Racists are no Friends of the Union
By Billy Mitchell

"Do not mistreat an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens ……...’ Exodus 22:21

Discrimination, intimidation and physical attacks on British citizens and foreign nationals living in Northern Ireland, because of their colour or ethnic background, are an affront to all who cherish the principles of civil and religious liberty and equal citizenship within the Union. Such racist activities are also an affront to all who sincerely believe in the core principles of the Protestant Reformation, which proclaims the love of God for all mankind regardless of race or ethnicity. Racism is based solely on hatred, the gospel is based on Love – the two are incompatible.

It is sad therefore to learn that racists, propagating the evils of ‘British’ nationalism and ‘white’ supremacy, are once again seeking to gain a foothold in working class Protestant communities in Belfast, Ballymena and Craigavon. Attacks on people of colour in Belfast followed the distribution of leaflets from an organisation calling itself the “British Nazi Party” while in Ballymena the homes of Filipino nurses were attacked following leaflet drops by a group calling itself “The White Nationalist Party”. Leaflets purporting to come from the same group have been circulating in the Craigavon area where members of the Muslim community have been the target of racial hatred.

Thankfully they are infinitesimally small in number, and it is clearly debatable whether such organisations actually exist other than as a flag of convenience for a few racists; but, as the saying goes, “a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump”. Protestants have a duty of care to their fellow British citizens and to foreign nationals living in their areas, regardless of ethnic background, to ensure that they live in peace and harmony. It was refreshing to see two senior loyalists, Tommy Kirkham and David Ervine, speaking out against racist attacks in Protestant areas.

Genuine Unionists will be aware that racism is subversive of both Protestantism and political Unionism. Political Unionism and Nationalism - be it ‘British’ nationalism, ‘Irish’ nationalism or ‘White’ nationalism - are wholly incompatible. Being British is about citizenship not nationality. The Liberal Unionist, Arthur Aughey, has rightly noted that –“The idea of the Union is the willing community of citizens united not by creed, colour or ethnicity but by the recognition of the authority of the Union”.

Principled political Unionism is thus able to facilitate pluralism whereas ‘British Nationalism’, so-called, which links citizenship to a single racial and ethnic identity, is inimical to Unionism. Citizenship within the United Kingdom has nothing to do with race, ethnicity or nationalism. It is about a political identity that is rooted in citizenship and in loyalty to the concept of the Union.

There is a British State, but there is no such a thing as a British Nation. Thus when racists talk about ‘British’ nationalism they are really talking about English Nationalism and in their arrogance they equate Britishness with Englishness. There is also the fond belief (delusion) that the English, because of their numerical superiority within the Union have a right to impose their way of life and culture on the other partners, and to speak as if they were the alpha and omega of the Union. Of course, Irish nationalists share that same mentality. Because there is a Gaelic-Catholic majority on the island of Ireland, who claim to be the true Irish, they insist on the Scotch-Irish (Ulster-Scots) and the Anglo-Irish being incorporated into an Irish Union that would be dominated by the politics and culture of a Gaelic-Catholic Nation. Why would any Unionist want to reject Irish Nationalism in order to embrace English Nationalism masquerading as British Nationalism?

The peoples who form the Unionist community come from a number of diverse cultures and traditions – Irish, Scottish, English, Welsh and some of Huguenot descent, as well as a goodly number of Commonwealth emigrants and their offspring. Principled political Unionism is about maintaining citizenship within a state that acknowledges and validates the identity, culture and traditions of those who make up the Union. Citizenship for the British subject is not about a single national identity or cultural exclusiveness. It is about sharing a political identity than transcends religion, culture, language and ethnicity. In short, it is about living in a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic pluralist society rather than in a society where citizenship is based on a single national identity.

It is estimated that 30% of the world’s population belong to a Commonwealth country and the unionist community in Northern Ireland ought to be proud to be part of that international family. The Commonwealth is a multi-ethnic, multi-faith and multi-cultural association of free peoples. The one thing than binds them together simply is their shared history with the United Kingdom which is manifested in the fact that they all have a common working language and similar systems of law, public administration and education. This shared history has enabled them to develop a vibrant and growing association of states that, with a few exceptions, are in tune with the modern world.

Those within loyalism who have fallen victim to the poisoned words of ‘British’ nationalists need to ask – “How can I pledge loyalty to the Head of the Commonwealth while at the same time denying basic human rights and equal citizenship to those who have emigrated to this part of the U.K. from Commonwealth countries”? The United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland, prospered under British Imperialism. It is only but fitting that people from Commonwealth countries should, if they so desire, seek to build a better life for themselves and their children in the Kingdom that once prospered at their expense. This generation of British citizens cannot right the wrongs of the past, but we can make things right for the future.

But what of those strangers to our shores who do not hail from Commonwealth countries? Do we not have a responsibility to welcome those who come seeking refuge from persecution and terror? The words of Moses the Hebrew lawgiver, are worthy of consideration – “Do not mistreat an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt” (Exodus 22:21). This injunction was repeated time and time again. Because they were once aliens and strangers, the Hebrews were to love the aliens in their midst. (Ariel Sharon must have missed that wee bit of Hebrew wisdom). This Biblical injunction has relevance to both the Scotch-Irish and the Anglo-Irish for both were once aliens and strangers on this island. Many of our Presbyterian forbears also left this island, fleeing the penal laws, to seek refuge in America. Others left to seek a new life in places as far apart as Canada and Australia. Should the descendants of those who have a history of seeking refuge in strange lands and who experienced the hardships of being strangers and aliens not have some sympathy for those who come to our shores seeking refuge?

At a time when Irish nationalists are seeking by all means possible to give up their British citizenship, and to force non-nationalists to relinquish theirs, it is ironic that so-called ‘British’ nationalists are hell-bent on forcing existing British citizens out of Northern Ireland and preventing those who wish to take out citizenship from doing so. Racists have nothing whatever to offer the Protestant community and ‘British’ nationalism, so-called, has nothing to offer political Unionism. Those who believe that “An enemy of my enemy is my friend” believe a lie. ‘British’ nationalists may well be the enemy of Irish nationalists, but they are no friends of Ulster Protestants or Political Unionists either.

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