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Cartoon

I have not talked much about Boris Johnson in relation to the Brexit referendum. I first came across him when I was watching the movie Brexit where Johnson was a face for the Leave Party. Johnson had said some questionable things about how the UK should leave the EU, especially about Turks immigrating to the UK. I thought a cartoon would be perfect to understand him. Johnson is a Conservative leader who was the Mayor of London from 2008 to 2016,  he was elected a member of Parliament after his term of being Mayor, however, how he serves as the Foreign Secretary. Boris Johnson endorsed the Leave campaign in February of 2016. Johnson is known to be quite the character in the United Kingdom. He frequently says things that make people’s heads turn. The two quotes that caught my attention were the ones I mention in this cartoon.

On the bottom left, I added an image of the sunken Titanic. Boris Johnson makes a reference to Brexit being a “Titanic success” as he is presenting an award at the Spector Magazine’s parliamentarian of the year ceremony in London. Johnson received a laugh from the audience and then he clarified saying a “colossal success”. In whatever way he meant this to come out, it is not all that funny. The Titanic sank, is he implying that the Brexit deal will sink too? This quote was said two years ago and I don’t think Boris Johnson could have imagined the Brexit being what it is today: sinking.

On the bottom right, I added an image of people walking from Turkey to another place as if they were immigrating with a quote from Johnson referring to all the Turks that would supposedly immigrate to the UK. Boris Johnson is also famous for discussing Turkey during the referendum campaign. Johnson had warned on several occasions cutting close to the referendum vote that Turkish immigration was a threat to the UK. Johnson would claim that Turkey was having negotiations to join the European Union and that the only way to avoid having common borders with Turkey is for the UK to leave. He also took part in the campaign poster that wrote “Turkey population 76 million, is joining the EU. Vote leave- take back control”. This slogan insinuates that Turkey’s 76 million people will suddenly flock to the United Kingdom and that the only way to prevent this from happening is to leave the European Union. This makes me think of the recent reading we had in Mudde and Kaltwasser (2017) when they discuss supply and demand. I see that Boris uses the supply side more than the demand. Even though Johnson is not necessarily a populist leader, he is involved with the Leave campaign that was started on populists beliefs. Boris Johnson uses the media to explain the crisis that is millions of Turks immigrating to the United Kingdom, which isn’t really a crisis. It just shifts the public’s focus.

The image of Boris Johnson at the top shows a sketch of him with a quote he is famous for today. This quote has become famous in him denying he ever said anything against Turkey. Even though he denies this, he is known for saying numerous things about Turkey during the referendum on several occasions. In a way, Johnson reminds me of Trump. Not just in the way he looks, but also how he denies ever saying the comments about Turkey. No matter how much evidence there may be, he still denies it like Trump has when he say something controversial.  

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Collage

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Event Analysis-2016 United Kingdom European Union Referendum

On June 23, 2016, the people of the United Kingdom and Gibraltar went to the polls to vote whether to remain with the European Union or to leave. This historic referendum concluded with 51.9% to leave and 48.1% to remain. Results showed that the people in England voted 53.4% leave against 46.6% stay, Northern Ireland voted 44.2% leave against 55.8% stay, Scotland voted 38.0% leave against 62.0% stay, Whales voted 52.5% stay against 47.5% leave, and Gibraltar voted 4.1% stay against 95.9% stay. Most of these votes were very close and some of them were almost split down the middle.

The two main parties involved in the referendum vote were Leave campaign and the campaign that was led by David Cameron (Prime Minister at the time) to remain in the EU. Not long after the referendum, David Cameron appeared in front of 10 Downing Street (this is where the Prime Minister lives during their term) to announce that he plans to step down in October and allow for fresh new leadership. Cameron had said that the country deserved a leader committed to carrying out the will of the people. This makes sense why he would choose to step down since he was the one leading the campaign to stay. He cannot lead something he does not support.

The United Kingdom’s main populist leader, Nigel Farage was seen speaking at a party in Westminster. Nigel Farage, at the time, was the leader of the UKIP party and was part in leading the charge to leave the European Union. Farage had declared the referendum result was a “victory for real people, a victory for ordinary people, a victory for decent people”. Farage is known for being a man who says whatever he wants. According to Mudde and Kaltwasser, he would be described as a charismatic strongman (page, 63, 2017). A charismatic strongman is someone who is masculine, a man of action, and a man who is not afraid to make quick decisions (pg 63-64, 2017).  He also called for David Cameron to be replaced immediately and saying “we have to have a Brexit Prime Minister”. In a way, I  believe David Cameron agreed with Nigel Farage on this because he can’t lead something he didn’t support.

