DO WE LIVE IN A DEMOCRACY?

Posted on March 28, 2017 by Norwich Radical in Perspectives and tagged business, campaign, capitalism, ceo, consensus, corporate sponsor, democracy, economics, equality, flaw, governance, government, horse and sparrow, influence, linguistics, nation, opposition, plutocracy, plutocratic state, political commentary, political influence, political power, political theory, pressure, regulation, system, trickled down.

by Richard Worth

Depending on how you feel, questioning whether we live in a democracy is either incredibly stupid or incredibly scary. In a democracy, every member who is eligible helps to decide how they are governed. Essentially everyone has the same voting power, the same level of influence over government, and the same means of expressing that influence.

But in reality this is an idealised version of democracy. In truth, we admit that there simply isn’t time for us to all have a say in every matter that affects us. Instead we elect officials who more or less represent what we want; accepting that they may stand for a few policies that we don’t agree with but we take the rough with the smooth. After all, the nature of democracy means one doesn’t get their choice every time. It’s the nation’s consensus.Continue Reading

LONE WOLF: THE RACIALISING OF TERROR

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national, Perspectives and tagged canada, Donald Trump, English, french, gun crime, hyphenation, islamic cultural centre of quebec, islamophobia, language, linguistics, mass shootings, native languages, Perspectives, politics, quebec shooting, race, race politics, racialising, racism, Spanish, terrorism, white supremacy.

by Candice Nembhard

I was fortunate enough recently to discuss race and race relations with a dear friend of mine. We covered numerous standpoints and theories, but the heart of the conversation was all about exposing the power of language – specifically, how it is inherently embedded with racist structures.

THE DEFINITION OF DEMOCRACY FLUCTUATES AS WILDLY AS THE POUND

Posted on November 9, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national, Perspectives and tagged Article 50, Brexit, british pound, David Lammy, definition, democracy, EU, EU referendum, Europe, government, hatecrime, Leave, linguistics, negoitations, NHS, Northern Ireland, Parliament, pound, refugee crisis, Remain, Scotland, union, United Kingdom, vote, Wales.

by Natasha Senior

It was apparently a victory for Remainers when the High Court ruled that invoking Article 50 will require a full parliamentary process. The judges issuing the verdict were branded as tyrants by the tabloids — as if they were doing anything other than interpreting law. David Lammy — the MP for Tottenham, where 75% of the constituency came out in favour of the EU — declared he would block Brexit. He is the political Schrödinger’s cat, he behaves both democratically and undemocratically at the same time: vowing to uphold the wishes of his constituents against the wishes of the country. A majority of politicians don’t have the luxury of having voted the way their constituents did. Perhaps they would argue it differently, that they were democratically elected to represent their constituents, not vote with their constituents. It seems like a tenuous technicality but one that appears to stand up to scrutiny.

I guess it depends on what democracy really means. I’ve said the word so many times, I don’t even know anymore.Continue Reading

WHY ARE WE TURNING OUR BACK ON REFUGEES?

Posted on October 27, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national and tagged aliens act, bnp, Brexit, Britain, britain first, british nationality act, debate, discourse, economic migrants, EDL, egyptians act, english defence league, Enoch Powell, EU, EU referendum, european economic community, fascism, first world war, history, Holocaust, immigration, Ireland, linguistics, migrant boat, migrants, migration, motherland, national front, notting hill riots, racism, refugee crisis, refugees, rhetoric, rivers of blood, second world war, Thatcher, uk, war time, windrush, xenophobia.

by Chris Jarvis

Content warning: this article mentions xenophobia and racism

Last week, reporting and rhetoric on the ongoing migration crisis reached new lows. The Daily Mail, The Express and others ran inflammatory stories first casting doubt over whether or not child refugees were children after all and later calling on them to carry out dental checks on asylum seekers to ascertain their age, irrespective of the ethical abhorrence and scientific inadequacy of such a policy.

How has it come to this? How, as a society, have we got to the point where people fleeing conflict, living in makeshift camps and trying desperately to find a better life receive this as their welcome to our country, are referred to in these terms? When did we stop being a nation that offered help and support to those in need, a nation that welcomed migrants, a nation with cities built on the principles of multi-culturalism and melting pot? Don’t we have a long and proud history of granting refuge to those who need it?

