'Enoch' is a dirty word

In case you're wondering what Nigel Hastilow actually wrote, the article is here on the Express and Star's website.

The offending paragraphs are:

When you ask most people in the Black Country what the single biggest problem facing the country is, most people say immigration. Many insist: “Enoch Powell was right”.

Enoch, once MP for Wolverhampton South West, was sacked from the Conservative front bench and marginalised politically for his 1968 “rivers of blood” speech warning that uncontrolled immigration would change our country irrevocably.

He was right. It has changed dramatically. But his speech was political suicide. Enoch’s successors in Parliament are desperate to avoid ever mentioning the issue.

Even if he had taken out the first three words in the third paragraph and replaced them with something like, "Few would doubt that immigration has changed Britain dramatically," he would probably have got away with it. But "Enoch was right" has become one of today's taboo phrases. Even if you are, effectively, arguing that Enoch was right, it's just not done to actually say so.

Perhaps, one day, Enoch Powell will be rehabilitated. He had some interesting views on many subjects. The need to build an alliance with Russia was one of his lesser-known hobby horses. He said it during the Cold War when such opinions were almost as unpopular as his views on immigration.  No one remembers him for visionary ideas like that, which have since become almost mainstream. All they remember is that he made a speech which was 'racist' and for that, his name became a dirty word.

There is more discussion here on Nigel Hastilow's blog.

Comments

[Umbongo]

Not only was Powell right on immigration, he was right on the "Common Market" (he and Lord Stansgate campaigned against continued membership together in 1975) and he was right on economics: his pamphlet "Saving in a Free Society" was a seminal work published by the IEA. I don't recall him voicing any opinion on our becoming an ally of Russia. Nevertheless, whatever he was, he was his own man and he was true (too true for his own good) to his powers of logical thinking.

[Wolfie]

One of your more carefully guardedly worded posts Steve.

I was wondering exactly what the fuss was about so thanks for finding the original text for perusal.

How long before City analysts get the sack for giving "Bearish" prognosis on company stocks too? Oh yes, only this week… silly me.

Nobody likes bad news do they?

[Jack R]

Will Tory Party ( or Labour or LibDems ) allow candidates to express support for Ray Honeyford?:-

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/08/27/nmulticul27.xml

[chachi]

enoch powell was a confused man, 1 year he toured the carribean begging the people of those island to emmigrate to britain, the next he changes his mind & gives an immigration speech on its disadvantages, i don't think he thought his ideas out fully before opening his mouth, he got one thing right in the end though, immigration is bad for the native working class who have had it too easy for too long & he knew this & also realised that they they could not compete with the immigrants work ethic & would therefore lose their jobs to them.

[Jack R]

" When will Tories admit that Enoch was right? " (Simon Heffer.)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2007/11/07/do0701.xml

[Jack R]

" Don't mention Enoch " Rod Liddle ( 'Spectator' 8 Nov.)http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-magazine/features/335031/part_2/nigel-hastilows-real-crime-was-to-dare-to-mention-enoch-powell-at-all.thtml

[Jack R]

"Words Enoch would never have uttered" ( Andrew Alexander )

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/columnists/columnists.html?in_article_id=492536&in_page_id=1772&in_author_id=248