Emily Darlington, a Labour MP who sits on the Science, Innovation and Technology select committee, said: “There’s clearly a market for hate content in the UK. When social media, intended to connect us, instead feeds us an endless stream of divisive and anger-fuelling content it distorts not only how we feel about our neighbours, but how we think the nation feels about our neighbours.
“The fact that this tactic is successful enough with a UK audience that individuals in other countries can profit off it shows how vulnerable we are. There’s nothing stopping foreign states from doing the same.”
Maybe the best way to counter xenophobia isn’t to rely on anti-immigrant views not being expressed — a fragile convention that can easily fall apart — but to actively explain why immigration is advantageous.
If people do not understand the purpose of a policy, they will try to make sense of it, either on their own or via adopting the takes that seem most-plausible to them.
If one’s way of dealing with politicially-unpopular policy is to hope that it doesn’t come up and thus falls out of public discussion rather than to sell the public on it…shrugs
Democracy is intended to have the public act as final, ultimate overseers of policy. At the end of the day, one has to sell the public on major policy decisions or be at risk of the public acting in opposition to that policy.
Maybe the best way to counter xenophobia isn’t to rely on anti-immigrant views not being expressed — a fragile convention that can easily fall apart — but to actively explain why immigration is advantageous.
If people do not understand the purpose of a policy, they will try to make sense of it, either on their own or via adopting the takes that seem most-plausible to them.
If one’s way of dealing with politicially-unpopular policy is to hope that it doesn’t come up and thus falls out of public discussion rather than to sell the public on it…shrugs
Democracy is intended to have the public act as final, ultimate overseers of policy. At the end of the day, one has to sell the public on major policy decisions or be at risk of the public acting in opposition to that policy.