This is a house with a white van and three St George cross flags. In Rochester. Big deal?
It was taken during a campaign in which a Tory MP was swapping over to UKIP, meaning nationalists pretending to be eurosceptics were getting a foothold. A house with THREE flags was spotted, it seemed apt to show the silliness of the whole affair. As if one flag doesn’t say enough, three? He must be much more English than anyone else!
Image from #Rochester pic.twitter.com/rOjTgpskmF
— Emily Thornberry MP (@EmilyThornberry) November 20, 2014
Words put in mouth
The comments on said tweet supplied assertions of class and metropolitanism, not Thornberry. These tweets were from UKIP & Conservative users. Huffington Post used these tweets to create a brief story on her apparent snobbery. The Sun jumped on board, massively. Offering FREE FLAGS in that day’s paper, such joy!
The Mail has also jumped on board suggesting anyone who doesn’t like the flag is a snob and a classist. Milliband says he respects flags, which is the most ridiculous soundbite this year and everyone seems to be agreeing with Nigel Farage that the working class should be allowed to wave their flags.
Why are we accepting these silly pseudo patriotic stereotypes of the working class? Why are we agreeing with Nigel Farage, and the Sun and the Mail? The assertions of class were all made a posteriori, by vested interests in the election of a UKIP candidate. It’s bollocks, it’s distraction and it’s a PR dream for everyone but Labour.
I do agree that taking a photo of someone’s property is somewhat improper. My qualm is with the allusion to snobbery, ‘metropolitanism’ and assertion that it was in anyway related to class that I just cannot see in the photo, nor the caption. I can however see them in the response from the right-wing media and politicans.
Was an apology right?
She should have been reprimanded for taking the photo, for sure. But I don’t believe she should have resigned for ‘having a pop at the poor, flag-waving working proles,’ because that is a generalisation made by the accusers after the fact.
Many people display England flag. The picture asserted no claim to the contrary. However, part of the group of people who do ARE nationalists. You did what you’re accusing thornberry of doing and made a class based assertion. I wore England shirts when I was young, loved football etc. But flags are nationalist. They’re a symbol of a nation.
She should apologise for being right? Because he was a nationalist? But people got pissed off by something she never actually said in the interim between the photo and his ‘Danifesto’? Of course, she’s part of a unsupportive system and her policies should speak for her. My issue is with the redefinition of the norm and political centreground by the right wing press and UKIP, which this non-story provided.
What do you think? Have your say in the comments section below.
