The Queen of woke just exposed the hypocrisy of the virtue-signalling Left

Yahoo

23-02-2025

In what can only be described as a quite spectacular Damascene conversion, Ash Sarkar of Novara Media has rejected identity politics and the competing grievances it has given rise to.
In an interview with Lewis Goodall of The News Agents, Sarkar argued what many have been saying for years – that much of the America-brained British Left is destroying itself by embracing the politics of racial victimhood.
This includes adopting divisive theories of so-called 'white privilege', with such toxic ideas spreading through the public, private, and third sectors, fuelled in part by the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Much of this proved to be a complete distraction in one of the most racially fair societies on Earth, deflecting attention away from much stronger determinants of life chances such as modern Britain – such as family structure, community norms, and young people's accessibility to civic assets.
Sarkar's apparent conversion is to be welcomed – as an old-school Leftist who has always believed that class has been left by the wayside when it comes to vital matters of social mobility, I passionately believe that the so-called 'woke' focus on racial identity has been destructive for both social policymaking and community relations at large.
Indeed, recent research by Policy Exchange revealed that the majority of the British public – including ethnic minorities – believe that class is more important than race when it comes to people succeeding and doing well in Britain. Its report recommended that the Government and public bodies such as the Social Mobility Commission (SMC) ensure young people's development is primarily analysed through a class lens (not a racial one) and that there should be a particular focus on expanding opportunities for schoolchildren in left-behind areas to build social and cultural capital.
Some may be cynical about Sarkar turning her back on identity politics. After all, she often defended BLM, with her Novara Media organisation striking parallels between the social movement and the politics of Martin Luther King Jr. Anyone with a basic understanding of the American civil rights movement would know that at the heart of his vision was a harmonious, post-racial American nation state which addressed rampant socio-economic inequalities in access to opportunities, high-quality public services, and private ownership. This is a far cry from what I have long considered to be segregationist tendencies at the heart of BLM-inspired racial identity politics. Sarkar's reckless forays into matters of integration include referring to Britain's so-called white-supremacist state. Novara once posted a video titled: The unbearable whiteness of Brexit.
While Sarkar is now right to flag the corrosive effect of racial identity politics on social solidarity, this is quite a departure from her previous record. As such, some might be in an unforgiving mood.
But Sarkar's public trashing of contemporary identity politics should be treated as a victory by those who have been challenging its toxic divisiveness for a long time. The politics of racial grievance is on the back foot – it is time to press home the advantage.
Dr Rakib Ehsan is the author of Beyond Grievance
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