• Privacy policy
  • T&C’s
  • FAQ
  • Meet the Team
  • About The London Economic
  • Advertise
TLE ONLINE SHOP!
NEWSLETTER
SUPPORT THE LONDON ECONOMIC
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Opinion
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Film
  • Food
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Opinion
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Film
  • Food
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
No Result
View All Result
Home News

‘No Platform’ Feeds The Right’s Narrative Of Fear

RelatedPosts Mail on Sunday denied permission to appeal against Meghan’s privacy victory Bishop of Leeds asks govt to explain why pooled sovereignty is a ‘positive’ with US and a ‘deficit’ with EU Trust ‘completely destroyed’ in complaints process after Patel bullying row David Cameron is the latest ex-PM to receive a coronavirus vaccine I’ve been […]

Darragh Roche by Darragh Roche
April 25, 2016
in News, Politics

RelatedPosts

Mail on Sunday denied permission to appeal against Meghan’s privacy victory

Bishop of Leeds asks govt to explain why pooled sovereignty is a ‘positive’ with US and a ‘deficit’ with EU

Trust ‘completely destroyed’ in complaints process after Patel bullying row

David Cameron is the latest ex-PM to receive a coronavirus vaccine

I’ve been to many university debates and spoken in more than a few. I’ve heard one man compare gay marriage to Nazism, a 19-year-old claim he was a ‘survivor’ of abortion and an Israeli student joke about killing more Palestinians. Sometimes outrageous or offensive statements cause shock, more often delayed laughter but they never go unchallenged. The National Union of Students would rather not allow potentially controversial debates to take place. The ‘no platform’ policy once used to shut down actual fascists is now a weapon to keep university campuses free from ‘unsafe’ and ‘dangerous’ views.

The real effect of this has been bans on campaigning feminists and human rights activists who deviate from what student activists consider acceptable ideas – a confusing, self-contradictory agenda riddled with buzz words and bad philosophy. But the most dangerous effect of no platforming is the boost it gives to exactly those right-wing elements it’s meant to fight. In a world where Donald Trump is the favoured candidate of millions and Katie Hopkins enjoys a sizeabale readership, ‘dangerous’ opinions are powerful and resonate with many.

One of the central tenets of right-wing populism is the narrative of decline. Western civilisation is in terminal cultural, social and economic decline, they say. The values that made America or Britain or France great are vanishing and need to be restored. People are too ‘politically correct’. Fringe left-wing ideas are gaining ground everywhere. One only needs to look at the NUS to find ample evidence for these claims. The pro-LGBT, pro-diversity stance of students’ unions is extremely important and heartening for the next generation of voters and politicians. But the NUS’s apparent unwillingness to engage with uncomfortable opinions risks empowering the right by proving how conservative and populist opinions are marginalised.

For millions of hard-working voters living through economic difficulties, many without a university education, economic populism and nationalism have a strong appeal. Fans of Katie Hopkins’ rhetoric or Boris Johnson’s bravado already think university students are pampered and out of touch with the average person. The self-styled silent majority looks askance at work shy students protesting politicians and media personalities who ‘speak their mind’. In broad sections of society where acceptance of racial and sexual minorities is in its infancy, the right appeals to fears that the country is changing at the expense of working class whites. Fear of demographic change is what drives much of Donald Trump’s charge and there is fertile ground in the UK for a similar movement.

The ‘no platform’ policy is ultimately self-defeating. Every time a students’ union bans a speaker for being ‘dangerous’, the fear of creeping left-wing intolerance gets a boost. When universities become enclaves of received opinion where any deviation earns condemnation, debate is shut down. Students will be ill equipped to fight their ideological opponents in the real world if they don’t cut their teeth in university. Jeremy Corbyn can’t cry foul and say his safe space has been violated every time David Cameron says something nasty about the poor.

No platforming risks surrendering debate to the worst aspects of political discourse – an angry, petulant, self-righteous right that boasts its victim status and can justifiably brand liberals as cowardly and authoritarian. Fear of a left-wing plot only increases when the self-appointed vanguard of the left silences all dissenters. ‘No platform’ does more for the right than speaking to a group of lefy students ever could.

Since you are here

Since you are here, we wanted to ask for your help.

Journalism in Britain is under threat. The government is becoming increasingly authoritarian and our media is run by a handful of billionaires, most of whom reside overseas and all of them have strong political allegiances and financial motivations.

Our mission is to hold the powerful to account. It is vital that free media is allowed to exist to expose hypocrisy, corruption, wrongdoing and abuse of power. But we can't do it without you.

If you can afford to contribute a small donation to the site it will help us to continue our work in the best interests of the public. We only ask you to donate what you can afford, with an option to cancel your subscription at any point.

To donate or subscribe to The London Economic, click here.

The TLE shop is also now open, with all profits going to supporting our work.

The shop can be found here.

You can also SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER .

Support fearless, free, investigative journalism Support fearless, free, investigative journalism Support fearless, free, investigative journalism

Subscribe to our Newsletter

View our  Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions

Trending fromTLE

  • All
  • trending

What If We Got Rid Of Prisons?

Stress, fear and homelessness: The threat looming over families confronted with eviction

File photo dated 07/11/03 of a prison cell.

The Other Prison Pandemic

Latest from TLE

Euro Millions results Tuesday 2nd March 2021

thunder ball results

Thunder Ball Results, Tuesday 2nd March 2021

Mail on Sunday denied permission to appeal against Meghan’s privacy victory

Bishop of Leeds asks govt to explain why pooled sovereignty is a ‘positive’ with US and a ‘deficit’ with EU

About Us

TheLondonEconomic.com – Open, accessible and accountable news, sport, culture and lifestyle.

Read more

Address

The London Economic Newspaper Limited t/a TLE
Company number 09221879
International House,
24 Holborn Viaduct,
London EC1A 2BN,
United Kingdom

Contact

Editorial enquiries, please contact: jack@thelondoneconomic.com

Commercial enquiries, please contact: advertise@thelondoneconomic.com

SUPPORT

We do not charge or put articles behind a paywall. If you can, please show your appreciation for our free content by donating whatever you think is fair to help keep TLE growing and support real, independent, investigative journalism.

DONATE & SUPPORT

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.




No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Opinion
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Film
  • Lifestyle
  • Food
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech & Auto
  • About The London Economic
  • Meet the Team
  • Privacy policy

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.