How Long Before Being Anti-Monarchy Will Be Deemed Extremist...?
Why the recent arrests for expressing anti-monarchy views indicate a shift towards authoritarianism
The past few days have seen a growing number of arrests being made for seemingly doing little more than expressing anti-monarchy views. Among others, these have included one person shouting “Who elected him?” and another holding a piece of card with the words “Fuck imperialism, abolish monarchy” written on it. In London, a barrister who held up a blank piece of paper in Parliament Square said he was threatened with arrest by a police officer if he wrote ‘Not My King’ on it. The justification for this was explained to him on the basis that someone might be offended by it. The day before, someone was arrested for doing exactly that.
While the Metropolitan Police has since issued a statement to confirm “the public absolutely have a right to protest”, that this was necessary clearly detracts from the reassurance it was meant to convey. Let’s not forget. this isn’t the first time unnecessarily heavy-handed approaches to the policing of protests have been evident in recent years - remember the Sarah Everard vigil on Clapham Common? - nor the state’s willingness to shut down dissent at every opportunity should be of concern to us all.
Resonating with Extremism
In trying to make sense of this, I revisited a piece I wrote for the Conversation in 2021. Titled “Extremism in the UK: new definitions threaten human and civil rights”, the piece centred on two definitions of extremism that had been newly proposed. What struck me was the resonance between the concerns I had about those definitions and those regarding the anti-monarchy arrests.
The first of those definitions was from the Commission for Countering Extremism. Focusing on “hateful extremism”, my concerns were about the extent to which this could be open to wide and subjective interpretation. Not only did this mean that it had the potential to be applied inconsistently but so too used to demarcate as extremist any individual, group or organisation the government merely dislikes or disagrees with.
The second was from the Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services. Having abandoned “domestic extremism” in preference of the newly defined “aggravated activist”, my concerns were similar: about the potential for it to be unfairly deployed to target certain non-violent groups that respect and observe human and civil rights. As such, there was potential for these groups to be criminalised for merely holding views that go against social - and importantly, governmental - norms.
Fundamental British Values
While concerning, neither of these newly proposed definitions were adopted by the UK government. That said, its own definition of extremism is not only meaningless but so too just as concerning. Invoking the subjective premise that extremists oppose “fundamental British values”, not only has this definition been decried as unfit for purpose but so too does it fail to take into account certain types of extremism. To this extent, some far right-wing groups have even sought to use it to their advantage.
This is because the UK government currently defines extremism as the “vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs”. So too has it been extended to include “calls for the death of members of our armed forces, whether in this country or overseas”.
Ironic in light of the recent arrests that neither the government nor police would appear to pay too much attention to these so-called fundamental British values: especially not “individual liberty”. And that’s without even acknowledging how the government is manipulating the “rule of law” to eradicate our human rights and civil liberties while also curtailing our right to freedom of expression.
Anti-Monarchy Extremism
For the time being at least, anti-monarchy views are not currently deemed as being extremist. That said, it is entirely possible to envisage a time in the not too distant future when they are. So too would it be entirely beneficial for a number of concerned parties among the ruling elite.
For the royal family, not only would this serve to shut down legitimate debate about the role of the monarchy but so too would it help ensure that any and indeed all criticism of the royals - for instance, criticisms about Prince Andrew’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein - would be immediately supressed. For the most privileged of all, such a move would afford them even greater privileges.
For the government, such a move would give it another front from which to further push back on civil liberties and basic human rights while simultaneously affording the police ever greater powers. In the current climate, such a move would no doubt receive widespread public support. When a retired police officer states on LBC Radio that police should require “no proof” to make an arrest of someone expressing anti-monarchy views, not only does this provide suitable evidence but so too does it show that the government and mainstream media’s wall-to-wall pro-monarchy propaganda is having the desired effect.
Britain’s Direction of Travel
Despite being no more than mere conjecture - at least for the time being - the resonance between my concerns about governmental responses to extremism and those relating to the recent anti-monarchy arrests is not only clear but so too extremely worrying. In and of themselves, the arrests alone manifestly amplify those worries. That a majority of people would likely excuse and unequivocally justify them is for me at least, beyond comprehension.
Maybe more worrying is the direction of travel we're all heading. Ever more rapidly, Britain is hurtling towards authoritarianism: the Queen's death and subsequent funeral being manipulated like every other recent crisis to further the agenda of the ruling elite. That so many are seemingly content for this to happen means that it is entirely possible we will get to the required destination very soon and without encountering too many bumps in the road.
God save us.