Following the referendum, the value of the British pound fell drastically due to the fact that the remain vote was expected to win. There is also the uncertainty that the United Kingdom will survive to leave the European Union especially since Scotland decided to stay with the European Union. It was also discovered that following the referendum, the majority of people that voted to leave the EU was not necessarily having all to do with immigration and trade. Instead, it had more to do with people who lived in deprivation in terms of education, income and employment were more likely to vote Leave. This was highlighted in the movie Brexit I reviewed where the people running the Leave campaign went to these places where people lived in deprivation in order to get their vote. This is surprising to me because the media puts out that one of the driving forces behind deciding to leave the United Kingdom was due to the issue of immigration. All over Europe, there is the issue of immigrants migrating over to European countries from middle eastern countries like Syria. This issue reminds me of the most recent class reading in Mudde and Kaltwasser who discuss the idea of agenda-setting on page 98. Agenda-setting is the ability to put topics on the public agenda (page 98, 2017). The issue of immigration was put on the public’s agenda when people actually voted to leave for other reasons. Reasons being that they lived in deprivation and they hope for a better life.   

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Open Letter

Dear Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,

My name is Ali Klein and I have been researching the event of Brexit for a few months now. I love the United Kingdom. It is like a second home to me. I was grateful enough to have studied abroad for a semester at Regents University in Regents Park in Westminster. I was personally very excited to learn that you were the landlord because Regents is a royal park. I was also overjoyed with excitement to get on a train to Windsor Castle for your grandson, Harry, and Meghan’s wedding. Needless to say, I am a huge fan of you and your family. You and your family helped make London feel like home for me. I would also like to wish you a very Happy Birthday, 93 years young is an amazing accomplishment for anyone let alone a queen. As I mentioned, I’ve been studying the Brexit issue. I know that you are impartial to political matters, and I respect that about you, but this is your country. Your country has been in a two year long (almost three) process of exiting the European Union. Theresa May’s deals have been rejected numerous times, people are becoming more angry and violent, and the world just wants this to go away. I ask you, do you have an opinion on the stance? If so, would you step in at some point to put this issue to rest?

It is known that the British Monarchy is known as a constitutional monarchy. This means that while you are the head of state, the Prime Minister has the ability to make and pass legislation. I know you more than anyone are aware of this, Your Majesty, but this also means you do not have this ability. You, however, play an even bigger role at times though in the British nation. While you may not hold any political or executive role, you are a symbol of national identity in the United Kingdom. In other words, British people love you. As the longest reigning monarch in the history of the United Kingdom, you have seen a fair share of events that go into shaping the history of your country. None quite like this, though.

It is known that you and Theresa May hold a private weekly audience in which she updates you in daily issues. This is where you can express your opinions on political matters in confidentiality. The subject of Brexit has had to have come up on a weekly basis. I don’t want to ask you which side you take in the Brexit debate, but do you support May’s decisions as she goes forward in this process? Does she listen to you with what you have to say? The reason I ask this is that there have been occasions when you will speak out in order to give a slight nudge to get things back on track. You did this for example when David Cameron was Prime Minister and you were dealing with the issue of Scotland separating from the United Kingdom. While you’ll put a veil over your words to appear neutral, the media speculates.

Your Majesty, I know you trust your Prime Minister and I would never question your judgment, but I know you must also be concerned at the same time. In fact, I think most people know you’re worried enough to get involved. You made a statement back in January about making a plea for peace to break out. Don’t you think if your concerns grow stronger, you’ll step in a little bit more? You are known for being neutral in the public eye, however, you are more of a figurehead than anything.

Your Majesty, I also feel you should step in because this does not just involve the United Kingdom. It involves every country apart of the European Union and some countries that would be more affected than others. What I’m referring to is the issue of Ireland. The Republic of Ireland intends to stay in the European Union while Northern Ireland doesn’t really have a choice because they are apart of the UK. The peace accords between the two and the sharing economy of with the European Union made way for free trading to be easy movement across the boundaries. If/when the UK leaves the EU, that free trading easy movement would change and Northern Ireland would have to go to a single trade market and there may be a potential for a physical border between the two. People of Northern Ireland do not want this to happen and things are starting to get a little violent. I ask you to think about how affects more people and countries no matter what the UK decides to do. Other countries such as Sweden and the Czech Republic have thought about doing a “Swexit” and a “Czexit” in attempts to follow in your footsteps. However, and I think you would agree with me, in that exiting the EU is a lot more challenging than other countries think it is.

