By Roxanna Brealey, BA History and Politics
On the 8th of November, Suella Braverman wrote an opinion piece in The Times, in which she branded the Met Police as “biased” towards Palestine protestors and against right-wing protestors. Consequently, she was fired for breaking the ministerial code as she wrote the article without approval from Number 10. Needless to say, Braverman has not simply disappeared into the backbenches never to be seen again. Her untruthful and inflammatory views are more prominent than ever as she continues to be a voice for the far-right of the Conservative Party.
It was on the 22nd of February that The Telegraph released her article titled ‘Islamists are bullying Britain into submission’ which was another addition to her onslaught of anti-protest, anti-Muslim and anti-immigration style of politics. The article itself was an interesting read, she enjoys lecturing readers as to what is best for the UK when she has absolutely no right to do so, having committed multiple political blunders herself.
The title, “Islamists are bullying Britain into submission” notes very niche cases instead of recognising where the real powerhouse is, the Government itself. The Conservatives have now been in power for 14 years, five of those with an 80-seat majority of which they have practically been able to pass any legislation they desire. Legislation such as the Elections Bill makes it mandatory for voter ID to be shown before casting a ballot. This makes it harder for younger people and people of colour to vote as they are less likely to possess the required forms of ID. Additionally, the Judicial Review and Courts Bill makes it harder for courts to go against government decisions. It is the government itself that is “bullying Britain into submission” as they undermine the right to vote for groups who are less likely to vote Conservative as well as weaken methods of accountability. The government becomes an ever more powerful and distant body away from the British people whom they claim to represent and be held accountable to.
She then goes on to critique the suggestion that “[Israel’s] defence forces must put away their weapons” which relates to the demand for a ceasefire. There is no plausible way in which one could be against a ceasefire in this scenario. Over 30,000 people in Gaza have died, water has been cut off, and medical infrastructure has been destroyed. Furthermore, 1.4 million displaced Gazans are now trapped in Rafah (2.5 square miles) where an assault upon this area has begun. Even though innocent lives are being taken at alarming rates the lack of human empathy from Braverman and the far-right is outstanding.
On top of that, she goes on to say that “our values and freedoms are under attack in all walks of life” and she blames this on the ‘Islamists’. This is entirely hypocritical. Braverman cannot claim that she values freedom as when she was still Home Secretary she told senior police officers that waving the Palestinian flag could become a criminal offence. Freedom for her rests upon a double standard: when it comes to writing articles with inflammatory language by all means she is allowed to do so but when it comes to waving a Palestine flag as a sign of solidarity that is when a line has been crossed.
She concludes her article by stating that to preserve the liberties and privileges’ we need to stop the ‘mob’. Problematically, the use of the phrase ‘mob’ is a key way in which Braverman can stoke the political divide in this country. By clumping Islamists, Palestine supporters and the “guardian reading, tofu-eating wokerati” into one large political group it fuels the fire for right-wing groups as people are radicalised to believe that there is a large and united group of people who genuinely want to see the destruction of British values.
‘Braverman loves to complain about Islamic radicalism, but what she is doing is increasing far-right radicalism. And that is no accident, that is intentional’.
Braverman loves to complain about Islamic radicalism, but what she is doing is increasing far-right radicalism. And that is no accident, that is intentional.
Photo caption: Suella Braverman arrives for a weekly cabinet meeting (2023) (Photo credit: Flickr)