Beyond belief More evidence of Britain’s inspiring stand for rationality and decency Melanie Phillips
https://melaniephillips.substack.com/
Here are three stories from the Telegraph illustrating Britain’s imaginative use of the language of “diversity” and “inclusivity”.
(Readers in Jerusalem can find below these reports a promised respite from the loss of reason.)
- Damon Joshua, a sewage maintenance engineer employed by Severn Trent Water, felt so strongly about the October 7 Hamas massacre that he posted on his company’s intranet site, along with an Israeli flag:
One year ago our valued partners and friends, Israel, were horrifically attacked by a group of violent and disgusting terrorists. I can say with confidence today that the vast majority of STW’s employees stand in solidarity with our Jewish, Israeli and Zionist colleagues against the evil of Islamist terror.
He was promptly suspended and then sacked after a disciplinary hearing. The Telegraph reports:
At his disciplinary hearing he was told that the post had caused “significant offence” to three members of staff who complained about it. Managers concluded that “this offence is in relation to a protected characteristic, specifically religious belief” and dismissed him for gross misconduct. He was told that “the language used in the post caused offence to employees with different perspectives, particularly those with Muslim or Palestinian backgrounds”…
Mr Joshua claimed that in the disciplinary hearing that one of his managers asked “How do you think a Palestinian employee would feel reading this?” They also raised concerns that “the wording in the post explicitly suggests support of a particular geopolitical stance”. They told Mr Joshua his claim that the majority of STW staff supported Israel “creates exclusion and assumptions of solidarity”.
So to the managers of Severn Trent Water, opposing the barbaric savages of Hamas offends Muslims or “Palestinians” and is a form of prejudice against Islam. It follows, therefore, that to the managers of Severn Trent Water all Muslims and “Palestinians” identify with the barbaric savages of Hamas — a claim that, if made by other people, would almost certainly be denounced as an “Islamophobic” generalisation that defames Muslims and Islam.
To be inclusive, it seems, means never speaking out against Hamas. It’s not the sewage at Severn Trent Water that’s creating this particular stink.
- The Telegraph reports:
Norwood Primary School in Eastleigh, Hants, sent a letter to parents and carers informing them that neither their Easter Bonnet Parade nor their Easter Service would be held this year.
Stephanie Mander, the school’s headteacher who wrote the letter, explained that this was because of the state school’s “respect for diversity”. She said: “By not holding specific religious celebrations, we aim to create a more inclusive atmosphere that honours and respects the beliefs of all our children and their families.”
Ms Mander’s understanding of the word “inclusive” involves excluding Christianity, because she doesn’t think an Easter Bonnet Parade or Easter Service qualify for “diversity” which apparently embraces only Eid or Diwali. Perhaps a kind soul might donate a dictionary to Ms Mander’s office?
However, the school “planned to celebrate Refugee Week in June”.
So that’s all right then.
- The Telegraph reports:
The British Antarctic Survey (BAS), which oversees Britain’s research stations in Antarctica, claimed that believing “the most qualified person should get the job” can be a form of “racial harassment”.
In an inclusivity guide issued to employees, the organisation says the “myth of meritocracy” asserts “that race does not play a role in life successes”. It defines meritocracy as the “belief that performance alone will be enough to earn recognition [and] promotion” and says it can be a “micro-aggression”.
Scientists working for the national polar research institute were also warned that saying “I believe the most qualified person should get the job” can count as “racial harassment”…
The guide also claims that both of the phrases “all lives matter” and “there is only one race, the human race” are micro-aggressions that “indicate that a white person does not want to acknowledge race”. These phrases deny “a person of colour’s racial/ethnic experience” and send the message that minorities must “assimilate… to the dominant culture”.
Let’s ponder that last paragraph. It seems to be saying not only that all lives don’t matter equally, which is an anti-human sentiment, but also that since only white people believe everyone belongs to the human race, people of colour don’t think white people belong to it — which makes people of colour anti-human. How fascinating that the British Antarctic Survey thinks this is what making itself “a welcoming and inclusive place for all” actually involves. It also seems to think that “the human race” is a form of ethnicity.
Even more intolerable than the dogmatism, bigotry and inhuman macro-aggression in all this is the utter, spirit-sapping imbecility.
But don’t lose heart! I shall be discussing my new book, which not only analyses the parlous state of western culture but suggests what to do about it, at the Menachem Begin Centre in Jerusalem on Thursday April 3 in conversation with the Israeli political thinker Einat Wilf. You can register for the event here or buy a ticket at the door.
Comments are closed.
