from the realities on the ground. In the real live and kicking British working class, self-identification with the designation is surely growing.
With the far left beset by the permanent paralysis of factionalism, the far right has moved onto our turf. According to a poll for Searchlight, 61% of BNP voters fall into the C2DE categories on the standard scale of class, even though this layer constitutes just 45% of the population.
Political common sense over the last two decades has insisted that elections are won and lost in a small number of key marginals, and manifestoes have been geared exclusively to swing voter concerns. Millions of ordinary people have twigged that New Labour has written them off as mere voting fodder with no viable electoral options. They are not too far wrong.
What we are seeing now is a new racism rooted in the collapse of social housing, a racism born of the disappearance of blue collar employment and grassroots trade union organisation, a racism of benefit cuts, a racism centred on the perception that nobody in a position of authority really gives a shit. You might even want to call it a racism of desperation.
But the answer is not – as Denham seems to think – to build up the white working class into a communalist bloc, and then fling them a few chocolate drops by paying special attention to the sectionalist interests.
Labour needs to reconnect with this base by building a politics that appeal concretely to the majority of society that are either wage-earners themselves, or are supported by a wage-earner, or excluded from being a wage-earner by unemployment, illness or age.
While that will necessitate anti-racist measures, ethnicity should be a secondary consideration. The answer to the new racism can only be founded on a new class politics.
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86 Responses to “Class politics and anti-racism: reply to John Denham”
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It’s hard to know who’s engaged more with the politics of racial identity, the sectarian Left or the Right.
Self-styled ‘socialists’ have a great line on ‘working class’ unity, but the practice doesn’t match the rhetoric.
In reality the bulk of working people are barely even aware of the sectarian/Trot left – which increasingly relies for its survival on confessional politics.
So while Galloway spends his spare time on Press TV supporting the Iranian regime against domestic dissidence, the BNP are out campaigning against the Council Tax and fuel poverty.
You don’t need to be a genuis to guess who’s going to have the broader appeal.
Jimmy -
If you belief in the Annunciation and the Virgin Birth, as tens of millions do, it’s all 100%true. To them anyway.
Ditto Islam.
Ditto Islamophobia.
There are people who detest Islam out of ignorance and those – far fewer – who detest it from profound knowledge and awareness. The resolute souls in SIOE and the people at Jihad Watch are examples of this latter class of people.
My own degree of what some would consider Islamophobia is somewhat complex because I live and work among Muslims and deal with Muslims as human beings on a day-to-day basis while being acutely aware that the malignant influence of Islam in non-Muslim societies has increased, is increasing and should be strenuously resisted by everyone with any brains and backbone.
One hates to say it aloud, but a deep pessimism is affecting those who wish to resist the spread of Islam in Europe, the Americas, the Antipodes and Russia.
Whether or not this pessimism isjustified only time will tell.
“So while Galloway spends his spare time on Press TV supporting the Iranian regime against domestic dissidence, the BNP are out campaigning against the Council Tax and fuel poverty.
You don’t need to be a genuis to guess who’s going to have the broader appeal.”
WINSTON, More Pro BNP propaganda. Stop it already! You and Bill Corr make quite a tag team.
And Galloway has a first class record in championing these working class issues, the problem is some people just deliberatley ignore this and choose to spread lies.
Why they do this is a complete mystery to me, maybe it’s an attempt to provide more sheep to the BNP slaughter.
JOHNNO rightly points out that Galloway, for all his real or allegedly shortcomings, is an MP who is genuinely interested in people and their real needs.
Instead of spending time on oligarchs’ yachts, like some MPs who could be named, Galloway has distinguished himself by being – so far as I’m aware – the one and only MP to draw attention to the number of ex-servicemen sleeping rough, banged up behind bars and sectioned as mentally ill.
That said, this may be of interest since we were talking about community harmony, disharmony and what Mao called ‘Contradictions among the People’:
http://www.amren.com/mtnews/archives/2010/01/britons_are_sus.php
It’s from the ‘Telegraph’ via a doubleplusungood source, but AmRen is an interesting site, compared to some.
