Politicians need to be careful and take responsibility for the words they use- although some are “careful” enough to provoke a reaction (for example Nigel Farage’s hint that the police were not telling the full story about Southport- did this encourage the English Defence League-led riots?)
Riots usually come from disenfranchised groups who see no other way to make their point. So are those who object to migration and asylum-seekers disenfranchised (with 4 million votes for Reform translating into only 5 seats in Parliament)? Half a century of industrial decline and tax cutting “to revive economic growth” (instead undermining social provision such as health and housing) has impoverished many people. Labour’s election has not changed that. Blaming “foreigners”, is easier than tackling the real economic causes, which are far harder to grasp (churches also share a responsibility in this for avoiding subjects which their congregations find unpalatable).
Were the riots merely violent outbursts of superficial anger and frustration, provoked by deliberately misleading posts on social media, or are they symptoms of something deeper and more widespread? William Reich’s book “The Mass Psychology of Fascism” was written in 1933, though we should perhaps be cautious about over-using the word “fascist” (Mussolini and Hitler could both initially claim to be “socialist” in speaking for working people). Other studies include Christopher Lasch: “The Culture of Narcissism- American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations” (1979) and Karen Stenner’s “The Authoritarian Dynamic” (2005).
Our reading was Mark chapter 1, verses 21 to 39, including the encounter with the man “with an unclean spirit” in the Capernaum synagogue. Ched Myers interprets this not as “mental illness” but as a political reaction to someone whose teaching threatens the established social order- “What have you to do with us?” (verse 24) implying “Why have you come to meddle with us?” (“Binding the Strong Man”, pp141-3). So is the way Jesus silences him yet another example of an authoritarian personality suppressing dissent, or a needed challenge to the way institutions always attempt to block new and liberating visions?
Links:
Christopher Lasch: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Culture-Narcissism-American-Diminishing-Expectations/dp/0393307387
Karen Stenner: https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/authoritarian-dynamic/7620B99124ED2DBFC6394444838F455A
UK Home Office statistics on immigration, Year ending June 2024
(published 22nd August 2024)
1.3 million Non-visitor visas-
Of which: 546, 774 Work related; 530,496 Study; 84,403 Family related; 114,763 other (including 28,491 Ukraine)
286,382 Visas for work (in all categories); of which 89,095 Health and Care workers;
260,392 Health Care and Skilled Worker dependents (of which 69% Health Care)
77,419 Temporary Worker visas; of which 34,332 Seasonal Workers; 24,091 Youth Mobility Scheme
378,732 Work-related extensions; of which 147,051 Graduates; remainder mainly Health Care and Skilled
432,225 Sponsored Study visas, and 34,880 extensions
98,906 Family related visa applications, of which 84,403 granted
117,874 extensions of study for family reasons
93,342 for “Safe and Legal Humanitarian Route” to the UK; of which 28,419 Ukraine, and 7,414 extensions
22,306 British National Out of country and 10,761 In-country (mainly Hong Kong)
8,198 other (94% of which Afghanistan)
16,244 Family Reunion visas
75,658 Asylum applications, relating to 97,107 individuals; of which 67,978 applications granted refugee status.
Note: These figures have been taken directly from the Home Office website, and may not match in every case.