To think that banning teachers from being members of the BNP is outrageous!

[londonone]

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/8112747.stm

Now I abhor the BNP and their policies however they are a LEGAL political party and as a teacher I would find it appalling that my freedom to join legal political parties was being curtailed.

If the establishment believe the BNP to be that abhorrent then they should make them illegal. If a teacher acts in a racist, sexist, homophobic way AT WORK, then discipline them on that basis.

If BNP membership is to be banned then what about the SWP, some would say they are as extreme.

Could a teacher who holds racist views also promote Equal Opportunuties? AFAIK that is a requirement in most teaching jobs. I just don't see how a teacher with racist views could possibly teach non-white children with care and compassion.

Some religions have fairly interesting views on homosexuality and sexism. Should we be banning teachers of certain faiths? What about those faiths where followers of the faith are expected to convert others? If you start banning one group you are opening a whole can of worms.

"soupdragon - Well many of your fellow brits obviously disagree with you. "

No, some of my "fellow brits" lack humanity, decency and common sense.

The BNP MEP for Yorkshire & Humberside spent 35 years teaching, and by all accounts was fair-minded to all and a very good teacher.

People's private memberships should be no business of this controlling intolerant government of ours.

saadia - can a Muslim teacher teach "infidels" with care and compassion? Could a MN poster who refers to the BNP as "fucking scum" teach the child of a BNP member with care and compassion? As I said if teachers fail to do their jobs professionally including Equal Opp then they MUST be held to account.

londonone are you suggesting that all Muslims hate "infidels"? Your ignorance is quite gobsmacking.

Soupdragon - No doubt they would say the same about you! That's the great thing about democracy we all get our say equally (in therory).

It's also very wrong that anyone defending people's right to hold private views is automatically labelled a racist/BNP sympathiser by posters on here.

londonone - you are a bnp member aren't you?

saadia - No I am saying that some do express those views!

kingrolo - Are you really that stupid?

Goof point from wannabe: if people in jobs are banned from belonging to the BNP it isn;t going to stop them agreeing with the BNP. I am very uneasy about what seems to be a wish to forbid people to think unpleasant things. By all means remove a teacher from his/her job if/she displays blatant discrimination or even moderately subtle discrimination in the classroom, but people have to be allowed to hold their own opinions.

Lots of children are unfortunate enough to have parents who are complete wankers- it doesn't usually encourage discrimination against them, quite the reverse. OP, I'll say again- why do you CARE so much? Why aren't you worried about NORMAL things that don't make you sound like a crank trying to infiltrate a message board?

If you are in a position of authority and paid by the state you should not be allowed to belong to the BNP. This should include police, medics and teachers. If you want top belong to the BNP, a marginal and extreme polical party then don't teach.

kingrolo - Are you really that stupid?

The "some" that do are at the extreme end. There are extremists in all religions, most Muslims do not hold these views. All BNP members hold racist views. I'm stunned and disturbed that you would compare the two.

Not automatically SomeGuy. I do have an idea of how they work from personal experience of their tactics, and it's a classic MO. So if I want to point that out, I will, thanks.

Bitoffun - I am teacher that is why I care about this. What is your interest?

It's interesting.

I would like the BNP not to exist as a legal political party and would campaign for this.

While it does exist as a legal political party, until such time as it is made illegal, I don't think we have the right to say in a high-and-mighty way who can and can't be a member.

Does that make sense?

Londonone - I completely agree with Carpe's analysis of your posting style and rhetorical position as a soft sell to legitimise the views of the bnp.

If she (and I) are wrong, you might like to ask yourself why me might think that.

Really? How worrying. I'm not going to give you any personal information though, as I know what BNP enthusiasts like to do with it.

saadia - I think perhaps I wasn't clear, I was comparing people with extreme religious views with the BNP as they are both at the ends of the religious and political spectrums respectively. My point was that if we ban people with extreme political views should we also ban those with extreme religious views. I made my point rather hastily and missed out a rather vital "some"!

So in your expense, BitOfFun, BNP members are liable to defend their right to employment/free speech, and that makes it ok to label anyone who defends their right to employment/free speech as a BNP member.

Nice.

Sadly I do not think that banning the BNP as a political party will do much good. It will, if anything, increase their support among disaffected morons. WHile the majority of people do think they are wankers, they are not that much of a threat to the country as a whole and act as a bit of a safety outlet for wankers.

Stupid? No, I don't think so.

I just wondered as many of your comments seem to be attempting to legitimise the views of a racist political party.