Ruling Demands Abolition of BNP’s “Whites Only” Membership Policy
An Equality and Human Rights Commission victory on Sunday has seen the abolition of the British National Party’s “whites only” policy, allowing for the integration of both black and Asian party members in a watershed moment which will undoubtedly see the integration of BNP’s once staunchly right wing policies. That, or simply provide a few “minority” faces to combat any slanderous suggestions of overt racism or bigotry that nay sayers might throw at the party.
Following the January 28th hearing, John Wadham, of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: “All political parties must obey the law, our job is to ensure that everyone obeys the law. Whether people want to join the BNP or not is a matter for them, it's their freedom to do so.” As a result of the inquest, the BNP has since alerted it’s 14,000 members to the changes in constitution, providing them with 14 days warning to membership policy changes.
The ruling, issued at the Central London Country Court, determined the BNP’s previous membership guidelines instituted in 1982, to be in direct breach of British race relations laws-a fair point given the BNP’s rigorous admission process that extended to “indigenous British” citizens only. Responding to the decision, the party has issued a statement agreeing to amend their constitution and temporarily suspend membership applications until the revisions have been instated.
The BNP has long courted public criticism and contention in recent years and one only has to visit their website to gain further insight into the parties explicit interest in attracting minority groups to their ranks with headlines as welcoming as “Immigration-Time to Say Enough!” and “Ensuring that Britain Remains British”. More recently, the parties often incendiary front man, Mr. Nick Griffin, instigated protest and criticism after giving voice to his staunchly anti-immigration viewpoints during the filming of BBC’s Question Time. In lieu of all of this, one might question how those Asian and Black individuals so obviously swayed by such rhetoric will respond to the BNP’s recent interest in the multicultural aspect of their constituency.
So far, the jury is still out as to whether there will be any discernable change in agenda or demographic composition within the party. Mr. Griffin himself claims to be expecting “a trickle rather than a flood” of new membership applications from previously alienated ethnic groups. However, the party is already bolstering ranks with Rajinder Singh, a man of Sikh ethnicity expected to become the parties first non white member in it’s 28 year history. Many critics of the ruling acknowledge the decision to be nothing short of a publicity stunt intended by Nick Griffin and followers to present British voters with a warmer fuzzier BNP-a BNP determined not by the colour of skin but by the content of character, as long as that character aligns with an “indigenous British” agenda.
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