In his monthly newspaper column for the West Briton newspaper in Cornwall, the General Secretary of the Celtic League, Rhisiart Tal-e-bot, writes on the topic of the prejudice that Welsh and Cornish people often experience and have to endure in the predominantly anglo-centric press and media that services Wales and Cornwall.
Mr Tal-e-bot writes:
It is annoying, but nevertheless important that this abuse is challenged each time it occurs and whoever endorses it, whether it is the Prime Minister (Tony Blair was once reported to the police for his anti Welsh comments) or some numpty in the media, because if you don't, as The Manic Street Preachers point out, your children will be next.
The full article can be found below:
Over the last month the Welsh have had to tolerate offensive comments in the press and have been accused of lacking a sense of humour (albeit at their own expense).
Last month for instance a book reviewer in a newspaper derided the Welsh for being `foreigners' and said that our customs are created for politically motivated reasons and that Welsh was an appalling and moribund monkey language. As might be expected there were a large number of complaints about the article and one Welsh MP reported the matter to the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) and the police.
But despite the offense that these comments caused, several television celebrities actually congratulated and supported the journalist concerned. Carol Vorderman for example said that the attacks were a bit of fun and Stephen Fry and Gyles Brandreth gave the reviewer the thumbs up. Even the ex boy friend of one of the `Cheeky Girls', Lembit Opik, thought he could gain some celebrity headway by joining in the raucous.
Then last weekend motor mouth `celeb' Jeremy Clarkson joined in the fracas and used his newspaper column to add his anally abhorrent view point. Clarkson asked, `what is the point to the Welsh language?' and proceeded to answer his own idiotic question by saying it is a maypole round which a bunch of hotheads can get all nationalistic.
Bitter vitriol about the Welsh has emanated from the pens and mouths of British nationalist media(ocrities) for many a year and their poisoned words have landed on numerous occasions on the Cornish too. I remember in 1999 for instance a journalist for The Times newspaper wrote that he hated the Cornish and their poxy language. Another journalist in The Spectator argued that the Cornish were lazy and propped up by subsidies and in 2008 Imperial College in London wrote on its university website that the Cornish were in breds. Even though such comments can occur regularly at times, it does not make them right.
I do not lack a sense of humour and I know my Cornish friends do not either, but why should we be expected, time and again, to tolerate racist comments from some British nationalist journalist or television personality who is proud of wearing their bigoted heart on their cuff? It is annoying, but nevertheless important that this abuse is challenged each time it occurs and whoever endorses it, whether it is the Prime Minister (Tony Blair was once reported to the police for his anti Welsh comments) or some numpty in the media, because if you don't, as The Manic Street Preachers point out, your children will be next.
For comment or clarification on this news item in the first instance contact:
Rhisiart Tal-e-bot, General Secretary, Celtic League:
Tel: 0044 (0)1209 319912 M: 0044 (0)7787318666
gensec@celticleague.net
The General Secretary will determine the appropriate branch or General Council Officer to respond to your query.
ISSUED BY THE CELTIC LEAGUE INFORMATION SERVICE.
24/09/11
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