Your Majesty, I understand your position in all of this. However, I do believe at some point, you may need to get a little more involved in Brexit debate in order to put people in their place and keep the country on track. You have always been good at doing what is best for the commonwealth. So I implore you to continue to do so. So I ask you again, do you think that when or if the time comes to be more vocal, would you? You have surprised people in an amazing way with how you have ruled, continue to do so.

Sincerely,

Ali Klein

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Collage

It took me a while to figure out how I wanted to create this collage, but then I thought about how this entire situation is like a messy breakup or a divorce in some way and people are choosing sides. Some have even described this mess as a divorce. Like a divorce, the referendum to leave the EU was the outcome of many long-term factors. One of those factors is that it represented a long-standing tension between British politics and the rest of the EU.  I chose to place a broken heart in the middle of the canvas with the EU and UK flags on top of it as if it were a breakup. To the right, I placed figures who wanted to leave the EU such as Nigel Farage of the UKIP party, Boris Johnson who was a figure in the Leave campaign, and Theresa May who was originally against the UK leaving but ever since being Prime Minister she is for the leave. I placed the image over the picture of Parliament because the image of May yelling is in the building.

To the left of the European Union flag, I found many images of people protesting and that they want to stay apart of the EU. In the top corner is an image of men at the Northern Ireland border protesting because they do not want a border wall between them and the rest of Ireland. There has been much talk about how both sides would like to avoid having a “hard border” or some form of checks with an infrastructure. However, there is such a thing called a backstop which means it is to maintain an open border without securing a deal. Just below that image are two more images of protests for wanted to remain in the EU. I’ve also placed words like “wicked”, “rescue”, and “reset” because these might be the words that people think of when they think about this Brexit deal. “Wicked” because of what it might do to the country after it leaves the EU and the people, “rescue” because they need to be rescued from this situation, and “reset” because some people may want a reset the vote to perhaps vote differently. I also placed a photo of former Prime Minister David Cameron who had led his own campaign called “I’m In”, or to remain in the European Union. This campaign was prior to the referendum and their opponent was the Leave campaign.

Finally, I added the word “strong” in the middle. I knew I wanted to place it on the collage, but I didn’t which side deserved it more. They both presented strong cases and they both had strong feelings about where they stood. I felt the middle was the best place because both sides are strong arguments. No side has more strength than the other. In piecing this collage together, I have given myself, and others, a different sort of visual of the Brexit situation. I chose to do both color and black and white to catch the eye and to also express how some aspects of Brexit can be very grey. However, no matter what happens in the future, there will be a color to brighten everything up.

Photo credits:

https://images.app.goo.gl/DXhmoVtYPgCnc3zJA

https://images.app.goo.gl/2aB6EZxLJsSUsAn6A

https://images.app.goo.gl/dN2Nj3Hp1wEcMw9y8

https://images.app.goo.gl/soFi6pDdKXRXQE6w9

https://images.app.goo.gl/BVYowAZiPkQqn1GX7

https://images.app.goo.gl/C3zjWYpEPWqCTzqy8

https://images.app.goo.gl/UpFWZemHHFHStFxp6

https://images.app.goo.gl/kYqV25WcAxAugYEX7

https://images.app.goo.gl/ZYjCLczWbhXRcGKt5

https://images.app.goo.gl/t8szdad9jgdBaNA49

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Event Analysis: March 29, 2019

March 29, 2019, was a date marked on all calendars in the United Kingdom, especially Theresa May’s. This was the date that the United Kingdom was due to leave the European Union. Deal or no deal. There was much urgency surrounding Theresa May in order to get a deal passed by March 29. Theresa May even “put her head on the chopping block” as some articles are calling it. May had promised that if Parliament would pass this vote, then she would resign. May was quoted, with tears in her eyes, to have said: “I beg you, colleagues, vote for the withdrawal agreement and I will go”. This was May’s final card up her sleeve and some even say that it was a clever and remarkable one to play.

However, as remarkable as it was, it was not enough to get the votes. The vote was rejected with the aye’s at 286 votes and the nays at 344 votes. However, some felt this move was blackmail when she was telling them it’s this deal or no deal. Even though May and her party knew this vote might lose, they were still appalled by the results of the vote. Thankfully, the European Union is giving Theresa May and the United Kingdom a lifeline. At the EU Council Summit in Brussels last week they accepted May’s request to extend Article 50 and two options to help avoid a no deal. The two options were to get a deal by March 29 and leave the EU by May 22 (this clearly did not happen) or make a decision by April 12 on whether the UK wants a further extension or leave the EU without a deal. Since there wasn’t a deal made by March 29, the UK missed the opportunity to extend to May 22. Now the EU is giving the UK an extension of April 12.  The EU has made it very clear that they will not be responsible for a “chaotic crash out” of this whole situation. Now the date that will be circled in red marker on the calendar is April 12. This is the date that the UK will need to declare if they intend to participate in EU parliamentary elections. If not, then there is a no deal.

