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    "original_url": "https:\/\/theconversation.com\/starmer-has-enabled-the-far-right-promises-of-progressive-patriotism-are-no-longer-enough-266036",
    "parsed_content": "CPG.\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Faced with an insurgent UK far right backed by a billionaire oligarch, Prime Minister Keir Starmer\u2019s pledge to lead the progressive fightback is long overdue. If Starmer\u2019s speech, however, is to be anything but empty rhetoric, he must abandon his failed strategy of chasing the Reform vote in favour of a bolder, more hopeful narrative. \nBased on his government\u2019s actions and discourse so far, the signs are far from promising. He has helped embolden the very politics he claims to oppose.\nStarmer\u2019s speech comes hot on the heels of Britain\u2019s largest ever far-right mobilisation. Between 110,000 and 150,000 people descended on London for the so-called \u201cUnite The Kingdom\u201d march, organised by Stephen Yaxley-Lennon (better known as Tommy Robinson). \nIn line with far-right great replacement theory, the principal target of those speaking at the event was Islam and immigration \u2013 but there were plenty of examples of placards targeting other marginalised groups such as LGBTQ+ people.\nAppearing via video link, the billionaire oligarch Elon Musk warned of the need \u201cto fight back or die\u201d in the face of \u201cmassive uncontrolled migration\u201d. Starmer\u2019s home secretary, Shabana Mahmood labelled Musk\u2019s words as abhorrent and Starmer said some of the views expressed at the rally did not reflect a \u201cnation proudly built on tolerance, diversity and respect\u201d. The government, however, arguably shares significant responsibility for legitimising the politics behind the rally. \n \n \n An attendee at the Unite the Kingdom rally wearing a Make England Great Again hat.\n Alamy\/Guy Corbishley\n \n \nStarmer\u2019s denunciation of \u201cloutish behaviour\u201d mimics his decision to attribute the summer 2024 riots to \u201cfar-right thuggery\u201d. Countering far-right figures such as Yaxley-Lennon is vitally important. However, on its own, such reactive discourse is not enough. Associating far-right ideas with the margins of society ignores the way in which so-called mainstream politicians have normalised such politics .\nThe Unite the Kingdom march was the climax of \u201coperation raise the colours\u201d, which saw people all over the country putting up flags wherever they felt like doing so. Bearing all the hallmarks of a carefully coordinated \u201castroturf\u201d campaign (stimulating grassroots support for a cause and then using that support to legitimise other activities), raise the colours contributed to an emboldening of the far right.\nFurther to \u201cjust\u201d raising the union flag and St George\u2019s cross, there were acts of vandalism against mosques and ethnic food restaurants as well as racist graffiti. It is hard not to also see the link between those putting up flags in the streets and those waving them outside so-called \u201casylum hotels\u201d.\n \n \n Attendees at the Unite the Kingdom rally in London.\n Alamy\/Imago\n \n \nMost of this has since been condemned by Starmer, yet he initially embraced raise the colours wholeheartedly, even calling himself a \u201cbig supporter of flags\u201d. Meanwhile, the (at the time) home secretary Yvette Cooper made the somewhat bizarre assertion that her entire home was bedecked with St George\u2019s crosses and Union Jacks and said that people should \u201cput \u2018em up anywhere\u201d.\nThe violent rhetoric and actions on display at the rally reveal the severe limitations of this attempt to co-opt the flag waving initiative to attract its backers. \nI would argue this also illustrates how Starmer\u2019s attempt to pivot towards a more \u201cprogressive\u201d form of patriotism is doomed to fail. Because patriotism is so often tied to exclusion and the policing of national boundaries, it ultimately undermines broader commitments to empathy, equality and solidarity.\nA losing game\nIn the longer term, Starmer\u2019s own policies since taking office have tried to outflank Reform on the right. Starmer has framed Reform as Labour\u2019s official opposition. In line with this, the Labour party has made immigration, and Channel boat crossings in particular, one of its top priorities. \nOn taking office, Labour\u2019s prioritisation of \u201csecure borders\u201d has been encapsulated by the violent slogan of \u201csmash the criminal gangs\u201d. Starmer has accused past Conservative governments of running an \u201copen-borders experiment\u201d and has allowed images of deportations to be made public \u2013 a technique most notoriously used in the Trump administration\u2019s racially charged deportation videos that are shared with the public in the knowledge that they will be widely circulated on social media. \nStarmer cannot defeat the far right by using its language and tactics. This much is evident not only in the chants and placards which target him at far-right rallies, but also his disastrous polling figures.\nIn the words of journalist Nesrine Malik, \u201cwe need new stories\u201d when addressing the socioeconomic and sociopolitical challenges facing the UK. A key example is the way we talk about immigration. It is telling that just 5% of overall migration to the UK is classified as illegal yet it almost entirely dominates the national conversation. \nStarmer has done nothing to counter that imbalance. Indeed, his speech, intended to mark a fightback of progressive values, has doubled-down on anti-migrant rhetoric. \nIn particular, the introduction of digital ID cards is framed as a way of ensuring Britain takes back control of its borders. Claiming Britain has been \u201csqueamish\u201d about talking about illegal immigration, Starmer has said ID cards would help protect working people\u2019s wages against those who \u201cslip into the shadow economy and remain here illegally\u201d.\nAcademic research consistently illustrates that the way in which immigration is framed by politicians and the media has a significant impact on how and whether people view it as a \u201clegitimate concern\u201d. It is incumbent on a supposedly \u201csocial democrat\u201d prime minister to lead this change in narrative.\nStarmer\u2019s intervention on the side of progressive values might be a welcome one, were it not premised on a dead duck narrative of \u201cprogressive patriotism\u201d. It is, though, effectively meaningless if he continues to lead a government which oversees and manages the \u201cdivision\u201d he ostensibly seeks to address.\n \n \n \n \n \n \nWant more politics coverage from academic experts? Every week, we bring you informed analysis of developments in government and fact check the claims being made.Sign up for our weekly politics newsletter, delivered every Friday.\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n UK politics\n \n \n Patriotism\n \n \n Far right\n \n \n Social Democrats\n \n \n radical right\n \n \n Keir Starmer\n \n \n Give me perspective",
    "ai_headline": "Starmer has enabled the far right: promises of progressive patriotism are no longer enough",
    "ai_simplified_title": "Starmer Enables Far Right Through Patriotism Rhetoric",
    "ai_excerpt": "The article critiques Keir Starmer's approach to combating the far right, arguing his embrace of 'progressive patriotism' and anti-immigrant rhetoric has emboldened the movement. It highlights the limitations of his strategy and calls for a shift towards a more hopeful narrative.",
    "ai_subject_tags": [
        "Keir Starmer",
        "Far Right",
        "Patriotism",
        "Immigration",
        "UK Politics",
        "Progressive Politics",
        "Political Analysis"
    ],
    "ai_context_type": "Analysis",
    "ai_context_details": {
        "tone": "critical",
        "perspective": "opinionated",
        "audience": "general",
        "credibility_indicators": []
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