Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Legal challenge to the BNP
All of the papers are reporting that the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) are considering taking legal action against the BNP over its "apartheid-style" membership policy that bars membership to black, Asian and Jewish people. Apparently, the BNP's membership rules state that members must be "strictly defined" as "indigenous Caucasian and defined ethnic groups emanating from that race".
Its website also states that anyone wishing to work for the party must submit a membership number, which the commission believes breaches race legislation. It is also concerned that BNP candidates elected to office do not intend to offer equal treatment to all members of the public that they represent, which would also amount to a breach of race laws.
Nick Griffin's response to the month he has been given to respond to the EHRC's warnings typify the lack of understanding that he and his party have of equal opportunity law. He denies that the BNP are in breach of the Race Relations Act: "This has got nothing to do with colour, this is about ethnicity," he said. "Because the English, the Scots, the Irish and the Welsh are historically white, does not mean being white is the marker."
Meanwhile, the Western Mail (which appears to have lost control of its own website today) highlights another faux pas by the BNP leader. They report on an interview Griffin gave to Channel Four News in which he claims that there is no such thing as a 'black Welshman', apparently contradicting his previous assertion that the issue is not to do with colour. Welsh he said is about 'people who live in Wales since the end of the last Ice Age.'
He claims that his party is here to 'act for the indigenous people of these islands.' Yet by his definition all of those people would be descendants of immigrants who have settled here since the last Ice Age and many of them would be coloured. The BNP are not just offensive, they are confused as well.
Its website also states that anyone wishing to work for the party must submit a membership number, which the commission believes breaches race legislation. It is also concerned that BNP candidates elected to office do not intend to offer equal treatment to all members of the public that they represent, which would also amount to a breach of race laws.
Nick Griffin's response to the month he has been given to respond to the EHRC's warnings typify the lack of understanding that he and his party have of equal opportunity law. He denies that the BNP are in breach of the Race Relations Act: "This has got nothing to do with colour, this is about ethnicity," he said. "Because the English, the Scots, the Irish and the Welsh are historically white, does not mean being white is the marker."
Meanwhile, the Western Mail (which appears to have lost control of its own website today) highlights another faux pas by the BNP leader. They report on an interview Griffin gave to Channel Four News in which he claims that there is no such thing as a 'black Welshman', apparently contradicting his previous assertion that the issue is not to do with colour. Welsh he said is about 'people who live in Wales since the end of the last Ice Age.'
He claims that his party is here to 'act for the indigenous people of these islands.' Yet by his definition all of those people would be descendants of immigrants who have settled here since the last Ice Age and many of them would be coloured. The BNP are not just offensive, they are confused as well.
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Am I Welsh?
One set of grandparents are from England, specifically Surrey and Essex.
The other Grandfather was from Cwmafan, the land of the moving curtain, but the Granny was from Cardiff and has some "Sais" in her.
The Grandparents who are "Welsh" did take in Refugees (from England) during WW2, the question is:
Do the BNP consider this an act of tretchery, my grandparents taking in English Refugee children?
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One set of grandparents are from England, specifically Surrey and Essex.
The other Grandfather was from Cwmafan, the land of the moving curtain, but the Granny was from Cardiff and has some "Sais" in her.
The Grandparents who are "Welsh" did take in Refugees (from England) during WW2, the question is:
Do the BNP consider this an act of tretchery, my grandparents taking in English Refugee children?
# posted by 
: 6:49 PM
: 6:49 PM<< Home