The rejection of the deal of March 29 has also caused some backlash. Especially in Northern Ireland. Citizens in Northern Ireland started protesting at the Northern Ireland border that is against Brexit. I can’t help but think of Margaret Canovan’s article about how populist leaders should trust the people. She was saying in the first part of the article that “political decision making by referendum and popular initiative” (1999). While this was written well before the Brexit referendum, Brexit was a popular initiative. However, it seems as though it is becoming more of an issue to leave than to stay.

Seeing all of this unfold, it is hard to watch Theresa May offer up her own head just for the good of the country. I mentioned before that she was a little teary eyed as she was speaking to Parliament that if they agree to this deal (referring to the March 29 deal) then she will go. This made me think of what Mudde and Kaltwasser said about women populists. They described them as having a sort of “mom” presentation by quoting Pauline Hanson of Australia “I care so passionately about this country, it’s like I’m its mother, Australia is my home and the Australian people are my children” (pg 70). Theresa May feels the same way about the United Kingdom. By showing a little emotion, shows that she deeply cares about the country and its people and she is willing to do whatever it takes. Even if it means giving up her job.

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Editorial Cartoon

Theresa May has been known in her career as Prime Minister was that she was known as someone who never gives up. However, this all changed on Wednesday, March 27th, just days before the March 29th deadline, when she gave the “haters” what they wanted. She had given up by saying these words, “I beg you, colleagues, vote for the withdrawal agreement and I will go”. What I wanted to do here with this cartoon is make her look like a sketch so all of her facial details were outlined and you could see every detail about her. When she had said these words she was described as this proud, rigid woman admitting that she couldn’t finish the job. In this cartoon, I chose a sort of filter that made her look tired or worn out. She has bags under her eyes, her hair is gray and a little messy, almost as if she just rolled out of bed. It also looks as if the life had been sucked out of her eyes. It was also reported that while she was saying this, she had tears in her eyes. This cartoon shows her eyes staring directly at you as if she could be trying to hold back tears. I wanted to show how this proud, rigid woman had been through so much that she wasn’t so rigid anymore.

I also like to think that this is exactly what she looked like while saying these words. This saying was also a little controversial because it was as if she was blackmailing Parliament by saying this. This was, however, the last card she had to play. She was hanging by a thread and she thought that this was it. That this would finally get the votes and she would give the people what they wanted. All she wanted was to do what was right for the people and the country. As she addressed Parliament, she explained that she was prepared to leave the job in order to do what is right for “our country and our party”. This is why I wanted to place the faded Union Jack flag on her face. I wanted to make sure that the red line goes across her eyes as if she looked a little bloodthirsty and willing to do anything for her country. I had also placed the EU flag with a line through it in the corner to show that this is all Theresa May thinks about. May loves her country as if it were her child. I had mentioned this in the event analysis, but I wanted to bring up again the idea of a motherly figure that Mudde and Kaltwasser bring up. May was sort of like that “Soccer mom” that they mentioned where she was always attentive and present in the country and doing everything she could to protect the UK as if it were her child. By letting go of her job as Prime Minister, it’s almost like she’s sending her child off to college.

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Event Analysis- March 29, 2019