Having being called a “Marxist troll” there, by another contributor with a very simplistic view of the world, I have an especially soft spot for AmRen; I was istantly reminded of Tariq Ali’s ‘Black Dwarf’ and I wonder how many people reading this today have ever heard of ‘Black Dwarf.’
“Clean out the Augean stables! Let us have nothing nasty or disturbing said around here, whether it’s true or not!”
What can MAG mean?
If the truth upsets MAG, who is right and who is wrong?
So, MAG, check this out and feel free to comment:
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/4274
And when an awful person like Rod Liddle says that Afro-Caribbeans are, er, not altogether unconnected with knife crime and gun crime in London, is the Liddle truthing or lying?
MAG will find this news from the Netherlands heartening:
http://www.smalldeadanimals.com/archives/013150.html
Saying the wrong thing aloud is ipso facto bad, geddit! The fact that the wrong thing is the truth is an irrelevance.
Blinky,
I am sure even the odious Rod Liddle didn’t claim Afro-Caribbeans are predisposed to knife crime as some inherent feature of their race. I am sure he is aware that the vast majority of Afro-Caribbeans do not go around knifing people. I am certain he will have brought cultural and economic factors into the equation and contextualised the statement.
I mean he isn’t a total fucking moron is he?
“In the real live and kicking British working class, self-identification with the designation is surely growing.”
One thing you haven’t mentioned Dave is how far the ‘white working class’ is interrelated/intermarried with Caribbeans.
I habitually drink with Caribbeans and those of Caribbean descent. Them and the Irish make a big part of our drinking circle. In the pub there are some Southern Indians plus a few Sikhs. Pub: real locus for class identity.
When I walk down the street by my gaff I habitually see very ordinary black women with white men and black men with white women. Believe you me, they are working class/poor. It really moves me to see their care for their children.
Class politics means addressing their material needs. Not multiculturalism.
A Coates,
“Class politics means addressing their material needs. Not multiculturalism.”
Are you saying here it doesn’t matter what someone believes, what religion they belong to etc. Or are you saying class politics prohibits multi culturalism and dictates belief?
On the Pub, many many workers do not go the the pub. Are they to be excluded from the struggle???
All sorts of snappin’ – snarlin’ discussions are going on elsewhere and some readers here will find them of interest…
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=ZjQ0MDY0OTZmNGI1YWE2Yjc4NDA0N2MwZmJmNjNhNDE=
And even Enemy-Of-The-People Liddle never claimed that ethno-cultural group XXXX or YYYY is pre-disposed to knife crime, contenting himself with observing that XXXX seem to commit far more than their fair share of the knife and gun crime committed in London.
He might have added that XXXX are disproprtionately over-represented in the British, French, Dutch and Belgian prison systems.
Of course, Bernie Madoff is no XXXX. As Woodie Guthrie sang” … some will rob you with a six-gun and some with a fountain-pen.”
And this is something published in Washington which will be of interest to some readers here …
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/jan/12/governing-class-elites-or-idiots/
Hating the political elite for being blind to impending disaster is an interesting feeling.
Coatsey probably knows a neat French term for it, but there is no such neat word or word-cluster in English. So far as I know.
I think Andrew has put the crux of the matter, and those poeple like Johnno who don’t grasp it reveal their limitations. Any class alliance will be one built on practice, on concerete struggle and issues, not on touchy-feely, I’ll be your friend if you’ll be mine type of thinking.
JOHNNO:
You win the Nick Griffin award for ‘useful idiot’ services to the success of fascism. Keep it up, mate. You might even end up on the payroll.
To see Galloway get behind the Iranian leadership:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcTwBzfvfRM
To see Galloway turn the tragedy of Gaza into a ‘children in need’ photo opportunity for his own declining political celebrity simply switch on your TV. Don’t forget your sickbag.
Winnie,
“You win the Nick Griffin award for ‘useful idiot’ services to the success of fascism”
You are the one promoting the positive side of the BNP every chance you get. You don’t know it but you are quite literally Nick Griffin’s useful idiot.
