Turned Away For Being British......... What's The View Of The NSC Hand Wringers?

[Bold Seagull]

Is turning them away for being British not racist then? Never is when it's that way round is it ?

Depends if you define British as a race? Great Britain having an ancestory of Celts, Saxons, Anglo-Saxons, Romans, Normans, Vikings, Huguenots.....etc.etc. Not sure this is more discriminatory than racist given he would presumably turn away any British person regardless of race, and likewise accept foreigners of any race. I don't agree it's right, but it's not racial discrimination.

 

[The Camel]

Have you ever actually started an NSC thread to do with football bushy? Can't remember a single one. They all seem to be to do with somebody - somebody you perceive not to be British - putting one over on 'bushys people'. Are you actually some kind of BNP lobbyist or something? Or is it purely voluntary work?

This.

I look back at the threads he has started and virtually every one has a racist undertone.

Surely Brighton is a bad club to support for a BNP member. The chairman is Jewish, the manager is South American and the best player is black.

You are better off going to support Everton maybe?

 

[Husty]

Roger Owen, 66, who runs the project and makes the rules, doesn't seem to me to be someone whose home is anywhere other than Britain.

Where do you want him to go?

And why are people blaming "immigrant mums" for the way Mr Owen runs the place?

Your going to get labeled a leftie hand wringer for making simple, thought out insightful posts like you know!

 

[beorhthelm]

of course, we've been given the full and balanced report of the incident....

it seems to me a tiny detail is overlooked. they turned them away due to being British, the group only open to foreigners. not only open to non-whites. so a french child is welcome, while a black brit not. seems to me there might be possible a purpose, say support for the parents in learning English? and i reckon they knew exaclty what would happen, and turned up to make a point.

seems wrong in principle, but we dont know the full details and theres a large slice of, so what?

 

[Art Vs Science]

"Just as you have the instinctive natural desire to be happy and
overcome suffering, so do all sentient beings; just as you have
the right to fulfill this innate aspiration, so do all sentient beings.
so on what grounds do you discriminate?"

 

[GT49er]

A spokeswoman for the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said under the Equality Act 2010 it is not unlawful to set up a group especially for a particular ethnic or national group.

So British isn't an ethnic or national group any more? Yeh, I thought so - that's how it feels anyway

 

[BadFish]

i was just thinking the same thing!

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Let's hear a bit more about the excellent work that this project does (untainted by anything raised in this week's newspapers):-

Open Door Church St Neots : Making Links

We work with the Heart of the Community Trust for whom Making Links is a major project. Making Links seeks to operate in the spirit of the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) document, “The Reception and Integration of New Migrant Communities” (2007), which stressed the need for “bringing communities together and facilitating interaction between them”. The numerous women and children who attend (currently around 50 each week) comment that Making Links frees them from feelings of isolation, helps them build multicultural friendships and empowers them with knowledge about the local community. Thus Making Links presents a friendly St Neots face to people who might otherwise be outsiders.

The weekly sessions are free and include refreshments, a 1½ hour art and craft session which varies each week, visits from free local service providers such as community police, children’s health services, EAL providers, etc, and a crèche within the meeting room provided by Sure Start. The Making Links project is being co-ordinated by Anna Kay (a Hinchingbroke A&E nurse) and Carolyn Owen (a retired teacher and nursery leader), supported by 9 volunteers from the church, and under the oversight of the Trustees of the Heart of the Community Trust.

Making Links meets in the Priory Centre every Thursday in term time from 10.00 am to Midday. It is supported by charitable grants from the Town Council, Sure Start, Luminus, the Muir Group, The Co-operative Community Fund, NPower at Little Barford Power Station, and other generous local donors.

The aims of the project are:

· To develop cross-cultural friendships

· To promote cultural identity and self-esteem

· To promote community relationships with local service providers

· To support the client group in meeting the needs of their children (0’s-under 5’s) through promotion of services for under 5’s and Women’s Health

· To empower the client group to be part of decision making processes within the group

· To support clients who wish to access training to promote self-development and employment opportunities





At least one thing is clear from this. The Sun is WRONG. It's NOT A PLAYGROUP.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

So British isn't an ethnic or national group any more? Yeh, I thought so - that's how it feels anyway

A particular being the operative word.

 

[BadFish]

So the group is set up to help people from other countries or cultures to integrate into the local community, to access services and meet with others in the same situation. The british Women were possibly wishing to use the place as a regular play group (which it seems is not it's purpose) thus taking away spaces from other people who need the full range of services. It is funny how a little research can put a whole new spin on a story ( i haven't read the Sun's version of events as i don't think it is worth my time (JFT96))
my personal opinion for what it is worth would that the group could have made good use of the British mums as a community resource. I guess the problem is if the group becomes frequented by more and more British people then the purpose of the group is compromised.

 

[Goldstone Rapper]

It's not racist, though, is it?

I'll be precise about it. Racism is a belief system based on the idea that people of some races are inherently superior or inferior to people of another race. Nothing more. Nothing less.

