‘Political correctness gone mad’, gone mad

There’s a group on Facebook calling to ban the use of the phrase ‘political correctness gone mad’ in UK journalism.

Perhaps a total ban is a bit extreme, but on the whole this is not a bad idea. The notion of an all-powerful politically correct elite, plotting to ban Christmas and take the gollywogs out of Enid Blyton, is perhaps the most popular conspiracy theory in this country. Describe something as ‘political correctness gone mad’ and you’ll be met with sage, resigned nods, as if you’ve given voice to some never-acknowledged human truth.

The meme appears daily in national newspapers – my search on the Daily Mail brought up an astonishing 7250 hits – and seems to be yet another cliche that won’t die. It comes most often from people on comfortable incomes who nevertheless exhibit a bizarre jealousy of the poor and of minorities.

The group’s founder, Lee Hill, says this:

Hey everybody it is no longer c. 1992, possibly the last time “political correctness” could be used with any semblance of timeliness. The overuse of the phrase by journalists, pundits and barroom philosophers in the UK is just lazy and more often a weak smokescreen for old fashioned racism, sexism, homophobia, provincialism, etc. I am all for contrarian thinkers who genuinely make us look at a tired issue in a new way, but those who overuse the phrase “political correctness” tend to be comfortable, smug or simply regurgitating the kind of prejudices that stifle rigorous debate. So drop the “PC” business, tell us what you really think (no matter how dubious the logic or rationale) and join the rest of us in 2007.

If you think Hill is being naive, or a loony liberal, or trying to censor you, ask yourself these two questions:

1) When was the last time you heard political correctness described as a good thing, or in any way other than having ‘gone mad’?

2) Given that there has been a conservative consensus in government for almost thirty years, who exactly is this politically correct elite, and how does it operate?

Hill’s point reminds me of this classic little post by Harry Hatchet.

I have always been wary of people who complain about ‘political correctness’. All too often they are the kind of people who feel they have a right to make derogatory comments about people based on their race, gender or sexual orientation – a right which they are apparently being denied by the ‘PC thought police’.

In his book The Myth of Political Correctness, John K. Wilson had a chapter entitled ‘Conservative Correctness’ which argues that the political attacks on PC in the US education system that began in the 1990’s are in fact an attempt to impose a conservative agenda through the tactic of labelling opposition as restrictive, ultra-left-wing madness.

That argument and phrase does seem to apply rather well to the approach being adopted by sections of the conservative media (including right-wing bloggers).

Here then are the main elements of this Conservative Correctness in the UK.

1. The white, heterosexual male, is a victim of our currently ‘PC Society’. His freedom of speech is restricted, job opportunities are denied to him, his viewpoint is never reflected in the liberal-left dominated media and people who try to raise families and live a decent law-abiding, hard-working life are penalised in favour of all manner of deviants and minorities.

2. The law and the courts and the political elite are biased in favour of the criminal rather than the victim of crime. Criminals are being ‘understood’ rather than punished while the victims of crime are being ignored and left to the mercy of the muggers and burglars. Criminals enjoy the life of Riley in so-called prisons – at taxpayers expense.

3. Racism doesn’t really exist. The accusation of ‘racist’ is just used to shut down any debate about immigration and the threat to our national identity and to assist in the continued PC fuelled attempts to denigrate our indigenous heritage and culture. The term also helps build the continued growth of the ‘race relations industry’.

4. Sexism or gender discrimination doesn’t really exist. The concept was been invented by feminists and is used to further weaken family values and continue the persecution of men. Women are attracted into this easy but destructive lifestyle by generous government subsidies denied to ordinary families.

5. Homophobia certainly doesn’t exist. It has been invented by the ‘gay lobby’ as part of their campaign against the traditional family. We are now reaching the stage whereby to be straight is to be considered deviant. Schoolteachers and the media constantly promote a positive image of homosexuality while denigrating traditional heterosexual sex.

6. The European Union is our enemy. It aims to destroy the British way of life and our institutions and force us to live under a Franco-German, anti-American, high-tax, federal, socialist super-state.

7. The PC left has succeeded in taking control of almost all areas of society. It dominates not only national and local government but also the civil service, the media, education and the police force.

None of which, of course bares much resemblance to reality. As such I would argue that CC is far worse and much more dangerous than the rather silly old PC.

For while political correctness, when it really operated, was an over-zealous and misguided attempt to deal with real problems (at least for those of us who believe that racism and other forms of oppression and discrimination do exist) Conservative Correctness is based simply and crudely upon fears – fear of immigrants, fear of homosexuals, fear of Europeans, fear of Muslims, fear of women, fear of crime and above all fear that we are being taken for a ride by them.

Emphasis mine. What people call ‘political correctness gone mad’ is usually nothing more than textbook measures to reduce discrimination, or guarantee basic working conditions. It’s good manners. And it’s here to stay.