“To see Galloway turn the tragedy of Gaza into a ‘children in need’ photo opportunity for his own declining political celebrity”
Get real Galloway was flying the Palestinian flag over Dundee in the 1970′s for gods sake. It isn’t some piece of opportunsim to enhance his career but a lifelong commitment to their cause.
Now you may not like the cause but it is spreading this malicious bullshit that makes me head for the sick bag.
SueR,
Personal belief’s are concrete, you want to exclude certain sections of the population (Muslims) from the struggle because you do not approve of their opinions. Marx criticised this attitude his entire life and was correct to do so.
Binky,
“contenting himself with observing that XXXX seem to commit far more than their fair share of the knife and gun crime committed in London.”
Liddle may be an odious prick but he isn’t a total moron. (Though some of his statements may appeal to total morons). I can’t believe that he didn’t put his observations in some sort of context, bringing in cultural, socio-economic factors etc.
Or at the very least going further than the statement XXXX commit a greater share of XXXX, to do otherwise would make him a right XXXX.
JOHHNO, what’s the ‘positive’ side of the BNP…? I didn’t know they had one. I think any kind of appreciation of their alleged merits belongs to you alone.
Galloway’s ‘lifelong committments’ are fairly self evident: Stalinism and his lucrative Parliamentary career. The formers thankfully over; the latter continues as a by-product of confessional politics, expensive suits and cynical opportunism.
That he ‘flew’ a ‘Palestinian flag’ over ‘Dundee’ in minor orgy of self publicising tokenism is hardly relevant – I doubt any exertions he’s undertaken on behalf on the Palestinians or Politburo have compromised his fine cigars, his investment income or his lucrative Parliamentary sinecure.
JOHNNO – Being neither a starry-eyed Liddlophiliac nor a ranting Liddlophobic, I can only suggest you pop over to Pickled Politics and Liberal Conspiracy, where Sunny Hundal and some like-minded people are asserting that Liddle is a sort of Charles Manson of the Media who deserves nothing less than death by slow torture:
http://liberalconspiracy.org/2010/01/17/rod-liddle-admits-writing-racist-msgs-on-footy-website/
Liddle’s cruel-but-true observations about the enrichment Somalis have brought to Britain were, I believe, first aired in ‘The Spectator,’ as were his observations about Afro-Caribbeans and violent crime, but whether he blogs about any of this to Millwall supporters is wholly unknown to me.
Those who wish to know the full extent of Liddle’s crimes against humanity would be well advised to approach Sunny H. in person.
As a German, Karl Marx was fond of a pint or two, I don’t recall him feeling that this cut him off from the largely tee-total English left of the day. I do recall that he didn’t regard Islamic culture as in the vanguard of human history or emancipation though. Something about Asiatic modes of production. No doubt you’ll claim otherwise. You didn’t answer the question about the provenence of ‘Winston Smith’, makes me think you don’t know.
What a laugh! What a scream!
Here’s that Liddle upholding the right of Afghan wimmin and Klansmen in full regalia to stroll around fully veiled and denouncing UKIP for trying to outbid the BNP for the Islamophobic vote…
http://www.spectator.co.uk/rodliddle/5712148/dont-vote-ukip.thtml
Never know where you bleedin’ stand with that Rod Seacole Liddle, do you?
SueR,
“As a German, Karl Marx was fond of a pint or two, I don’t recall him feeling that this cut him off from the largely tee-total English left of the day”
You will have to explain this comment because I honestly don’t have a clue what you are trying to say or how it relates to anything I have said.
“do recall that he didn’t regard Islamic culture as in the vanguard of human history or emancipation though. Something about Asiatic modes of production.”
Islamic culture, in all its immense variety, operates mainly within capitalist modes of production these days and not Asiatic ones. So this is purely a question of culture, religious belief etc. On this Marx was unequivocal; we do not build absolutes and ask people to kneel before them.
Marx was scathing of comrades who wanted atheism as part of the programme of demands. What he would have made of your explicit racism one can only begin to imagine.
“You didn’t answer the question about the provenence of ‘Winston Smith’, makes me think you don’t know.”