There is nothing to suggest that people within the immigrant mothers group believe themselves racially superior. What they are addressing is that there are a set of issues faced by them as immigrant mothers that are pertinent to other immigrant mothers. And that the best environment for these issues to be aired is often with others with that identity or experience. Just like, with sexual health issues, men are often more likely to open up about issues particular to men when it's an all male environment. Or women who have experienced domestic violence can often feel more comfortable talking about what they are dealing with within a female-only group.

About a year ago in Brighton I created an event to encourage more men to get into primary school teaching and working in nurseries. It was a moving event involving existing male teachers and nursery workers, and men considering those types of jobs. What I got from the feedback was that for many men there it was the first time they got to publicly address the perception of men working with children, the dynamics of working as a minority in a mainly female workforce, stuff that they wouldn't normally share in a staff room mainly made up of females.

With those men in Brighton, as with the immigrant women in the article, it's about creating a safe space, not as a ghetto, but as a starting point to feel confident in their identity so they can eventually be confident about what they are dealing with, with others who don't share the same identity or experience.

 

[BadFish]

It's not racist, though, is it?

I'll be precise about it. Racism is a belief system based on the idea that people of some races are inherently superior or inferior to people of another race. Nothing more. Nothing less.

There is nothing to suggest that people within the immigrant mothers group believe themselves racially superior. What they are addressing is that there are a set of issues faced by them as immigrant mothers that are pertinent to other immigrant mothers. And that the best environment for these issues to be aired is often with others with that identity or experience. Just like, with sexual health issues, men are often more likely to open up about issues particular to men when it's an all male environment. Or women who have experienced domestic violence can often feel more comfortable talking about what they are dealing with within a female-only group.

About a year ago in Brighton I created an event to encourage more men to get into primary school teaching and working in nurseries. It was a moving event involving existing male teachers and nursery workers, and men considering those types of jobs. What I got from the feedback was that for many men there it was the first time they got to publicly address the perception of men working with children, the dynamics of working as a minority in a mainly female workforce, stuff that they wouldn't normally share in a staff room mainly made up of females.

With those men in Brighton, as with the immigrant women in the article, it's about creating a safe space, not as a ghetto, but as a starting point to feel confident in their identity so they can eventually be confident about what they are dealing with, with others who don't share the same identity or experience.

Makes sense to me..... but maybe I am a hand wringing liberal..... I am certainly a male primary school teacher

Actually this has little to do with personal politics and more to do with thinking about what you read and doing a little more research into what you are being dished up by am appalling rag like the s**.

 

[WATFORD zero]

Unfortunately the posts, rather like the article, are now going beyond a couple of sentences of one and two syllabled words, so i guess we've seen the last of Bushy

 

[alan partridge]

Can we turn Bushy away from Falmer for being Chelsea?

 

[Brovion]

..and our rules say it is OK.

A spokeswoman for the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said under the Equality Act 2010 it is not unlawful to set up a group especially for a particular ethnic or national group.

I must admit I wasn't aware of the full ramifications of that new bit of legislation. IF it's true then I have to withdraw my earlier comment; there is apparently nothing (legally) wrong with setting up any group for any ethnic or national group - and by definition discriminating against anybody not from that group. Seems a bit of a backward step for me and I can just imagine a group of mischievious BNP supporters setting up a 'white Brits only' group and gleefully turning away anybody with dark skin or whose English isn't up to scratch.

of course, we've been given the full and balanced report of the incident....

it seems to me a tiny detail is overlooked. they turned them away due to being British, the group only open to foreigners. not only open to non-whites. so a french child is welcome, while a black brit not. seems to me there might be possible a purpose, say support for the parents in learning English? and i reckon they knew exaclty what would happen, and turned up to make a point.

seems wrong in principle, but we dont know the full details and theres a large slice of, so what?

I think if that were the case they'd welcome native English speakers. It's the best was to learn a language.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I cannot give a view because there is not much information in the article. But, if I had to guess I'd say that the two featured in the piece are not the target audience for this particular play group session. No big deal.

And Bushy, you are becoming predictable and boring.

 

[El Presidente]

I can just imagine a group of mischievious BNP supporters setting up a 'white Brits only' group and gleefully turning away anybody with dark skin or whose English isn't up to scratch.

The latter rules out most BNP supporters though

 

[daveinprague]

This NSC handwringer see's...... No story...

Just another attempt by people with right wing views to spread mistrust... and to advertise their sense of being 'victims'

 

[NMH]

ALWAYS look BEYOND the news stories.
This especially applies with sensationalising rags like 'The Sun' that love to blare out assumptions and scandal as if it's fact, to the lower classes who are most prone to believe what it says in there.
This is how our people are sent to unjust wars, controlled how to vote, and dumbed-down from individual personality and thought.

My thought on opening this thread was; 'Sun' sensationalism, these women were probably advised about the reason for the group and how it wasn't aimed at, applicable or interesting for them - but they went to the newspaper because they had an agenda too (and selling a story for ££ kinds helps pay the rent)

Still, nice tits on page three eh? phwooaar!

 

[SULLY COULDNT SHOOT]

this is a fxxking disgrace,this is britain.....live by our rules or go home xx

Think you miss the point... its not the foriegners keeping them away but misguided british people