In Britain, does one have a right to one’s political views? Don’t be silly

Is Simone Clarke, the lovely ballerina with the English National Ballet who was outed by the Guardian two weeks ago as a member of the BNP, using the state-funded ENB as a platform for her “racist” and “fascist” views? That’s the accusation being made against her, and those are the grounds some have for calling for her firing. In fact she kept her membership private and resents that it was revealed. After the Guardian exposed her, she gave one interview, to the Daily Mail, to explain her situation. So, the fact that she defended and explained herself following an unsought and damaging exposure of her political beliefs, which have nothing to do with her job, means she’s using her job as a ballerina as a platform for her racist and fascist views. And what are those racist and fascist views? That immigration and crime have gotten out of hand. Yep, that’s it. Here are excepts from the Mail interview:

“I joined about 18 months ago,” she says. “Yat [her Cuban/Chinese boyfriend] and I were watching the television. As usual I was moaning about something that I had seen on the news and he just said, “Well, stop moaning and do something about it.”

“I didn’t really know anything about the BNP but they had come up in conversation a few times because they had just won some local council seats.

“We went on to the computer and we looked them up and I read their manifesto. I’m not too proud to say that a lot of it went over my head but some of the things they mentioned were the things I think about all the time, mainly mass immigration, crime and increased taxes. Those three issues were enough to make me join so I paid my £25 there and then.

“I think the BNP are honest. They’re not trying to dress up what they want, which is change on these issues.”

She continues:

“It’s not about removing foreigners. It’s about border controls. Because of terrorism we do have to know who’s coming and going. For the people with jobs it is possible to do that. We know where they are because they pay their taxes and are fully paid-up members of society.

“The other problem I have is that Britain isn’t really very big. And it’s an island. I really cannot see the logic of allowing so many people in.”

But for all her defiance, she remains a reluctant mouthpiece. “My life has changed,’ she admits. “Everything will be different now. I will be known as the BNP Ballerina. I think that will stick with me for life. I’d rather it wasn’t like that but I don’t regret anything. I will stay a member.

“I am angry because I don’t think it should be public knowledge who someone votes for. People are easily offended by political views, whatever the persuasion, and for that reason I think it should stay private.

Here are key planks from the BNP platform. I must confess that when I read them last year, I had the same reaction as Miss Clarke: based on those platform planks alone, I would join the party, too. There is, of course, more to the BNP than its platform.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at January 03, 2007 04:45 PM | Send