I was listening, and everything was fine until about 40 minutes in when someone called Claire phoned in and, to cut a pile of crap in half, suggested that disabled people are ‘a burden on the taxpayer’ and that we should all be dead.

Well, ‘Claire’ turned out to be Claire Khaw. She writes a blog full of rubbish, and is a member of the BNP- something that doesn’t surprise me at all. Her views sound almost exactly like the views of a certain Jeffrey Marshall, the inspiration behind this little blog. They’re probably good friends!

If you’d like to hear the show, you can until next Wednesday by clicking here.

Here’s a link to the story that appeared in the Sunday Life over the summer exposing the call centre. 

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sunday-life/bnprsquos-secret-belfast-lair-14338489.html

We are asking people to add their signatures (and organisations/trade unions etc if appropriate).  We are also asking people to forward the letter to everyone in their address books.  The aim is to gather as much support as possible with the idea of launching a broad based campaign of political leaders, community and trade union leaders and anti racism activists committed to having the centre shut down.

You can add your name to the letter by emailing celebrating_diversity@ymail.com

“a strong, disciplined organisation with the ability to back up its slogan ‘Defend Rights for Whites’ with well-directed boots and fists. When the crunch comes, power is the product of force and will, not of rational debate.” – BNP Leader Nick Griffin on what he thinks the electorate want from the BNP

“Firebombing is not a British method. A brick through the window is a British method, but firebombing is not a way of showing displeasure,” – BNP Councillor Pat Richardson responding to a sickening racist attack against  a local Muslim man

SHUT DOWN THE BNP CALL CENTRE

WE THE UNDERSIGNED are horrified  that the BNP’s national call centre is located in Carrowreagh Business Centre in Dundonald.  The call centre is playing a central role in organizing recruitment and fundraising for the BNP and distributing their racist literature.  We pledge our support for a campaign to have the call centre closed down.

The last thing that Belfast needs is the presence of an organisation notorious for spreading racist lies whose members boast a string of convictions for race hate crimes.  Wherever the BNP organises, immigrants and members of black and minority ethnic communities come under attack.

In the past year NI has witnessed the poisonous effects of racism, with over 1000 attacks being reported to the PSNI – a figure many believe to be only a fraction of the true number.  The attacks on Roma families have shown most visibly where this can lead, over one hundred people including many children fleeing their homes in fear of their lives.  More recently, two Indian families living in Portadown had a number of windows in their homes smashed in racist attacks.  In this context a BNP call centre in Dundonald is extremely alarming.

The BNP is a deeply vicious organization.  Racism, prejudice, anti women attitudes and homophobia permeates every aspect of the BNP.   They call for the “repatriation” of all non whites – despite the fact that there are many non white people who are British.  They refer to the holocaust as the “holohoax”.  Their leader refers to gay people as being repulsive. Another leading member denies that rape exists saying publicly that forcing a woman to have sex against her will is not a crime because it is like forcing her to eat chocolate cake.

The reality is that the BNP is a fascist organisation built on advancing their political goals through violence and lies.  Their leader has a conviction for inciting racial hatred, as do many other members.  An undercover journalist at a BNP “family day” held recently in England revealed how children were encouraged to burn gollywogs on a bonfire while the adults discussed where they would find “real” ones to burn and boasted of committing racist attacks in their own local areas.  The Belfast Telegraph who reported the presence of the centre in Dundonald refers to the party as being fascist, stating “The British National Party is peddling its vile fascist propaganda from a secret Belfast bunker”.

The true nature of the BNP is why so many people are opposed to their presence and do everything in their power to shut them down.  Recently it was revealed that the BNP have been unable to secure office premises anywhere in East Lancashire.  Reports confirm that time and time again landlords pulled out of deals for premises when they discovered who their new tenants would be.  During the recent election campaign postal staff demanded their right to use a conscience clause in their contract to refuse to deliver their election literature.  Many trade unions expel members who are found to be linked to the BNP.  Every police force in the UK bans its members from joining the group.

We are absolutely opposed to the BNP.  We are calling on political leaders, community and trade union leaders, anti racism activists and all those in our society concerned about this alarming development to take a stand and organise together to shut down these hate mongers.

Anti Racism Network

BNP leader Nick Griffin was elected to represent the North West region while Andrew Brons won the seat for Yorkshire and Humber in the June 4 elections to the European Parliament.

Activist and campaigner Richard Rieser branded the BNP a fascist party and said that its electoral success was a result of large numbers of disillusioned Labour supporters failing to vote.

He said that disabled people in areas represented by the BNP would be afraid because fascists wanted to kill disabled people.

“The fascist record on dealing with disabled people is to kill us. They’re Holocaust deniers but I haven’t noticed them denying that disabled people were killed en masse in Germany.”

Julie Newman, Acting Chair of the UK’s Disabled People’s Council, said she could only think that a party denying the Holocaust would deny disabled people the right to exist too.

