The November release of the film “Nuremberg” served as a timely warning. Depicting the 1946 trial of Nazi leaders, it provides a serious reminder to future generations of the consequences of racism. This is not the regular militaristic war film, but a moving, human reminder of an important item of history and lasting legacy for humanity: the accountability of international war criminals, recognising what wars do and that justice should transcend national boundaries.
Eighty years on, the world is witnessing a resurgence of racism, an appeasement of tyranny and threats to the institutions which were founded in the aftermath of WW2, expressly to prevent such things ever happening again. This film reminds us what may happen, if these continue unabated.
Discrimination is wrong
What are politics for? To ensure the effective and decent management of a nation and its people. Discriminating for or against one or more category of person has no place in polity, as one element of the post-war legacy, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, spells out. Discrimination accepts the notion that some people are inherently superior to others by virtue of their ethnicity, skin colour or nationality.
In no philosophy does any human have more or less rights than others on such a basis. As the Torah puts it: “There shall be one law for you and for the resident stranger; it shall be a law for all time throughout the ages”. Assumed superiority leads those who claim it to see others individually or collectively as inferior or even as enemies. This is simply wrong.
This country has a mixed history in this area. As a colonial power, its ruling classes assumed a mantle of superiority and entitlement over almost a quarter of the world’s people, including the enslavement and indenture of millions. This attitude has never been fully shaken off despite the eventual realisation that empire was past its sell-by date.
WW2 gave conflicting contributions to racism in this country. The defeat of fascism, the ultimate expression of racism, is held up rightly as a triumph. It also, though, refreshed nationalism, which has been sustained particularly in sport and media.
Now, after decades of gradual reduction, racism is on the rise in this country. Few who fought in that war adopted triumphalism, but many of their descendants have allowed a form of faux-patriotism to regenerate hostility to other nationalities and subsequently to “others” more widely.
Diversity encourages tolerance
Brown skin and different modes of dress or worship make simplistic categorisation easy, restoring some of the memes of empire. Refugees from distant conflicts and tyrannies little understood on our streets have arrived, many with nothing, another pretext for superiority among those who may wish to look down on them. Racists object to sharing communities with such “others” and may even adopt violence to drive them out, so it is ironic that the hardest-liners are often from communities largely devoid of those whom racism declares responsible for often unrelated social issues.
This inexcusable hatred infects not only victims and proponents but society and the nation. Just as it sickens to see descendants of holocaust survivors emulate the inhumanity to which their own families were subjected, so it is shameful for a nation so proud of its part in defeating fascism to become more racist and hostile to those fleeing tyranny. Inclusive, diverse communities encourage tolerance and integration. Those with the greatest experience of diversity know it not to be a bad thing and counter racism with sympathy and welcome. Politicians must take responsibility for stopping the rot before it becomes beyond control.
Political leadership should inspire the best attitudes, offer leadership and work to build a better future for a nation’s population. Do we have this? No. Islamophobia is on the rise, effectively unaddressed. Human Rights are under attack.
The Home Secretary’s stated wish for a “shared national culture” matching Tory MP Katie Lam’s “culturally coherent” aim suggests a sanitised Britain, no matter how diverse our demography. If our culture is to be one of enforced uniformity, intolerance and nationalism the future is bleak.
Our younger generations should know about what happened in Nuremberg, both before and perhaps especially after WW2. The latter left a legacy to celebrate and sustain. We can be proud of our well-adjusted multi-ethnic communities, but at the same time must be shamed by the xenophobic and hateful politics we may endure for the time being.
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