War on Woke: Conservative Cultural Campaigning

[Idris2002]

Aren't universities supposed to be places of debate?

Not any more, and not for a long time!

MONEY MACHINE GO BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

 

[stethoscope]

Not any more, and not for a long time!

MONEY MACHINE GO BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Quite, both years of Tory and Labour administrations have effectively reduced HE to 'education services for paying customers',

 

[SpookyFrank]

Aren't universities supposed to be places of debate?

Yawn.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Corbyn delivered an eighty seat majority to one of the worst PMs we have ever seen. Quite a feat.

And yet, some posters here feel that Corbyn's policies weren't radical enough.

I gather though that people who left the Labour party under Corbyn, have re-joined under Starmer. Swings and roundabouts.

So it's Corbyn's fault your tory chums are fucking this country to death?

 

[Artaxerxes]

Quite, both years of Tory and Labour administrations have effectively reduced HE to 'education services for paying customers',

Adult creche, not sure its even got much education value any more.

 

[dylanredefined]

Quite, both years of Tory and Labour administrations have effectively reduced HE to 'education services for paying customers',

Another illusion crushed.

 

[Idris2002]

So it's Corbyn's fault your tory chums are fucking this country to death?

history's greatest monster

 

[stethoscope]

It's a totally manufactured culture war. I think there have probably been a few overzealous incidents but it hardly amounts to a War on Free Speech

It is totally manufactured.

The whole 'trans-terf' 'war', has been absolutely hyped up in three years, with perpetrators on the right happily exploiting some honestly held concerns amongst some parts of the left and more broadly over both trans rights and women's rights, to the point where this now has entirely lost any perspective or reality to become a 'culture war'.

The right especially would have you believe that there is an ever-powerful 'trans cabal' actively setting out to harm and erode women's rights and this has seeped into the left. The reality is that the overwhelming voices in the media are and have always been anti-trans: whether it be going back to Burchill and Bindel in the Guardian, through to obsessive daily articles in the Mail, Times and the Telegraph and the wider right (Hartley-Brewer, Poulton, and numerous others), to the BBC, the New Stateman, the Morning Star, and even the Economist. Groups with dubious aims such as the 'LGB Alliance' and 'Fair Cop' become regularly quoted in the media as some sort of non-partisan commentator, who are quite happy to throw LGB people under a bus to attack trans rights. Some incidents have been allowed to utterly blow up to become evidence of this awful 'cancel culture' and 'attacks from freedom of speech' by 'trans activists'. Where certain groups who were just airing 'concerns' actively campaigned to successfully stop GRA reform but actually this isn't enough and then it's attacks on the GRA itself and any health care provision. Where even urbans will say one thing here whilst engaging in the 'culture war' on social media (I see ya!). And now its spiralled out of control where fear and misinformation has set in amongst the wider public conscious.

 

[Pickman's model]

It is totally manufactured.

The whole 'trans-terf' 'war', has been absolutely hyped up in three years, with perpetrators on the right happily exploiting some honestly held concerns amongst some parts of the left and more broadly over both trans rights and women's rights, to the point where this now has entirely lost any perspective or reality to become a 'culture war'.

The right especially would have you believe that there is an ever-powerful 'trans cabal' actively setting out to harm and erode women's rights and this has seeped into the left. The reality is that the overwhelming voices in the media are and have always been anti-trans: whether it be going back to Burchill and Bindel in the Guardian, through to obsessive daily articles in the Mail, Times and the Telegraph and the wider right (Hartley-Brewer, Poulton, and numerous others), to the BBC, the New Stateman, the Morning Star, and even the Economist. Groups with dubious aims such as the 'LGB Alliance' and 'Fair Cop' become regularly quoted in the media as some sort of non-partisan commentator, who are quite happy to throw LGB people under a bus to attack trans rights. Some incidents have been allowed to utterly blow up to become evidence of this awful 'cancel culture' and 'attacks from freedom of speech' by 'trans activists'. Where certain groups who were just airing 'concerns' actively campaigned to successfully stop GRA reform but actually this isn't enough and then it's attacks on the GRA itself and any health care provision. Where even urbans will say one thing here whilst engaging in the 'culture war' on social media (I see ya!). And now its spiralled out of control where fear and misinformation has set in amongst the wider public conscious.

Anyone who has read asterix and the secret agent could be forgiven for thinking Theresa May's government played a blinder by getting this issue to wreak havoc among groups on the left while it's done them no harm at all

 

[Cloo]

It is totally manufactured.