March 29, 2019, was a date marked on all calendars in the United Kingdom, especially Theresa May’s. This was the date that the United Kingdom was due to leave the European Union. Deal or no deal. There was much urgency surrounding Theresa May in order to get a deal passed by March 29. Theresa May even “put her head on the chopping block” as some articles are calling it. May had promised that if Parliament would pass this vote, then she would resign. May was quoted, with tears in her eyes, to have said: “I beg you, colleagues, vote for the withdrawal agreement and I will go”. This was May’s final card up her sleeve and some even say that it was a clever and remarkable one to play.    However, as remarkable as it was, it was not enough to get the votes. The vote was rejected with the eye’s at 286 votes and the no’s at 344 votes. However, some felt this move was blackmail when she was telling them it’s this deal or no deal. Even though May and her party knew this vote might lose, they were still appalled by the results of the vote. Thankfully, the European Union is giving Theresa May and the United Kingdom a lifeline. At the EU Council Summit in Brussels last week they accepted May’s request to extend Article 50 and two options to help avoid a no deal. The two options were to get a deal by March 29 and leave the EU by May 22 (this clearly did not happen) or make a decision by April 12 on whether the UK wants a further extension or leave the EU without a deal. Since there wasn’t a deal made by March 29, the UK missed the opportunity to extend to May 22. Now the EU is giving the UK an extension of April 12.  The EU has made it very clear that they will not be responsible for a “chaotic crash out” of this whole situation. Now the date that will be circled in red marker on the calendar is April 12. This is the date that the UK will need to declare if they intend to participate in EU parliamentary elections. If not, then there is a no deal. The rejection of the deal of March 29 has also caused some backlash. Especially in Northern Ireland. Citizens in Northern Ireland started protesting at the Northern Ireland border that is against Brexit. I can’t help but think of Margaret Canovens article about how populist leaders should trust the people. She was saying in the first part of the article that “political decision making by referendum and popular initiative” (1999). While this was written well before the Brexit referendum, Brexit was a popular initiative. However, it seems as though it is becoming more of an issue to leave than to stay. Seeing all of this unfold, it is hard to watch Theresa May offer up her own head just for the good of the country. I mentioned before that she was a little teary eyed as she was speaking to Parliament that if they agree to this deal (referring to the March 29 deal) then she will go. This made me think of what Mudde and Kaltwasser said about women populists. They described them as having a sort of “mom” presentation by quoting Pauline Hanson of Australia “I care so passionately about this country, it’s like I’m its mother, Australia is my home and the Australian people are my children” (pg 70). Theresa May feels the same way about the United Kingdom. By showing a little emotion, shows that she deeply cares about the country and its people and she is willing to do whatever it takes. Even if it means giving up her job.

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Film Review: Brexit

Summary of contents

The film that I have chosen to review is the movie Brexit starring Benedict Cumberbatch. This movie came out in 2019 and was directed by Toby Haynes and written by James Graham. It takes place in 2015 and tracks the campaigns of leaving the EU staying. It follows Cumberbatch who plays Dominic Cummings, a political strategist who leads the popular, yet controversial, campaign to convince British voters to leave the European Union. Dominic Cummings was the leader of the Leave campaign in 2015-2016. Cummings was a very unliked person in British politics. He was unconventional, a rule-breaker, and, as some called him, annoying. The overall theme of this film, I believe, is the controversial way of how the UK voted to leave.

The beginning of the movie starts off with Cummings testifying in court years after the referendum. Then it shifts back to 2015 when Douglas Carswell (UKIP’s only MP) and Matthew Elliott (a political lobbyist)  were looking for someone to drive their campaign to leave the EU. Douglas Carswell, while apart of UKIP, was also a sort of rebel from them. He brought Matthew Elliott in on it because he thought he could be the one to lead, but he instead thought of Dominic Cummings. Cummings had had a history with Westminster and at first was hesitant to take the job, but eventually agreed. They built a team together and called their campaign the Leave campaign. UKIP’s Nigel Farage and Aaron Banks (UKIP donor) wanted to team up with the Leave campaign but Cummings refused even though he was advised otherwise. They were also against the I’m In the campaign, Prime Minister David Cameron’s party, that wanted to stay in the European Union. Throughout the film, it shows different types of campaign tactics that all sides used, but mainly focusing on the Leave campaign. They hired political strategists that used high tech data systems to track the 3 million British people that have never voted before. That was their target. It follows the intense campaign all the way to the vote and beyond. In the end, Cummings is back in that first scene testifying and saying how the campaign was brilliant and he doesn’t regret anything, but that he would have thought that someone should have stepped in to do a better job at transitioning the country to leaving. It seemed as though he was referring to the mess that the UK has made of Brexit.

Relation to Class related topics

I felt like this film touched on a few ideas topics that we have discussed in class. Recently, our class has talked much about immigration and the refugee crisis in our own countries that we’ve been studying. In the film, Dominic Cummings would do his own unorthodox focus group where he’d go to pubs and shoot some pool with them, have a pint, and talk to the local people about the issues they thought were at hand and why the UK should leave. He would say “Is it immigration?”, “Do you think it’s immigration”, and “Immigration? Why?”. The I’m In a campaign set up full-on focus groups with people who knew about the situation, people who only knew a little bit, and people who didn’t know much about what was going on. There were two older white men in the group, three people of color (on the younger side), and a white middle-aged woman. In the first session they had as a focus group they were a little more reserved in their opinions because they were around people they didn’t know. Then we see the focus group in the heat of the campaign and they are down each other’s throats. They were very divided on the idea of immigration and it became an issue of race. This is a very real issue that the people in the UK are facing. Part of them leaving the EU was to take back control of the flow of immigrants that come into the country. Most immigrants that come to the UK are looking for jobs which harm the UK citizens. Another issue the British feel immigrants bring to the country is foreign terrorism.