TODAY’S POLITICS: SPEAKING IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES

Posted on August 28, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national, Perspectives and tagged analysis, autonomy, Brexit, british politics, columnists, conservatives, debate, democracy, discourse, divide, divisions, EU referendum, framing politics, greens, ideology, Jean Claude Juncker, jeremy corbyn, Labour, labour leadership, language, Leave, left wing, linguistics, media, metropolitan, microcosm, middle class, migrants, new politics, owen smith, party politics, political class, political debate, political language, politics, press, protest vote, racism, Remain, tony blair, uk, working class.

by Chris Jarvis

Britain’s EU Referendum was a messy, unpleasant affair. Events that took place, the way campaigns were run, the rhetoric of certain advocates on both sides taught many lessons about the state of Britain. The referendum, and its subsequent result, have served as an amplifier for some unsettling and disturbing aspects of our politics and society – from racism and xenophobia, to the desperation and disaffection felt by people and communities across the country. All of these have had substantial coverage and comment in the press, as politicians and columnists have lined up to blame anyone and everyone – the political class, migrants, the Leave campaign, Jean Claude Juncker, Tony Blair.Continue Reading

IDENTITY, POLITICS, AND THE MOTHER TONGUE

Posted on February 21, 2016 by Norwich Radical in Arts, Inter|national and tagged bangla, Bengal, bengali, Bihar, BSB, Cohen, colonialism, Community, culture, English, generation, identity, India, international, International Mother Language Day, JNU, JU, Kalidasa, kobi, Kolkata, language, linguistics, Linkin Park, Marathi, mother tongue, nationalism, patiotism, poet, Shakespeare, speakers, Tagore, tradition, UNESCO.

by Ananyaa Bhowmik

“Do you think mother‐tongue is a patriotic idea?”

“Of course it is”

“How?”

“Well, we happen to live in a state where the regions were divided according to language. Can you feel patriotic towards your region in a country like India? Patriotism is an inclusive concept, while mother‐tongue gives you identity when identity politics is played. It isolates. It is a constant struggle between feeling proud of your mother‐tongue while being included. By the way…”

“Yes?”

“‘Mother’ Tongue is a Patriotic concept. A conundrum, don’t you think?”

In light of recent events in JNU, and being part of a University (Jadavpur) that is one of the greatest supporters of those “anti‐nationalists”, it is perhaps amusing to note that I am attempting to discuss as patriotic – or nationalistic, even – an idea as mother‐tongue, in occasion of UNESCO’s International Mother Language Day. The University ground is a battlefield as each group tries to define what being a patriot actually means. Cries of “Vande Mataram” (All hail the Mother) ring out. In a country that has forever been portrayed as the Mother Goddess ‐ an object of devotion that is inaccessible, idolized, rigid and unchanging; a mere bearer of children, stripped of any other form of identity, in a burning country where youthful souls struggle to establish individual identities and right to choice, I sit writing on mother‐tongue. Mother‐tongue, which made me a Bengali, all because of a mere genetic accident. And where it all really began.Continue Reading

WHY IS THE ‘TERRORITST’ LABEL SO NARROW IN THE MEDIA?

Posted on June 23, 2015 by Norwich Radical in Inter|national, Perspectives and tagged America, American, charleston, Dylann Roof, international, international politics, linguistics, media, mental health, race, racism, shooting, terrorism, terrorist, United States, US.

by Faizal Nor Izham

The recent Charleston shootings on June 17th — in which nine people were shot and killed inside the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church — has raised eyebrows from all quarters as to why suspect Dylann Roof, a 21-year-old white man, has not been labelled by the media as a ‘terrorist’ for his hate crimes.

The reason being, as offered by several news outlets, is that convenient labels such as ‘terrorist’ or ‘thug’ would automatically be applied if the attacker were Muslim or black. However, Roof, like many other ‘lone killers’ the United States is becoming increasingly known for, has instead been given labels such as ‘mentally ill’ and ‘angry loner’.Continue Reading

THE PROBLEM OF EXTREMISM

Posted on February 15, 2015 by Norwich Radical in Perspectives and tagged charlie hebdo, Christianity, Europe, extremism, extremist, free speech, God, in theory, Islam, Islamaphobia, linguistics, media, middle east, monarchy, Muslim, politics, popular media, racism, radicalism, religion, social media, uk, West, words.

by Jonathan Lee

Prime Minister Erdoğan was speaking in reaction to the Obama administration identifying Turkey as a moderate Islamic country. The blunt statement challenges much of the narrative coming from Western governments, and forces the West to question the validity of the term as well as another of its favourite loaded words: ‘Extremism’.

In the wake of the Charlie Hebdo shootings and the heavily sidelined Boko Haram massacre at Baga, the media’s use of choice words like ‘extremism’, ‘radicalism’, ‘fundamentalism’, and ‘Islamism’ has once once again been unleashed in a daily barrage on our television and computer screens. The corresponding rise of Islamophobia, which was already latent in the West, has reached even higher levels, resulting in liberals, apologists, and leftists having to try and stem the tide of what is sometimes wanton bigotry and racism. An oft deployed tool of argument is the careful labelling and distinction between ‘moderate Islam’ and ‘extremism’, usually in the vein of ‘moderate Muslims are not to blame, extremism is’.

linguistics

LONE WOLF: THE RACIALISING OF TERROR

THE DEFINITION OF DEMOCRACY FLUCTUATES AS WILDLY AS THE POUND

WHY ARE WE TURNING OUR BACK ON REFUGEES?

TODAY’S POLITICS: SPEAKING IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES

IDENTITY, POLITICS, AND THE MOTHER TONGUE

WHY IS THE ‘TERRORITST’ LABEL SO NARROW IN THE MEDIA?

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