The whole 'trans-terf' 'war', has been absolutely hyped up in three years, with perpetrators on the right happily exploiting some honestly held concerns amongst some parts of the left and more broadly over both trans rights and women's rights, to the point where this now has entirely lost any perspective or reality to become a 'culture war'.

The right especially would have you believe that there is an ever-powerful 'trans cabal' actively setting out to harm and erode women's rights and this has seeped into the left. The reality is that the overwhelming voices in the media are and have always been anti-trans: whether it be going back to Burchill and Bindel in the Guardian, through to obsessive daily articles in the Mail, Times and the Telegraph and the wider right (Hartley-Brewer, Poulton, and numerous others), to the BBC, the New Stateman, the Morning Star, and even the Economist. Groups with dubious aims such as the 'LGB Alliance' and 'Fair Cop' become regularly quoted in the media as some sort of non-partisan commentator, who are quite happy to throw LGB people under a bus to attack trans rights. Some incidents have been allowed to utterly blow up to become evidence of this awful 'cancel culture' and 'attacks from freedom of speech' by 'trans activists'. Where certain groups who were just airing 'concerns' actively campaigned to successfully stop GRA reform but actually this isn't enough and then it's attacks on the GRA itself and any health care provision. Where even urbans will say one thing here whilst engaging in the 'culture war' on social media (I see ya!). And now its spiralled out of control where fear and misinformation has set in amongst the wider public conscious.

Yeah, that's the classic one, and it's played up like everyone in the whole country is up in arms about trans issues, whereas (IMO) it's the small cohort that is trans people and allies vs a small number of vociferous media transphobes or people even if not ostensibly transphobic, generally being unhelpful, and the vast majority of the population, in all likelihood, not knowing or caring about the issue, for good or for ill.

 

[stethoscope]

Yeah, that's the classic one, and it's played up like everyone in the whole country is up in arms about trans issues, whereas (IMO) it's the small cohort that is trans people and allies vs a small number of vociferous media transphobes or people even if not ostensibly transphobic, generally being unhelpful, and the vast majority of the population, in all likelihood, not knowing or caring about the issue, for good or for ill.

Yep! Anyway, hope this finds you and yours well in these times, been ages! x

 

[smokedout]

Where certain groups who were just airing 'concerns' actively campaigned to successfully stop GRA reform but actually this isn't enough and then it's attacks on the GRA itself and any health care provision.

I think this in particular is a good example of how the culture war pushes people into identity based struggles. The things that trans people need to be able to live freely, safely and with some dignity, such as healthcare and the most basic rights, are now under significant threat - and healthcare in particular was less than adequate to begin with. And it's broadening out into attacks on people who refer to themselves as queer, sex workers, aspects of gay culture like drag, kink and anything which doesn't fit a narrow conservative view of sexuality and gender expression. That's not something you can really ignore if you're one of those groups and with the left seemingly unconcerned or too timid to take a stance, because these attacks have been fronted by a splinter feminist groups, then people look for help where they can find it - whether that's liberal charities like Stonewall, private trans healthcare providers, corporate supporters or the more extreme ends of identity politics. It's very difficult to prevent that, it's not like you can say hey, those involved in class politics have got your back because they evidently haven't in a lot of cases.

So these groups get isolated in an increasingly bitter culture war, which is now a million miles away from legitimate feminist concerns and arguably is no longer a feminist led movement with everyone from Tories to pro-lifers to conspiracy theorists to actual fascists declaring themselves gender critical and ranting on about pomo queer theory plotters coming for their children. This leads trans people, understandably as they are scared, to turn to anyone who might help, which increasingly is neoliberal sharks and opportunists. And the struggles working class trans/queer/whatever people face is made invisible despite it being most of us, because the middle classes whose interests are solely based on identity dominate any resistance and so it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy - trans people are all identity obsessed wokesters from the middle classes who aren't interested in class struggle. It's fucking hard to navigate when Innocent Smoothies have been more outspoken in supporting trans people than much of the left. As posters have alluded to earlier, it's a trap, but I don't know how to get out of it and now it's been employed so successfully against trans people I doubt it will end there.

 

[stethoscope]

Word!

