Nick Griffin has said that he expects “a trickle not a flood” of people from ethnic minorities to join his British National Party following a ruling at an “extraordinary general meeting” in Essex allowing non-white people to join the racist group.
Well, quite, though I think he’s being optimistic. I cannot imagine any sane non-white person seeking to join such an organisation. And that there won’t be a “flood” is instructive of what sort of a party it is, behind the gloss.
Talking of gloss, here’s a worrying point.
Asked about the ruling, which was forced by the Equalities Commission, a BNP spokesman, Simon Darby, said: “Let’s put it like this — if, as a result of this, a court rules that we are now a bona fide party, that’s a great stamp of approval. If anyone says we are racist, we can say, ‘No we’re not, it’s been proved in court.’ “
Following Griffin’s appearance on BBC1’s Question Time, this once again raises the question: is it right to bring this party in from the cold?