Sue, I used Winnie because it had been used earlier to wind Mr. Smith up. So this question wasn’t even put to me. But go on tell us all what it means, if it helps your ego.
Winston,
I think you are wrong on Galloway, I think your hatred of him clouds your objectivity. I don’t particularly share his statist solutions (I wouldn’t call them Stalinist personally but can see why some would) but I think his commitment to the Palestinian cause is 100% genuine and I admire him for it. If you don’t share his concern for the Palestinians, fair enough but why cloud the issue with these slanders?
On your ‘positive’ statements about the BNP here is an example,
“the BNP are out campaigning against the Council Tax and fuel poverty.”
Nick Griffin might use that on the next poster campaign!
And earlier you compared the BNP favourably to the SWP, not even the most debased sectarian would claim the BNP are better than the SWP. But you do!
JOHNNO,
I sincerely hope that you’re not over the age of eleven. If you are you may have some serious cognitive problems.
That, “the BNP are out campaigning against the Council Tax and fuel poverty,” is just a simple statement of fact, not a ‘positive’ statement of support.
Galloway’s Stalnism, again, is a simple matter of record. He’s never tried to hide it. In fact his commitments go right up into recent history: last time Afghanistan was invaded George was in full support.
I didn’t compare the BNP and SWP at all. I simply expressed a truism that applies to both: the fact that a Party might have a few policies that could be taken out of context as ‘socialist’ doesn’t make that Party’s socialist in any meaningful sense.
The SWP are indistinguishable from any other religous cult: doctrinnaire; sectarian; authoritarian; introspective and opportunist. I mean they’re generally nicer than Jehovah’s witnesses, and certainly morally superior to Nazis, but I don’t think anyone over the age of 16 would regard a group of socially dysfunctional paper sellers as ‘socialists.’
Winston,
“That, “the BNP are out campaigning against the Council Tax and fuel poverty,” is just a simple statement of fact, not a ‘positive’ statement of support.”
But why would anyone outside the BNP want to accentuate and advertise their positives, especially in an arena frequented by hardcore BNP’ers? Socialists should be spending their time exposing them as anti working class frauds, not bigging them up. (See their policies on Trade unions).
On you comparing the BNP and SWP, you said the BNP had some leftist policies while the SWP were almost socialists, a ridiculous moronic position that can’t be taken seriously. As your latest rant about the SWP proves you are incapable of objective thought. You are no better than the most fundamental fundamentalist.
Galloway has never tried to hide his Statist policies this much is true, Stalinist is a whole different matter. It means totalitarianism, Gulags, purges. Galloway is on record as being against capital punishment, Stalinist is too imflammatory a term in my opinion.
Winston, good post above at 19:32. The SWP can justifiably claim that the difference between them and the BNP is that the SWP are not racist. Some SWP could of course be anti-semetic but this is difficult to prove. I wonder what type of dictatorship JOHNNO would wish for.
JOHNNO, grow up. Anyone can go on record and say anything they wish. Does not mean they are honest and sincere.
JOHNNO
“On you comparing the BNP and SWP, you said the BNP had some leftist policies while the SWP were almost socialists”
Let me clarify: I have said the BNP have policies, which taken in isolation, would be called ‘left wing’ within the terms of British political discourse. I then made it clear that this does not make the BNP ‘socialist’ in any meaningful sense.
I have also pointed out that the SWP have policies, that taken in isolation might be regarded as socialist. For all I know so do the Raeleans and the Moonies. Again, this does not make the SWP socialists in any meaningful sense of the word.
I have never claimed that the SWP are socialist, or almost socialist, or proto-socialist or post-modern socialist. They’re clearly not socialist at all. Period.
How hard is this to uderstand? The SWP are regarded as an irritating little sect across the board. Anyone with a background in social movements will know precisely how destructive and difficult they are.
I’m afraid JOHNNO, that it is only within the fantasy world of toy town Leninists that the SWP are taken seriously.
Did you just join at Fresher’s Fair..?