She said: “I think there’s a eugenics agenda because they want to get rid of anybody who taints the bloodline. I think that anybody who’s different from the BNP’s purist agenda is going to have a difficult time.”

Alice Maynard, Chair of disability charity Scope, said that black and ethnic-minority disabled people already endured considerable discrimination which she doubted would improve with the election of BNP politicians.

“One feels that the BNP’s approach to race is the negative bit, but I don’t think that disability is ever far behind. There are serious issues around the genetic agenda.”

All three campaigners said that they hoped the success of the BNP would serve as a rallying call to disabled people to ally with anti-fascist and anti-racist organisations.

In May, the Observer newspaper reported that Jeffrey Marshall, senior organiser for the BNP’s London European election campaign, had posted a message on an internet forum in which he commented on the death of David Cameron’s disabled son Ivan.

According to the Observer, Mr Marshall said: “We live in a country today which is unhealthily dominated by an excess of sentimentality towards the weak and unproductive. No good will come of it.”

The Observer article said that later, in response to comments made by others on the site, Marshall is alleged to have written: “There is not a great deal of point in keeping these people alive after all.”

The Observer added that Mr Marshall said the comments were private and some had been paraphrased and taken out of context. The paper said that he had admitted making the former comment but said he could not recall making the latter one.

Source:  Disability Now

Julie Newman’s comment in DN prompted me to do some research.  Though in one sense I wish I hadn’t because what I found is very upsetting.  I  feel I can’t say much, as the article speaks for itself.

It’s tough reading but please take a look a this article entitled ‘Euthanasia Program‘ from the United States Holocaust Museum.

Further Reading from USHM:  Murder Of  “The Unfit”

Harry Thomas

The commission said it had written to the party over possible breaches of the law in the BNP’s constitution, membership rules and recruitment.

It asked the BNP to pledge to comply with the Race Relations Act by 20 July or face a potential legal injunction.

But BNP leader Nick Griffin said the party’s rules were “entirely legal”.

Mr Griffin – who was elected as an MEP for the North West on 4 June – said the BNP was an exempted organisation under Section 25 and Section 26 of the Race Relations Act.

He said this meant “ethnic groups who need special protection such as the English in their own country, who are now second class citizens” were “entitled to discriminate on that basis and not on the grounds of colour”.

He added: “We are not discriminating on grounds of colour.”

On 4 June, the BNP won their first two MEPs in the European Parliament elections.

‘Deliberate omission’

In a statement, the commission said the BNP’s constitution and membership criteria appeared to discriminate on the grounds of race and colour, in breach of the Race Relations Act.

The party’s rules appeared to restrict membership to those within what the BNP regarded as particular “ethnic groups”, the commission added.

It also said the party’s website asked job applicants to supply a membership number, which appeared to be in breach of legislation banning the “refusal or deliberate omission to offer employment on the basis of non-membership of an organisation”.

The statement added: “The commission is therefore concerned that the BNP may have acted, and be acting, illegally.”

John Wadham, the commission’s legal director, insisted it had a duty to take action against possible breaches of anti-discrimination laws.

He said: “The legal advice we have received indicates that the British National Party’s constitution and membership criteria, employment practices and provision of services to constituents and the public may breach discrimination laws which all political parties are legally obliged to uphold.”

The commission said it had received around 50 recent calls from members of the public about the membership policy of the BNP, although it is understood it was already investigating the party.

Teachers

The BNP’s Deputy press officer John Walker said the party would not be making a formal response to the commission at this stage as it wanted to “wait until the Equalities Bill has gone through”.

“We are not going to respond to threats like this. We will look at it, but it is an entirely politically-motivated attack,” he told BBC News.

The Equalities Bill, currently making its way through Parliament, is expected to include a move to outlaw the BNP’s membership policy, which is limited to various groups it defines as “indigenous Caucasian”.

Mr Walker said the BNP would be prepared to change its membership rules “to remain within the law”.

But he added: “I don’t think we should be bullied by outside forces. They are asking us to change our whole political ideology.”

On Monday, the Department for Children, Schools and Families said it was considering banning teachers in England from joining the BNP.

In its constitution, the BNP says it exists to represent the “collective National, Environmental, Political, Racial, Folkish, Social, Cultural, Religious and Economic interests of the indigenous Anglo-Saxon, Celtic and Norse folk communities of Britain and those we regard as closely related and ethnically assimilated or assimilable aboriginal members of the European race also resident in Britain”.

It says membership of the BNP is “strictly defined within the terms of, and our members also self define themselves within, the legal ambit of a defined ‘racial group’ this being ‘Indigenous Caucasian’ and defined ‘ethnic groups’ emanating from that Race”.

BBC News

The government is investigating a possible ban on British National party members working as teachers in schools in a move that could challenge the legitimacy of the far-right party.

