Nobody expected the frenzied and toxic debate currently convulsing Britain on the Brexit referendum to descend to this tragic level. The entire country is still in shock after a Labour MP, Jo Cox, was shot dead by a gunman with right-wing links. Mrs Cox, 41, was shot and stabbed in West Yorkshire on Thursday and a 52-year-old man has been arrested, who had yelled ‘Put Britain first’. Cox was a supporter of Remain campaign.
Attacks on politicians are extremely rare in Britain and the murder is certain to make the nation search deep about what has gone wrong.
There is no doubt that the killing is the result of the venom and heat generated by the June 23 referendum debate. The murder will deliver a blow to the Out campaign. The In team will portray the crime as a sample of things to come, as an example of the extremism and obstinacy of those who are fixated on the exclusivity and unique identity of Britain. But the Out team is as British as the In team. Using the crime of a single person to paint an entire group with the same brush would be as outrageous as targeting all Muslims for the terrorist activities of a few. At the same time, the ‘Out’ team must review the language they are using to get more people to vote for them. Some of this language has been said to be inflammatory and provocative that involves an exaggeration and even a falsification of facts. For example, a poster unveiled by Nigel Farage, under the title “Breaking Point”, showed a long queue of dark men, suggesting these were EU migrants descending on Britain. It’s time for all sides to step back and reassess their strategies.
Columnists have also talked about how this murder has been the fruit of the disregard for politicians in contemporary British society, and the result of the contempt, hostility and distrust politicians are treated with. “For weeks, months and years “politician” has been a word more spat out than said,” Jonathan Freedland wrote in The Guardian. But Jo Cox was considered no ordinary politician. She loved her job and was not in it for personal aggrandizement but for the service of the society and her constituents. She was also the devoted mother of two children who bubbled with energy, who had the same dreams for her children like any other parent.
Britain will learn the right lessons from this unfortunate incident. A repetition will erode the values Britain stands for and has assiduously assimilated.
Nobody expected the frenzied and toxic debate currently convulsing Britain on the Brexit referendum to descend to this tragic level. The entire country is still in shock after a Labour MP, Jo Cox, was shot dead by a gunman with right-wing links. Mrs Cox, 41, was shot and stabbed in West Yorkshire on Thursday and a 52-year-old man has been arrested, who had yelled ‘Put Britain first’. Cox was a supporter of Remain campaign.
Attacks on politicians are extremely rare in Britain and the murder is certain to make the nation search deep about what has gone wrong.
There is no doubt that the killing is the result of the venom and heat generated by the June 23 referendum debate. The murder will deliver a blow to the Out campaign. The In team will portray the crime as a sample of things to come, as an example of the extremism and obstinacy of those who are fixated on the exclusivity and unique identity of Britain. But the Out team is as British as the In team. Using the crime of a single person to paint an entire group with the same brush would be as outrageous as targeting all Muslims for the terrorist activities of a few. At the same time, the ‘Out’ team must review the language they are using to get more people to vote for them. Some of this language has been said to be inflammatory and provocative that involves an exaggeration and even a falsification of facts. For example, a poster unveiled by Nigel Farage, under the title “Breaking Point”, showed a long queue of dark men, suggesting these were EU migrants descending on Britain. It’s time for all sides to step back and reassess their strategies.
Columnists have also talked about how this murder has been the fruit of the disregard for politicians in contemporary British society, and the result of the contempt, hostility and distrust politicians are treated with. “For weeks, months and years “politician” has been a word more spat out than said,” Jonathan Freedland wrote in The Guardian. But Jo Cox was considered no ordinary politician. She loved her job and was not in it for personal aggrandizement but for the service of the society and her constituents. She was also the devoted mother of two children who bubbled with energy, who had the same dreams for her children like any other parent.
Britain will learn the right lessons from this unfortunate incident. A repetition will erode the values Britain stands for and has assiduously assimilated.
