The March of Wokeism, Trevor Phillips in The Times

ohhh that's quite a clear stand on the science, biology, womens' right side from Dawkins. I thought he wasn't getting himself involved.

Richard Dawkins (Evolutionary Biologist, Author, Atheist, Humanist) has retweeted this article.

twitter.com/RichardDawkins/status/1325231273464324096

I’m thinking about sharing it with my wokey 40-something friend, none of whose wokey inclinations involve them being at the front of the queue for personal sacrifice.

Great article. I agree 100%. If you have a teen or twentysomething at home, please share this article with thrm as they're unlikely to read The Times.

'Privilege' is used in numerous contexts to control speech. "Check your privilege" could now be used by white male born person who 'identified' as female, even if they work for a ftse 100 company, against a working class lesbian on benefits as long as that woman was denoted as 'cis'. It's unhelpful to say the least.

'White privilege' is a red herring. The people who use the term are really saying pick on the other guys not me, I'm your ally so you can trust me to retain my power, influence, money.
Black people who use it are just fueling a backlash. It may be true but doesn't really help much.
Progress only happens when we recognise our common humanity.

I didn't read it as an outright dismissal of white privilege Medusa. I read it as a criticism of performative wokeness concealing inaction:

I couldn’t care less if middle-class white men stopped saying sorry for having all the money, power and luck, as long as they did a little to redistribute their privilege to people who do not share their sex and race. But practical remedies don’t seem to be on the woke agenda. To a woke activist, victory is getting a white man to admit to his intrinsic awfulness. Sadly, it seems that an increasing number of them are willing to genuflect.

Some of that was interesting, but I can't agree with the outright dismissal that there is a privilege to being white. Just because poor white people exist, and some people who aren't white are doing better doesn't mean it's not a thing.

Absolutely excellent article. We should always listen to the dissidents of our country as well as of others. Any party worth their salt would be talking to him.

And thanks to the Times for keeping publishing alternative views and staying relevant unlike other papers we could name

He sees the trans issue for what it is, but has written about race because that involves him personally and it is easier to openly talk about. It does give him a chance to explore the thinking.
Yes. It is easier to openly talk about but I expect this will be the final nail in the cancellation coffin for him. It is a really good article. Saw lots of comments encouraging him to run for political office! Interesting thought.

Also need to refocus on being forward looking and going forward constructively
I agree with this and with the idea that we should also establish practices of doing the right/best thing without reference to an audience on social media etc. I think that social media is a BIG aspect of all of this and people need to see how it is pouring gasoline on all these issues as well as making it impossible for people to work out what the hell is going on. This is maybe where a renewed focus could be most valuable - working to get rid of the current model of SM and big tech's stranglehold on democracy and information.

Tristan Harris is the person who has been pushing forward with this - he was on Joe Rogan recently. It was actually a really scary discussion because of how precarious our democracy was revealed to be. But I think and hope that great clear thinkers like Phillips and others will be able to incorporate those ideas into their worldview too.

Also need to refocus on being forward looking and going forward constructively, rather than be backward looking in a destructive , retributive way which is what the Woke are doing.

He sees the trans issue for what it is, but has written about race because that involves him personally and it is easier to openly talk about. It does give him a chance to explore the thinking.

As you say, the #nodebate and the insiduous lobbying and policy capture at all levels works like a gag and while it works will continue for other groups.

I am glad that he comes back to the gender issues at the end.

He makes a good point about the murder of Samuel Platy and the voices that were critical of Platy rather than the radical Islamists.

They are trying to destroying the advances we've made in social justice over the last 100 years. Even in my lifetime, I have witnessed huge changes in attitudes and opinions and laws that protect equality for all. Things have changed SO much for the better - it's really awful to see this generation just trashing all the advances that have been made, making the world worse, and calling it 'progress'.

Yes, really disheartening to see such regressive opinions gain traction. I have to console myself with the idea that it seems to be the way of progress that we take two steps forward and one step back, and this too shall pass.

Thanks OP, Trevor Phillips always seems to hit the nail on the head.

A really interesting article, thank you OP. Some excellent points. I've always found Phillips to be intelligent and reflective. I agree "ethno masochism" is a good phrase.

Agreed Igmum and Bollox

Advocates of Critical Race Theory absolutely hate it when black and brown people are successful, and don't feel there's some awful spectre of racism holding them back.

Yes - there are a load of racist names for men like Trevor Phillips who don't behave in the way they're told and don't hold the opinions that others believe they should have. It's unbelievably racist and incredibly patronising.

They (the woke) think they have the right to tell us (people in general) what to think. Not only that, they believe they know what we really think better than we do! They think it's "pathological" when women or minority groups don't go along with the stereotypes they have created for them, by not being victimised and broken failures, but actually happy, successful, individuals with voices who can speak for themselves.

They are trying to destroying the advances we've made in social justice over the last 100 years. Even in my lifetime, I have witnessed huge changes in attitudes and opinions and laws that protect equality for all. Things have changed SO much for the better - it's really awful to see this generation just trashing all the advances that have been made, making the world worse, and calling it 'progress'.

Fantastic article, thanks for sharing.

Fantastic article. I especially liked this very clear point:

This perfectly sums up the gap between the woke self-image and reality. The woke affect to care for the excluded, yet cannot find room for talented people of colour in their own ranks. They present themselves as passionate campaigners for justice, yet they are ready to yield to the whims of the mob and dole out summary retribution to anyone deemed a heretic. They claim to be the allies of the oppressed, yet have no time to listen to their real priorities. They purport to seek greater diversity, yet require all women or all ethnic minorities to share their view or be branded quislings.

Sex — “the trans debate” — remains a hot issue but race was the principal battleground
I think this is true in a sense, in that race is a key battleground because it also affects men. Sex has not been the principal battleground if you are male and not trans. But I think that he - like so many of the men talking about this stuff - are still failing to see how fundamental the trans issue has been and continues to be - and how the kind of campaigning done by TRAs (#nodebate) has created actual institutional and pseudo-legal inroads into society at the deepest levels, which other wokery are now obviously taking advantage of, but which have been affecting everyone's lives for a long time now. However, he does at least, not quibble over the key point wrt to sex/gender.

A renewed focus on material reality would help to counter this

^^@igmum. Yes, I’ve been thinking this also, absolutely agree with this and also Integrity, doing the right thing when no one is looking, totally not what virtual signalling is about.

That was a really good read. It beggars belief that he is suspended by the Labour party - yet they expect us all to line up and vote for them. Idiots.