A source close to the schools secretary, Ed Balls, said there had been several meetings on the issue with teaching unions which are lobbying for a change in teachers’ contracts to prevent them from working if they are members of far-right groups including the BNP. The issue was being “actively looked at”, the source said.

It comes after it emerged that the General Teaching Council for England (GTC), which registers teachers to work in state schools, had rejected appeals to ban BNP members. Lawyers warned the council it could be accused of discriminating against members of the far-right party if it refused to register them.

Five members of the council’s own governing body wrote to the Guardian on Saturday to appeal for a national debate on the issue. They claimed the GTC was “hiding” behind legal advice to avoid banning the BNP from registering as teachers.

Chris Keates, the general secretary of the NASUWT teaching union, confirmed she had held several discussions with Balls about the possibility of a ban and had called for a change to teachers’ contracts to prevent BNP members from teaching.

The source close to Balls said the issue was being re-examined in the light of the election to the European parliament of two BNP members, including party leader Nick Griffin, who has been convicted of inciting racial hatred.

The GTC was advised by lawyers that it would be discriminatory to ban members of a lawful political party. It was also told that if it declared any views on the BNP, it could be accused of lacking impartiality in any subsequent disciplinary hearings involving teachers in the far-right party.

A BNP membership list leaked last year included the names of 15 teachers, four nurses and one prison officer as well as 17 former police officers and 16 members of the armed forces.

Members of the BNP, National Front and Combat 18 are banned from joining the police or becoming prison officers.

In the letter to the Guardian, the five GTC members argued that legislation required everyone working in schools to “promote good race relations and community cohesion”, which would be incompatible with some views held by the BNP. The party supports voluntary repatriation of non-white citizens.

The General Teaching Council for England is today accused by members of its governing body of failing to act to prevent British National party members from teaching in schools.

The GTCE has refused to write a clause into its new code for teachers barring BNP members from working in state schools. This was after receiving legal advice that to do so could “prejudice” teachers who are members of the far-right party.

In a letter to the Guardian today, five members of the governing body of the GTCE – which registers teachers to work in state schools in England and conducts disciplinary hearings – call for an urgent public debate. “We believe that being a member of the BNP is fundamentally inconsistent with the ethos of schools in this country,” they write.

They say the election of two BNP candidates to the European parliament, including the party’s leader, Nick Griffin, who has a conviction for inciting racial hatred, has made the issue even more urgent.

Members of the BNP, the National Front and Combat 18 are barred from working in the police force or prison service. The Church of England is considering a similar measure. Teaching leaders called for the government to rewrite teachers’ contracts, banning BNP members from schools, saying failure to do so was allowing “creeping legitimisation” of the party.

The GTCE is due to debate its new code next month. A draft version said “respect, equality, diversity and inclusion” were among eight “core values” that should be shared by all in the teaching profession.

It also included the ruling that teachers “maintain standards of behaviour, both inside and outside school”. But the GTCE refused to include a clause banning BNP membership. In a statement, the GTCE said it was advised it could not bar members of a “lawful” political party. Any council member who expressed a view against the BNP could be accused of discrimination, prejudicing the case.

“As a regulatory body, we cannot regulate against the beliefs of professionals, only their actions and conduct,” it said. Any council member who expressed anti-BNP views could not adjudicate in hearings involving BNP members and might compromise the council’s impartiality.

The letter to the Guardian reads: “The new code should clearly state that BNP members will not be eligible for registration as teachers by the GTC … If it is possible for other professions to resolve the legal difficulties, then it should be possible for the GTC.” The authors argue that legislation requires everyone working in schools to “promote good race relations and community cohesion”.

Kirit Modi, a former teacher, deputy of education at Islington council, north London, and now an education consultant, is one of the signatories. He said: “We have been told we can’t discuss this matter because it will cause legal difficulties. We haven’t been able to debate this within the GTC and that’s why we are calling for a wider debate.”

A list of BNP members leaked last year included 15 teachers, four nurses, a prison officer, 17 former police officers and 16 members of the armed forces.

Chris Keates, general secretary of the NASUWT teaching union, said BNP members should be banned across the public sector. “If BNP members are too racist or fascist to be in the police then they are too racist or fascist to work with children.

“It would be easy for someone in the BNP, holding the views they do, to discriminate against pupils. It would be easy for a BNP member to exclude pupils from black or minority ethnic groups by simply not giving them equal attention and that would be very hard to detect,” she said. “I can understand the GTC may be in a difficulty of prohibiting somebody through a code of conduct. But I don’t think the GTC is powerless. They could be campaigning to change teachers’ contracts.”

The union has lobbied successive secretary of states for education to tackle the issue in teachers’ contracts.

Do they want to teach children to be racist, disablist, homophobic nutters who agree with the Holocaust, then? Shocking isn’t it?

Cerebral Person.