A casual friend has just told me she's standing as a Reform candidate

[Mumblechum0]

And I have no clue how to respond.

I've always liked her, we're not close, ie don't do anything just the two of us, but are often in the same group at parties, book group, joint birthday bashes etc.

She's very posh, professional job, husband's a head fund manager (he walks round in a tweed cap and goes shooting on his family estate etc etc...just setting the scene, she's well educated etc.)

Anyway, she messaged me yesterday to say that she wanted me to know in advance that she's standing as a Reform candidate in our local elections; she didn't ask for my support, but didn't want me to just see her face on a leaflet through the door.

I'm married to a black man, have a mixed race son.

I haven't responded yet, as I don't know whether it's best to just ignore, or to say thanks for letting me know, or actually to say I'm quite horrified (which is my actual reaction).

Any ideas?

Honestly, I think it’s rather odd that you immediately jump to the assumption that she’s racist.

People like OP, with their superior, sanctimonious views, are in for a shock.

Remember the batshittery in the US. BLM hysteria, trans madness, daylight crime and massive shoplifting being overlooked, a general shift to left madness. And those opposing it were called ‘the basket of deplorables’?

How did that work out?

OP’s friend is better off ditching OP.

It is not in the slightest bit odd to conclude that someone standing as a candidate for an inherently fascist party is racist. She might not be, but it’s definitely not odd to make that assumption.

@Annajones101 You think BLM in the US was hysteria? Batshittery?

Yikes.

What do you mean, why are people 'in for a shock'? What do you anticipate happening- that everyone is looking on at the US extreme measures with admiration? Deluded comes to mind.

I don’t vote for reform but I’m not sure why you’re horrified that people are standing as candidates. We live in a democracy. Also why is you being married to a black man relevant?

Plenty of racists vote for Labour.

I think some people think that everyone believes as they do and anyone who doesn’t is some sort of deplorable racist person. But actually reform has a lot of support and maybe you should stop dismissing people as hateful because they have a different opinion to you

Dozens of people were killed in the BLM riots and billions of property destroyed.

Yes Reform is right-leaning but they're hardly the BNP. If I were your friend I'd be offended that you assumed I was racist.

Dozens of people were killed in the BLM riots and billions of property destroyed.

Not to mention the funds embezzled.

Exactly. It seems to be a thing that if you vote for a left-wing party then that is the socially-acceptable thing to do, but if you dare vote for anyone right of Labour then you ought to feel ashamed and will be ostracised by all your Labour voting friends.

The reality is that there are plenty of people who don’t like Labour of their policies and are patiently awaiting the next election when they hope that Labour will be voted out again.

It’s called a democracy and is something we should all embrace. Otherwise, what is the alternative?

I literally don't know anybody from the builders next door to the solicitor down the road who is looking at Trump and thinking bring this here via Reform, Reform who couldn't run a piss up in a brewery. Remind me how many seats in parliament do they have again?

@Goldenbearthe poll two days ago put them ahead for electoral seats

I’m not sure it’s easy to gauge in the way you put.

Maybe you live in a bubble. I don’t support reform (or Trump although I don’t disagree with everything) but polls show significant support- about 25% and above. That’s a lot for a recently formed party.

My point was that we should stop demonizing people with different opinions though. There is not one “acceptable” opinion

There are racists in every walk of life, that is true. But Reform is more attractive to racists of all sorts than Labour.

OP's friend is standing for the party in the full knowledge that it's raison d'être is to "other" certain groups of people and blame the UK's ills on them.

If that was my friend I'd be really disappointed in them.

She would no longer be my friend.

I will never not demonise people who hold racist views. Not all views are respect worthy.

In our local elections, the Reform candidate is an Indian immigrant, so I’m not sure it’s as clear cut as that.

I agree with this.

Reform are an inherently fascist, rascist misogynistic party. Farage thinks Andrew Tate is a great bloke.

And frankly I'd like to see an in depth investigation into just how much support Reform and Farage receive from Russia.

I'm all for embracing different political opinions, but really I draw the line at someone supporting those viewpoints. I could not be friends with someone who thought it was OK to be sexist or anti semitic etc.

But its important to remember she's of the same class as Farage, he's also uber posh having gone to Dulwich college. He can pretend he's a man of the people swigging his pint but he simply is not.

People like her are realising that the likes of Trump and Farage can enjoy power and even greater wealth by telling the lower socio economic, poorly educated classes that foreigners, people of colour and women are to blame for all their ills.

Look at how people lapped up Farage's Brexit lies. Despite the fact that he had personally profited as an MEP whilst doing nothing. They still support him. Why? Because their hatred of those who are different blinds them to his lies and wrongdoings. Their support becomes cult like.

She's buying into that. She's helping create a society where we all have less rights, less freedom and blameless groups are scapegoated.

Look at all the posts online about how in the aftermath of Adolescence white men and boys are being scapegoated for the crmes of black men and boys. It's so clearly rubbish, but that narrative is running because it allows men instead of self reflecting to just blame people of colour. When they're just casting complicit in the rapes, murders and brutalisation of women.

She's joining that very movement, that contingent of people who are happy to oppress and benefit from oppression.

She would be dead to me.

Turkeys vote for Christmas, look at Brexit.

I’d write back “It’s nice to know where we stand…”

Yes, polls mean nothing 6 months in - of course there is going to be backlash as many people are not interested in deep analysis, they listen to vox pops and they don't apply critical analysis to it. Equally, many people said they vote Reform but didn't vote at all in the end. Equally, how many seats did theses votes translate into? Still nobody responds as the harsh reality is Reform are not winners. They are not just a party, they are on the right of the right wing Conservatives, many people in Britain just aren't into extremes. That's the hard facts they'll have to come to terms with.

What does that even mean? No, I don't live in a bubble, I live in reality which I'm afraid many Reform enthusiasts don't as in the real world, Reform have 5 seats, 5 poxy seats, sorry but that doesn't say 'winners' to me.

If you don't want to be thought of in a certain way, you really do need to be aware of the company you keep and the message that is projecting to the world. That's your decision to make, nobody else's, take some responsibility and own it.

If your comment holds you’d see it in the loss of support. They are still leading.