Another topic I saw in the film that was discussed in class was the populist leaders. Nigel Farage was portrayed as a loud mouth drunk who actually didn’t know anything about how to run a campaign or stay relevant. He was better on tv and always knew what to say that he was behind the scenes. We have seen populists in our countries who do and say out of the box things that grab the public’s attention. Farage would be categorized as a charismatic strongman according to Mudde and Kaltwasser (2017). They describe a strongman to be “a masculine and potentially violent figure”, “a man of action”, and “use vulgar language” which Farage likes to display (Mudde & Kaltwasser, 2017). Farage is often seen and was portrayed in the movie, to be vulgar on tv and to be seen drinking and smoking.

Argument

The airing of this film caused an uproar and controversy amongst people everywhere. An article by the New York Times specifically discusses the film and says that everyone knew who won, they just didn’t know how. Most of the controversy stems from the fact that Brexit is still a very active situation and that The Leave party had done some illegal things. The Leave campaign won with 52 votes for leaving and 48 votes for staying. They did this by breaking the law and exceeding the campaign spending limit of 7 million pounds. The Leave party created a slogan saying “Take Back Control”. This was a phrase that encapsulated the campaigns central ideas about immigration, sovereignty, and disruption that voters could relate to.

The writer, James Graham, was getting questions as to why do the movie now. He had explained that this political event had killed someone. No one had ever thought that it could get as bad as it did. Graham is referring to Parliament Member, Jo Cox. She was shot and stabbed multiple times. This was just days before the Brexit Referendum. He said that something appalling had happened in politics where it had gotten so out of had that someone was killed. This was neither parties fault. However, the way they had done their campaigns sort of paved a way for something like this to come about.

Opinion

I thought the film was very interesting. In a way, it helped me make sense of the situation. Sometimes it’s not always clear when reading articles, but it helped to see how the campaign went on. This movie is based on true events and it just showed how chaotic the country was at the time. I felt like it did a great job of showing light on real people behind the populists that usually run the show. It also helped me and what I was studying about the country because I didn’t know anything about the campaign. All I knew was that there was a referendum and that UKIP was able to push the government into going forth with the vote. I think it could’ve done a better job at explaining where Dominic Cummings came from and why he had the reputation that he did because that was unclear at some points. It was also unclear if UKIP and the Leave campaign were working together. Yes, the campaign had people from UKIP and they both had a common goal, but they didn’t work with each other. What was also unclear was that at the end of the movie, before the credits, it had said that a billionaire had helped fund UKIP from the states and that people had lied about their statistics (mainly that the UK was giving the EU 350,000 pounds a week). That part could have been more explained in the video because it was not clear to me. Overall, I thought the film was very helpful in understanding how the UK got to where it is today; a mess of its own making.

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Open Letter

Dear Theresa May,

My name is Alison Klein and I have been studying the United Kingdom and the main event that is Brexit. I love the United Kingdom. I was grateful enough to study abroad there in the spring of 2018. I fell in love with the city of London. I have been researching and studying the Brexit deal for a couple of weeks now and I am learning a lot. You seem to be facing much trouble with Brexit, and I wanted to ask you something. Would you consider putting Brexit to another vote to the British people? I ask this because I wonder if the answer would be different. The European Union is not making it easy for the United Kingdom to leave and your deals keep getting rejected. It also seems like there are many factors that are uncertain in the future. For example, human rights with EU citizens residing in the UK and UK citizens residing in the EU. I also believe that once you leave, and if you ever need anything in the future, the EU will not be so quick to jump to the opportunity to help out.

Residents are very concerned they will be displaced. Even though you guaranteed rights to EU citizens in the UK, the EU is not guaranteeing the same for UK citizens in the EU. They are saying that it is up to that individual country. This will not be good news for human rights if there is a no deal Brexit. Meaning that the UK will leave the EU without making any type of deal. This would also eventually affect workers’ rights because the economy would be at a standstill. I understand that stopping Brexit would require changing the law and that is not something neither parties want. However, the EU has said that the UK could cancel Article 50 Brexit without permission of the other 27 countries in the EU and have Brexit be a democratic process.

