Intimidation has led the Durham Union Society to call off the debate between BNP northern double-act, Andrew Brons MEP and Cllr Chris Beverley, and the Conservatives’ unlikely pairing of Edward Leigh MP and Kulveer Ranger.
After extensive consultations with the Police on the issue of public safety, university authorities were cowered by the threat of clashes outside the university venue. The National Union of Students promised bus loads of members would be sent to Durham to close down the event, according to the DUS press release.
This is a bad day for the British value of freedom of expression. And a set-back in the fight against extremism:-
The university should show more back-bone. Carolyn Fowler, the University’s Registrar said: “The University statutes clearly state that any threat to public safety supersedes the importance of freedom of expression”. If even our universities make health and safety considerations paramount, who on earth is there left to fight for freedom of expression?
The police should do whatever’s necessary to uphold the University’s right to hold such a debate, not advising against such meetings. It defies belief that the police are handing the NUS a veto on debate in this country because of the threat of a few bus loads of students.
The NUS’s “No Platform” policy is a repressive, counter-productive throw-back to the arrogant student politics of the 1960s. Instead of bussing in students for a punch-up, the NUS should be teaching students how to win the argument against extremism.
No one likes the idea of life-long Nazi-sympathisers like Brons and young thugs like Beverley using a venue like Durham University to espouse their hate-filled, neo-fascist, racist ideology. Particularly before an election. But if we do not have the confidence to overcome these bullies on a challenged platform then we can be sure to beat them at the ballot box.
James Bethell
Tags: Andrew Brons, beverley, durham university, featured, no platform
James, so why does your leader continue to be a sponsor for the UAF?
Stop pretending you’re disappointed that this event has been called off. The reality is that your Tory man, Edward Leigh, is relieved at not having to defend the indefensible (“This house believes in a multicultural Britain”). Brons would have wiped the floor with him
Hot debate. What do you think?
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I am not so sure that the university authorities have the power to ban this debate because I don’t think that the Union Society is answerable to them. At Oxford that is certainly the case. It looks to me as if the society’s officials are using the university as cover.
To be fair to them they may have a point. The Oxford Union has a walled garden around it, but the Durham version is litle more than a converted house with a door onto the street. I can imagine horrendous security problems.
That said, giving in like this is just wrong in principle.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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The point is that this blog is simply redolent with hollow courage.
It points and screams, “who on earth is there left to fight for freedom of expression!”, at anyone who thinks twice about giving a platform to those whose views they find extremist.
But then, in the next breath, it goes on to condemn with vitriol those who have the actual temerity of doing so.
To paraphrase Pat Condell’s latest video,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96ZUZ9CPZII
it is that curious mixture of arrogance and cowardice that marks out the slavish advocate of multi-culturalism.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Thanks!
Funny how the BBC haven’t mentioned this!
I wonder why, election coming, upset apple carts & votes for the BNP & all that.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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“A sad day for freedom of expression.”
But if Nothing British was at all bothered by freedom expression, why was it so obsessed with preventing the Jobbik Friends of Hungary meeting here? I know of course, you find their views abhorrent, if you could understand them and from what I read you could not… but that’s not the point.
You either believe in freedom of expression or you do not.
At the time I recall that there was a massive campaign of intimidation against the landlord of a pub where this meeting took place (you didn’t condemn it), the Hungarian party issued a challenge to you to prove your wild accusations (you could not), in fact you did everything short of condoning violence to suppress this now much-vaunted Freedom of Expression.
Don’t deny it. Oh certainly you chose your words carefully but they were incitement nonetheless, and that is what they were meant to be, I quote:
http://www.nothingbritish.com/12/kentish-town-british-jobbik-association-meeting/
“We see no reason why this sort of meeting should go unchallenged in the UK.”
So is what you are in fact saying, that only British people should be granted “freedom of expression” in Britain?
Seems that way to me, quite an ironically nationalistic stance, wouldn’t you say?
The point is, you can only be said to approve of Freedom of Expression to the extent that you advocate and enthusiastically support the rights of other people to freely express views with which you are totally opposed; otherwise, like this blog, it’s just all a sham…
Hot debate. What do you think?
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So they believe in “This house believes in a multicultural Britain” but not in free speech when it comes to discussing this subject?
So this POV has to be accepted without dissent?
Then they wonder why people support the BNP!
Hot debate. What do you think?
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All it would take is a dozen genuine patriots to defend the debating chamber and the debaters from the screeching and walling anti free speech fascists. Without the authorities protection and support the grubby little UAF clown gang would of been toast years ago. “The tree of liberty must be refreshed……” And with the blood of the supporters of tyrants.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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“The NUS should be teaching students how to win the argument against extremism.”
Can’t see this happening, it means having to teach students how to think for themselves. That would never do, they might start questioning their marxist indoctrination agenda as well
Hot debate. What do you think?
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So much for freedom of expression. These student turds will be the future leaders of Britain; anyone calling them fascist….. thought not.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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“Cowered”? perhaps the author of this post missed quite a few English language Lessons during his Oxbridge education.
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He might have had estate duties to perform?
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You know Jim, I still can’t work out your reasoning for this site. It’s obvious to a blind man that it’s a complete failure. Come on man. Retire to the library with your service revolver.
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Some years ago, a friend of mine was in a similar dilemma. He was in charge of the debating society at UEA (Norwich Uni) and he invited two BNP candidates to the debating society to speak. His reasoning, which many years on he stands by, was that by letting them speak he would expose them for the unreconstructed bigots that they really were – and that, faced with an intelligent young audience, they would be metaphorically torn to pieces. He was proven right, but not before he had been vilified for inviting them along. He was, and is, a dedicated anti-racist. Think. Sometimes giving these “people” a voice is a more powerful weapon than gagging them.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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