What has sparked Ford's concern is the Oxford Union Debating Society's invitation to Nick Griffin (BNP chief) and David Irving to speak. Ford referred to Irving as a Holocaust denier. Yesterday an AFP story published by the European Jewish Press called Irving "a historian who has written over 20 books."
Ford:
What is most alarming about the invitation to Griffin and Irving to partake in the Free Speech Debate was that it was an invitation to fascists to step into the political mainstream. In the 21st century, as the memory of how the blight of fascism and its devastating effect on Europe during World War II receding, a new political racism is reviving in Europe.
[...]
It is not all bad news for progressives. The October 2007 elections in Poland saw the LPR lose its seats, as the Poles grew tired of heavy-handed Catholicism, homophobia and extreme nationalism.
Unfortunately, we cannot rely on the mere political incompetence of these parties and their members. We need mainstream politicians to stop pandering to racists and make sure the EU puts more pressure on individual countries to enforce their laws against racism, xenophobia and homophobia more robustly. Only then will progressive politics beat the fascists back into the history books and ensure that renowned institutions like the Oxford Union do not promote free speech for those who place no value on it.
Links
Ford in Japan Times
Anti-Nazi League
Oxford Union
British National Party (BNP)
Daving Irving
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