If you need urgent support, call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. To contact our Crisis Messenger (open 24/7) text THEMIX to 85258.
Read the community guidelines before posting ✨
Aged 16-25? Share your experience of using the discussion boards and receive a £25 voucher! Take part via text-chat, video or phone. Click here to find out more and to take part.
Options
BNP members to be banned from the Civil Service.
BillieTheBot
Posts: 8,722 Bot
The Government is considering whether or not to ban all BNP members (all about 7000 of them) from any civil service job.
Am I the only one to think this is a serious mistake?
This means discriminating on the basis of someone political beliefs something I find vile.
Yes the BNP are nasty but measures like this only make them out to be a serious party which is a threat. They should just be dismissed as a bad joke.
I definately hope that they take this ban (if it comes in) to the EU court and make the government back down.
Heres the link;
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3669836.stm
Your thoughts?
Am I the only one to think this is a serious mistake?
This means discriminating on the basis of someone political beliefs something I find vile.
Yes the BNP are nasty but measures like this only make them out to be a serious party which is a threat. They should just be dismissed as a bad joke.
I definately hope that they take this ban (if it comes in) to the EU court and make the government back down.
Heres the link;
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3669836.stm
Your thoughts?
Beep boop. I'm a bot.
0
Comments
Many people think that banning the BNP is a good thing, but it is a very dangerous thing. Without all this publicity the BNP are a nothing party, a way to score a cheap protest vote in order to get deprivation problems solved quickly. The BNP would flounder and disappear if they were left alone.
But no, we have a Government trying to shut down a bona fide democratic political party. Their views are abhorrent, and most people see that. But once the precedent is set, there's no stopping it. If a George Dubya PM got in, the Communists would be banned, and not one of the anti-nazis could complain because they'd demanded it of another party. Once democracy is tampered with there is no returning to it. It's a shame more people can't grasp this.
And even leaving aside the democratic dubiousness of the measures, they don't work. People who agree with the BNP's racist stance aren't going to change just because the BNP is outlawed; if anything, they will become more entrenched in their views, blaming a conspiracy against them by the ethnic minorities.
People join the BNP, and vote for the BNP, for a reason, and more often than not it isn't from a racist agenda. The BNP set themselves up as the champion of the poor, and people fall for it, and use the BNP as a protest vote. Banning them and persecuting them will only make them stronger.
I have to say that if the BNP get any more victimisation I would probably vote for them, just to prove a point. They are vermin, but that isn't the issue.
I'm presuming that the EU Bill on Human Rights covers this, though I'm not sure.
The phrase 'the thin end of the wedge' applies in this case.
As I've said before however there are certain positions, such as primary school teachers or policemen, where there is a clear conflict of interest and serious risk of abuse of position, and which should be no-go areas for racists.
I agree with you entirely (for once).
The counter argument, of course, would be that banning BNP membership would not ban racism, it would just drive it underground and entrench it.
I also believe most people when they say that they leave their political views at the door, although sometimes it is difficult to. For the record, I think teachers and police officers should be banned from being a member of ANY political party, as the classroom or the police station should not be arenas of politics.
The BNP serve a useful purpose as showing how stupid the attitudes of racists and bigots are, "banning" them or victimising them and their members only makes martyrs out of them.
Which is why it is good on the fire service for not sacking a BNP fireman, despite the wails of the FBU (who have put more lives in danger by striking than any number of racist firemen could).
Police station, yes. Classroom, no. At the younger ages, most children don't understand politics anyway, and are not at that age where they can be influenced.
Later on, it is of great benefit to children if their teachers have strong political views and are prepared to express them. it helps to round their education.
one can't argue that teachers are in any way bigoted against any group of people. a lot of them are devoted to children full stop.
at least it gives right-wing children a chance for an argument, most teachers are socialists anyway.
But do you really think this will actually change their views?
How will this move actually decrease the number of racists?
Going off the subject marginally, I feel that teachers being objective is the very problem with the education system. Teachers are being taught to tick boxes to say 'yes, i've done my literacy hour' or 'yes, i've done a lesson in fractions'. Teachers aren't being taught how children learn anymore, and new teachers are simply following codes and guidelines, rather than actually ensuring that children are taught properly. I am qualified to comment in this considering I have been brought up around education and teaching, and have had 18 years of experience in teaching and learning.
Politics has no place in the classroom - does this apply to Government and Politics lessons, one wonders...
No, it probably won’t change their views at all, but it will stop them having a possible negative influence on the people they teach or protect.
Yes members wont be able to join, but there are only about 7000 of those anyway. So they could just leave and then become a teacher with their views even stronger because of this stupid law.
This will make racists MORE racist not less.
Just because you maybe force them to quit the party does NOT mean they will stop being racist.
he belongs more to the BNP and their hisorial idols than he does labour
It will have the opposite effect.
Instead of them being mildly racist, but living and letting live, if they ban the BNP all it will do is make these people angry, and obviously they will blame it on the "ethnics". It would entrench racism, and make it stronger- people will become something if it is "banned".
Also, on a slightly more rational level, it will drive the racists underground. Instead of being a BNP member, and advertising to the world what they think, they'll do it in private. And be more vociferous.
It's a stupid idea anyway. As has been shown time and time again, most BNP members are not racists.
Its the voters who are different, they are a protest vote for a party that actually stands for something.
If the government actually did something about the 'sink hole' estates then the BNP would die out anyway.
And the BNP will milk this to hell if it happens.
I'm not saying the BNP should be banned, of course it shouldn't, but i still maintain if someone is a member of this party we can't have them teaching kids or policing society. I know it would be horrible if i was at school and my teacher was a member of the BNP, how messed up would that be?
That in no way stops them having offensive views.
In that case are their any other policies from parties that are racist.
Any plans to have "positive discriminatuion" could be seen as racist and coulf be used to ban a party, If you were looking ofr an excuse.
Also what about if we have a Catholic PM who consideres abortion murder ban every party who support "murder"
"We have democracy in this country people are fel to vote for who they like and join any political party they like
AS LONG AS YOU AGREE WITH ME"
It'd be unfortunate but irrelevant.
I'd hate for my kids to be taught by some fucking commie bastard, as communism is a disgusting and vile political belief. But oddly enough the Government aren't gonna ban all the Commies from the schools and the police force.
Either we have political freedom or we make these posts politically restricted for all. Can't have it all ways.
They must have specific reasons for a ban not just the perception
Or else the reason just becomes "cause Tony dosnt like them"
Not quite that.
The reason is "Tony doesn't want to upset the black people".
I do not believe that there is ever justification to disciminate on the basis of political affiliation. Not for teachers, the police or any other walk of civil service.
Once we allow the standing Govt to determine what political beliefs the civil service officals hold then we open the door to massive abuse of the system. Just because the current proposal supports the users of this forum's political beliefs does not make it a good idea and I would expect outrage if the civil service was banned from having union representation - especially where those union contribute to Labour coffers.
People have their right to their political beliefs, I agree with you on that. My problem with the BNP is, unlike any other political party I know of, they openly discriminate against people, in their case persons who aren’t of “native British descent.” Now I think a lot of kids in schools won’t be of “native British descent’” and I cannot agree with these people teaching them, as membership to this party, betrays a feeling of hostility to some or all ethnic minorities.