 

[killer b]

this from the Times education editor yesterday:



The report she refers to is here: https://wonkhe.com/wp-content/wonkhe-uploads/2021/01/Taking-the-debate-forward-Feb-2021.pdf

 

[killer b]

Also this thread, which demonstrates one of the key reports the government is using to support their attack plays fast and loose with reality:



(as an aside, I came across this cute little exchange between two former collaborators and thought PolSci watchers on here might enjoy it.)

 

[teqniq]

This has made me laugh this morning:



e2a

also this:

 

[FridgeMagnet]

It's not the admitting that's toxic, it's the being.

 

[hitmouse]

While I don't think many meaningful cases will reach court, I fear that a bunch of chancers will try to build careers in being dicks off the back of it. Get an insider to invite you to a university where you know you won't be welcome, which sparks protests against you, give the uni a choice of having loads of aggy protests against you, or cancelling and a court case. You win either way. Columns in the Daily Mail and regular spots on GB News and kerching.

What I'm hoping is the test case is a holocaust denier or supporter of man-boy love or something and the government ends up looking aligned with them...

The report she refers to is here: https://wonkhe.com/wp-content/wonkhe-uploads/2021/01/Taking-the-debate-forward-Feb-2021.pdf

From that report: "Today NUS maintains six organisations on its “No Platform” list - Al-Muhajiroun, the British National Party, the English Defence League, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK and National Action." Really looking forward to the joint Gavin Williamson/Al-Muhajiroun/National Action press conference on defending free speech in HE now.

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

This has made me laugh this morning:



e2a

also this:

I bet Allister Heath just loves to call people snowflakes.

 

[Doodler]

The Tories might go for boosting funding for STEM subjects at the expense of the Arts and Humanities Research Council. They have probably wanted to do so for a long time and now they could claim that the poor state of public finances demands it.

 

[ItWillNeverWork]

The Tories might go for boosting funding for STEM subjects at the expense of the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

Sounds like they’re on to a good idea there

 

[Doodler]

Sounds like they’re on to a good idea there

They've made noises along those lines ever since Thatcher. Grafting 'wokeness' into the reasoning would just be a cosmetic change.

 

[Shechemite]

From that report: "Today NUS maintains six organisations on its “No Platform” list - Al-Muhajiroun, the British National Party, the English Defence League, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK and National Action." Really looking forward to the joint Gavin Williamson/Al-Muhajiroun/National Action press conference on defending free speech in HE now.

are MPAC still around?

 

[flypanam]

Sounds like they’re on to a good idea there

STEM funding will be a good idea until it isn’t. After all most teaching isn’t done by STEM grads, with all the focus on STEM we will see a shortage of Humanities and Social Sciences in a decade with the usual conservative concern about students not knowing history.

 

[Doodler]

STEM funding will be a good idea until it isn’t. After all most teaching isn’t done by STEM grads, with all the focus on STEM we will see a shortage of Humanities and Social Sciences in a decade with the usual conservative concern about students not knowing history.

The Tories wouldnt axe all funding for the arts and humanities. They could reduce it and justify doing so by cherry picking examples of the more woolly minded courses and research units that really are little more than a mini welfare state for middle class people who don't want to go into commerce or the traditional professions, and build them up into a general stereotype to attack publicly as a distraction. The same was done decades ago with Labour councils supposedly banning 'Baa baa black sheep' from schools etc.

 

[Serge Forward]

The same was done decades ago with Labour councils supposedly banning 'Baa baa black sheep' from schools etc.

Never happened.

 

[Doodler]

Never happened.

That's what 'supposedly banning' implies. But anyway so what? Effective propaganda is a mix of fact and fiction.

 

[Serge Forward]

Yeah, the fact being, there was some weird stuff done in the name of anti-racism within some of the more (as we used to say) 'right on' boroughs. The fiction being, 'baa baa green sheep' was completely made up by journalists at either the Scum or the Daily Heil. After a few repetitions of the story, it was taken as fact by many

 

[Doodler]

Yeah, the fact being, there was some weird stuff done in the name of anti-racism within some of the more (as we used to say) 'right on' boroughs. The fiction being, 'baa baa green sheep' was completely made up by journalists at either the Scum or the Daily Heil. After a few repetitions of the story, it was taken as fact by many

Exactly. They can't pull that one again with regards to councils so they'll need to search elsewhere. It will also be harder for them to broadcast such messages with the Sun newspaper being less Influential and as yet no UK equivalent of Fox News.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

and as yet no UK equivalent of Fox News.

give the new BBC director general a bit of time, he's only been in the job a few months...