The British betrayal of the working classes

From today's Daily Telegraph. This article reflects a conversation I had with Freyr about two weeks ago. Indeed, it is interesting how many posts are the result of the exchange of ideas. The British "working class" was originally betrayed by the thuggish lout, William the Bastard -- then followed up by arguably the greatest vandal in history, Henry VIII. Following the return of Charles II, the "aristocracy" (e.g. sheep rustlers, Reformation lackeys etc.) firmly took control of the country. The Highland clearings was the last gaps of British peasantry; reduced to "working class" blokes. As such, we are at the point where real Cockneys are on the verge of disappearing. The EDL is a reaction of angry working class folk - betrayed by the elite - be it left or right. The disdain for Robinson from various BBC interviewers is always evident (invariably descended from wealthy Pakistani immigrants...). Britain is in a mess, collapsing... 

Listen to any interview with EDL leader Tommy Robinson (real name Stephen Lennon) and he'll invariably point out that he’s "just a working-class lad from Luton”. When attacked for having criminal convictions, chanting in public and leading his group like a football firm, he insists that these traits make him a man of the people rather than a politician. You may think that's rubbish – but, right now, selling yourself as an anti-politician is a smart move.

The rise of the English Defence League may seem to be about Islam, just as the BNP claimed to be about British culture. I believe the rise of both were and are fuelled by the same issue: a crisis in working-class identity. I come from a family of Labour supporters and I know what the problem is: Labour isn’t working-class any more. It just simply isn’t. For example, it doesn’t stand up for working-class communities on issues like open-door immigration. But that isn’t the biggest disconnect. It’s how Labour sounds and feels.