Anti-Englishness Reconsidered
Posted Under: Minorities,Racism/Fascism
It goes without saying that most people who go on about anti-Englishness are utter berks. Often they are coming from the vantage point that white anglo-saxons are the primary victims of ‘racism’, or at the very least, from the perspective that all ethnic groups are operating on a level playing field.
Yet, anti-English rhetoric does indeed exist, and it is often levelled at the most dispossessed and disadvantaged members of society. What is noticeable – especially if you are a north Londoner like me – is a distinct form of middle class anti-racism. It is not uncommon to hear people demonstrating their ‘respect’ for immigrants by favourably comparing their work ethic with that of the lazy british workers. It will usually be people who a lucky to have reasonably fulfilling decent paying jobs asserting that we need immigrants because ‘our boys’ are so unreasonably unwilling to to pick strawberries for 6 quid an hour.
What I am trying to say is that when white English people engage in anti-English rhetoric, they are not always being as self-deprecating as they sound. Attacking the ‘English’ serves as a legitimate way to express poisonous prejudices about the lower orders.
N.B. Post has been edited in response to valid criticisms by Jim and Dan
Reader Comments
Since when has despising drunk racists been middle class prejudice? There’s absolutely nothing in Mark’s quote that displays a hatred of working class people English or otherwise.
Or are you saying that working class people are drunk, sexist arseholes? You appear to be, because there’s nothing in the quote to suggest these guys are working class at all – that’s an assumption you’ve made based on… what?
Not sure how this happened, but this post isn’t by me (the tip off is the North London bit, myself being, of course, scouse through and through).
For the record I agree with Jim, that the assumption that these people are, or represent, the working class is dodgy.
Sorry dan. When i post you are automatically selected as the author and i have to remember to change it. Have done so now.
“Oy darling, whenzzz a bloody here what time’s the (barup) oo blimey Ingerlaaand WHERE’S THIS are you a boat when’s the boat?”
I never implied that these characteristics are the characteristics of the working class. I think, however, that the massively exagerrated use of the coloquial/dialect in his quote above – to the extent that is at odds with contemporary literary conventions – speaks for itself.
On second thoughts you have a point. I was writing this in a rush and was leaching off what another comrade – from a certain particularly loony organisation had said about it. Removed it now.
I feel there is a very similar dynamic in the United States—almost identical in fact.
It takes the form of northeastern liberal elites who decry and despise the South(east) and mid-Western parts of the country—ostensibly because the latter are ignorant, prejudiced, fat, gun-toting racists—while there are elements of truth to those stereotypes (average body weight is much higher in those areas) a lot of it in my opinion is driven by crypto-classism, same as you are talking about. These areas (especially the “Deep South”) are much poorer than the Northeast, and by obsessing focusing on the racism of people there (whether accurately or not) implicitly draws attention away from the powerful class distinctions that exist in America, in terms of region (thereby preserving them for those on top).
What I also find interesting is that such a thing would happen in England, since I thought class there was an everyday topic, while in the U.S. it is a “conversation killer”—even using the word opens you up to accusations of communism and anti-Americanism among most people.