It just seems that leaving the European Union is a lot harder than you, or the British people, ever thought it would be. Leaving would also financially affect the United Kingdom. It is known that the British tax system and the broader economy have been steadily reconfigured in order to serve the class of the offshore wealthy. I’m also aware that Brexit was supposed to be a call to action to end the political class’s obedience. However, leaving the European Union appears to be encouraging it. I think you should also consider how leaving the European Union, will affect your “special relationships” with other allied countries. I am referring to the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. President Trump has used the phrase “very special relationship” in reference to Kim Jong Un of North Korea. This phrase, “special relationship”, was made famous by Prime Minister Winston Churchill (as you are probably aware of) and has been used by presidents and prime minister since then. Trump has also made some very rude comments about you in the way you have handled the exit of the EU. While Trump does not seem to be doing anything to bring your two nations together, Brexit also seems to be doing more harm than good to your “special relationship”. I ask you, do you think to leave the European Union will affect your other relationships with countries? These relationships that you and past Prime Ministers have worked so hard to preserve?

Prime Minister, not only do I believe this is hurting relationships, but the world is watching this unfold and they have thoughts. There has been a wave of arguments in the wake of Brexit that revolve around five key terms: populism, nationalism, imperialism, fragmentation, and inequality. Brexit is getting caught up with right-populism, racism, ultra-nationalism, socio-economic inequalities, and just making the rest of Europe miserable. It is also crucial that the UK and the EU make deals prior to the exit. The EU relies on the UK heavily and you need to be able to negotiate in order to have a clear view of not only the near term goals but also the long-term interests and interdependencies. These negotiations are the only way to keep close ties.

Time is not on your side, Prime Minister. The Members of Parliament will decide on March 13th if the United Kingdom should leave the European Union without a deal. If they believe they the exit will end tragically, then they will vote on March 14th to ask the EU to extend negotiations. March 29th is the day that the United Kingdom is set to leave the European Union, with or without a deal. I know you know these dates very well, but they are quickly approaching. I believe you should think about this. Think about the British people and the future of the country. I refer back to my original question, could you put Brexit to another vote? It has been two years since the last and opinions can change in two years. Thank You for your time.

Sincerely,

Alison Klein

[aliklein772-blog]

Media Landscape Brief

Overview of the Media Landscape

The most powerful media company in the United Kingdom is the BBC. After its radio broadcast started in 1922, its reputation spread worldwide- as did its influence on society. The BBC is not just the United Kingdom’s most popular and powerful media outlet, but all of Europe’s as well. There is a large number of online-only media growing in the United Kingdom. Most of these online media sources focus on news and other more angled news. Many newspapers are actually online now. Social media and internet usage are extremely popular in the United Kingdom. The UK has the third highest internet penetration in all of Europe. The internet is much more accessible now, as most people use smartphones and other devices daily. The most popular social media outlets in the United Kingdom are Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  

Press Freedom and challenges to journalism

The United Kingdom has some of the worst protection for the press in Western Europe. There is a worrisome heavy-handed approach towards the press. The government began implementing the investigatory powers act which is the most extreme surveillance legislation. This means that for whistleblowers, journalists, and their sources lack protection mechanisms. The conservative and labor parties restricted access for journalists to campaigning events for the June 2017 general election. A few years ago the press in the United Kingdom was a large open environment. However, the media was negatively affected by the use of counter-terrorism and surveillance legislation by the authorities. According to Freedom House (2015) “The legal framework provides for freedom of the press, and the government generally respects this right in practice”. However, several laws were put in place back in 2015 that weakened freedom of the press. In a political environment, there are no restrictions on internet access in the UK. However, there were journalists who were working in Northern Ireland that faced threats and harassment. There was also a situation where the offices of the Guardian published leaks from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden and they faced an immense amount of pressure from the authorities. This eventually leads to the destruction of journalist materials and computers by the authorities. It also leads to the detention of David Miranda, whose partner broke the story. It is said that attacks on journalists are rare and they can usually work freely and safely, but there have been instances where they are threatened.

Media and Populism

In the political brief that I wrote last week, I talked about Jeremy Corbyn as a populist leader. While he is a famous leader in the populist party, there is another player that I have recently learned about. His name is Nigel Farage. Nigel Farage was elected leader of the UKIP party in 2006. The UKIP party is a right-wing populist movement that started off as an anti-federalist league that was founded to campaign for the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. Nigel Farage created an image of himself as a “man of the people”. Farage would smoke and drink in public. He would also speak in an open manner and he appeared to be unscripted. After he resigned in 2009, he placed new emphasis on developing areas of local support. Farage’s main outlet of social media is Twitter. He has about 1.2 million followers on Twitter. Nigel would use Twitter to try and criticize the system, label individuals, and use sarcasm in ironic situations against other leaders. According to percentages, Farage’s tweets were 44.5% negative, 42.3% criticism, 3.9% insults, 5.4% group insult, 6.4% labeling, 9.7% wordplay, and 2.4% sarcasm. Most of the content that Farage posts on Twitter are negative and critical, which is very similar to Donald Trump’s numbers.