I said that Marx described the Islamic economic organisation as the Asiatic mode of production: regardless, of what it is today, that is what it was then. As for racism…ever read Engels on the Irish? Yeah, atheism… I think the point was that he was opposed to thinkers like Stirner who were doctrinaire about it, rather like Richard Dawkins in our own time. Ego..maybe, but if you were as beautiful and as clever as I am, you’d be egotistical as well.
SueR. I like beautiful women with or without the ego.
In relation to nothing in particular, am I alone in thinking there are certain commentators who:
1) are dead working class;
2) know that the working class have no knowledge or interest of or in the SWP or BNP;
3) know an awful lot about the SWP or BNP?
Lone free-thinkers against the world, or something, I expect.
Lobby Ludd. Being a working class person I know a lot about the SWP & BNP. They are would be dictators. They have quite a lot in common.
“I said that Marx described the Islamic economic organisation as the Asiatic mode of production: regardless, of what it is today, that is what it was then.”
In that case SueR what does that make Christianity which pre dates Islam and capitalism? And it is what Marx had to deal with.
On Atheism it had nothing to do with Stirner, Marx was scathing about fellow socialists, fellow members of the international who wanted to put atheism as a demand in the party programme.
I will refrain from replying to Winston as he is clearly damaged. But is there a doctor in the house?
The two local ‘grog shops’ (cheap offys) are run by Pakistanis.
It is true saying that identity-multi-culturalism has a lot to answer for in erecting walls between people.
The working class/ordinary people mix. We always have. My post on Caribbeans seems to have disappeared, but I would mention that the rate of inter-marriage/relationships is very high. As it is, fact rarely cited in the British media, between those of a North African background and ‘white’ French. Class politics are about making this into something real that unites on real issues.
As for Galloway he has a first class record in championing himself.
A Coates,
I still don’t really know what point you are trying to make. Do you think issues to do with religion (eg wearing the veil) or racism and sexism etc (identity politics) should be left outside class politics and class politics should only focus on social-economic issues, housing, pensions etc. Would you be against a socialist party having a women’s section for instance.
“As for Galloway he has a first class record in championing himself.”
Did Galloway go on Big Brother for self publicity or to raise the profile of the issues he believes in. I tend to think the latter but you want to claim the idea he is in it for himself as a truth. I think the fact he got kicked out of New Labour shows his passion for the things he believes. He could easily have stayed silent like the rest of them.
JOHNNO, LUCKY FOR YOU BEING GULLIBLE IS STILL NOT AN OFFENCE.
Johnno: You ask how Marx would have characterized Christianity which pre-dates Islam. Which period are we talking about? Obviously, in the ancient world it supported slave owning, in the Germanic world it supported the tribal organisation, then with the Norman Conquest feudalism was introduced into England, then, as we know, the growth of towns and the rise of mercantile traders led to capitalism. (This is greatly simplified of course!). So, it is a case of which period of Christianity’s history are we talking about? As far as Islamic economic relations go…presumably, there was some development there over hundreds of years, especially when subject people were conquered, but I rather fancy the societies they conquered were generally slave owning societies as was usual in the ancient world. If anyone knows anything about the landholdings and economic organisation in Islamic Spain, it would be interesting to hear about it. I do know, that under the Ottoman Empire, only the Caliph could own land, private ownership of land was outlawed as a way of ensuring that noone could challenge the power of the Caliph. Under Norman feudalism there were certain obligations, on both sides, does anyone know if this is the case with Islamic feudalism?
SueR, Marx would have probably said in summing up Christianity as being the opium of the people like all other religions. That was short SueR.
As every school child knows, Jimmy, ‘the point is not to interprete the world, the point is to change it.’. I find the various doctrinal strands interesting, I could debate for hours concepts of morality and freewill, etc etc, but at teh end of the day, it’s history and politics that counts. It’s the mundane things such as landholdings, legal organisation, education and literacy rates that tell you so much more about a society. That’s why I found Johnno’s question strange, because it did not demonstrate any historical sense, any sense of the acutual conrete existence of societies and the struggle for life.
if every editor wrote like you believe me the world would be a better place! this was an excellent read expecting more!