[This is one of three connected articles. This Site is also examining the responses of Keir Starmer and Dr David Starkey to Black Lives Matter; none of them come out smelling of roses.]

What a bizarre thing for Boris Johnson to say! Is he testing our credulity?

Here’s the story:

Boris Johnson has said he would not take the knee, a symbol of support for Black Lives Matter protests, saying he does not believe in “gestures.”

Speaking on LBC on Friday morning, the prime minister said, “I do not believe in gestures, I believe in substance.”

This came a month after Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, said he would not take the knee in support of the BLM movement, arguing that protest is “a matter of personal choice”.

That’s right – and the personal choice in the case of Conservatives appears to be racism.

Here’s the clip of him saying it:

Johnson’s decision not to have anything to do with Black Lives Matter seems to have more to do with his own personal prejudice against anybody whose skin colour isn’t the same as his than anything else – in line with his previous choices not to shake hands with any black people at Conservative party conference, and his references to them as “piccaninnies” with “watermelon smiles”.

It’s a dog-whistle for racists across the UK as well: “Support me and I’ll look after your interests. Look – I’ve already killed lots of black people with Covid-19 and I’ll find other ways to persecute them later.”

It’s sad that Opposition leader Keir Starmer is proving himself to be just as sickening a racist as this disgrace to humanity.

As for the claim that he doesn’t believe in gestures – Boris Johnson’s entire political career is filled with gestures that were almost entirely devoid of substance. Let’s think of a few…

Ah! here’s one:

The claim on the side of the so-called Brexit bus was a lie, of course; if Johnson had given £350 million a week to the NHS, then the UK would have been far better-prepared to tackle Covid-19.

In fact, what he did is much, much worse than that:

For crying out loud! His Tories were fanfaring a gesture as he was saying he didn’t believe in them! See:

Members of the public have come up with many more from recent history. Which is your favourite?

This is excellent:

It all boils down to this:

Now compare Johnson’s behaviour with that of David Starkey and Keir Starmer.

Starkey’s publisher and employers terminated their arrangements with him on hearing his racist words, uttered on a right-wing YouTube channel.

Starmer had to beg black and minority ethnic Labour Party members not to leave after he displayed his own ignorance of Black Lives Matter, and racism in having treated it as nothing more than a photo opportunity.

But Johnson is in a much more secure position than either of them. He is the prime minister – nobody can fire him – and he has an unassailable 80-seat majority in the House of Commons.

He knows he can do whatever he wants.

Sure, public opinion is important – but he thinks the majority of the UK electorate is gullible in the extreme, so all he has to do is lie until his tongue turns the same colour as his politics, and all will be well.

There will be people reading this article who will still support Johnson, his blatant gesture politics and his dog-whistle racism. I look forward to laughing at their freakish justifications in the “comment” column.

It will be my only source of amusement. Johnson’s comment is an insulting gesture to all of us: it doesn’t matter what we think, he can say – and do – anything he likes.

Have YOU donated to my crowdfunding appeal, raising funds to fight false libel claims by TV celebrities who should know better? These court cases cost a lot of money so every penny will help ensure that wealth doesn’t beat justice.

https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/mike-sivier-libel-fight/

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