Mainstreaming fascism

The BBC, skittish about showing the carnage wreaked in Gaza last year to the point of banning an appeal for civilian relief, has no qualms at all about giving Britain's fascist British National Party a podium for its odious views.

Britons' taxes paid for an appearance today by Nick Griffin, president of the BNP. Griffin recently referred to Barack Obama as an "Afrocentric racist bigot" and called for the wholesale deportation of the American Black population to Africa.

The BBC defends its disgraceful decision here. BNP members, incidentally, were allowed to join the studio audience--but members of Unite Against Fascism were denied tickets. Fair and balanced.

The Beeb had its hands full, as it turns out. But my question: why was it up to left groups like United Against Fascism, the Socialist Worker and Stop the War Coalition to protest this disgusting attempt by a public broadcaster to mainstream fascism? Where are the ordinary people of Britain? Have they forgotten WWII?

High time, in any case, to turf the BBC senior management who made the decision before this kind of thing becomes a habit.

PS: BNP membership list, current as of last November, here. It includes members in Canada.

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Note to readers: blogging on my part has been light to non-existent for a few days, and will stay that way until next week. I have contract deadline pressures to deal with. Thanks in the meantime to John Cross and the commenters he has attracted for keeping this place alive.