[aliklein772-blog]

Special Issues Brief

Brexit has been the topic of discussion in the United Kingdom for almost three years. The idea of Brexit is Britain exiting the EU (Brexit). In 2016 the United Kingdom decided, in a national referendum (which means to put it to a vote), to leave the European Union. There have been arguments that this exit is due to the “democratic deficit that exists within the EU and immigration policies”.  Brexit has been one of the biggest talks in Europe (and also the rest of the world) for the last two years. This is because if and when the United Kingdom leaves the EU it will affect everyone who lives in the UK and all of Europe. The European Union has become something of a “single market”. This means that it allows goods and people to move around from country to country as if it stated in one country. Similar to the United States. With the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, it will drastically change that single market. In order for the UK to leave the EU, it had to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty which gives each side two years to come to an agreement of the split. Theresa May initiated this process on March 29, 2017, which means the UK is scheduled to leave the EU on March 29, 2019, at 11 pm UK time.

People/groups/entities it affects

The decision for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union will affect millions of people. Essentially everyone that lives in the UK or EU. Some people that it will affect are the UK residents that live in the EU and the EU residents that live in the UK. There was a Brexit deal that parliament rejected that didn’t say much about human rights, but it did guarantee the rights of EU citizens living in the UK and the UK citizens living throughout the EU. However, if the UK and the EU can’t make a deal, they will either postpone Brexit or the UK will revoke Article 50 and the UK will leave the European Union on March 29, 2019. This would be very bad for human rights because even though the UK has guaranteed residence rights of citizens already living in the EU, the EU is not guaranteed rights to UK citizens and has said that it is up to the individual country. Workers’ protection or discrimination and privacy rights in the UK wouldn’t go away right because these rights derive from the EU law. They would stay protected by the UK law until parliament and the government remove them. In the event of a no deal, the UK needs to be ready for whatever comes next.

Populist Politics

Some key players in Brexit are Prime Minister Theresa May, Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and former UKIP leader Nigel Farage. Theresa May at first did not support the Brexit referendum campaign but is now in favor because she believes it is what the British people want. Then there is the Labour party and its leader, Jeremy Corbyn. The Labour party accepts the referendum and Brexit, but they do not support Theresa May and her Brexit plan and they want to stop it with a general election. Corbyn says he would negotiate a permanent customs union with the EU after Brexit. This would be the only way to keep trade flowing freely and protect jobs. With the March 29 deadline quickly approaching, the Labour party is prepared to back another referendum (or vote) for Brexit with this vote allowing a “close alignment” to a single market. Then there is UKIP or the United Kingdom Independent Party. UKIP is a right-wing political party that was founded to campaign for UK’s exit from the EU. Nigel Farage was elected leader of the group back in 2006 and has now resigned from the party due to its anti-Islam focus that the current leader has implemented, and was very much a populist. As I have mentioned in past briefs, he is very much a “man of the people”, speaks in an open manner, and has an emphasis on developing areas of local support. Farage has recently said, “It’s clear the political elite want to stop Brexit in its tracks and the prime minister doesn’t have the strength or inclination to see this through”. This is a true populist form of being against the political elite and them not wanting what is best for the people.

[aliklein772-blog]

The most powerful media company in the United Kingdom is the BBC. It started doing radio broadcasts in 1922 and played a pivotal role in society and gained a reputation worldwide. The BBC is not just the United Kingdom’s most popular/powerful media outlet, the all of Europe’s as well. There is a large number of online-only media growing in the United Kingdom. Most of these online media sources focus on news and other more angled news. Some newspapers are even online now. Social media and internet usage is very extremely popular in the United Kingdom. The UK has the third highest internet penetration in all of Europe. With smart devices being used by basically everyone it makes the internet more accessible. The most popular social media outlets in the United Kingdom are facebook, twitter, and instagram.  

The United Kingdom has some of the worst protection for the press in Western Europe. It is a worrying trend that there is a heavy-handed approach towards the press. The government began implementing the investigatory powers act which is the most extreme surveillance legislation. This means that for whistleblowers, journalists, and their sources, it is lacking protection mechanisms. The conservative and labour parties restricted access for journalists to campaigning events for the June 2017 general election. A few years ago the press in the United Kingdom was a largely open environment. However, the media was negatively affected by the use of counter terrorism and surveillance legislation by the authorities. According to Freedom House (2015) “The legal framework provides for freedom of the press, and the government generally respects this right in practice”. However, several laws were in place back in 2015 that weakened freedom of the press. In a political environment, there are no restrictions on internet access in the UK. However, there were journalists who were working in Northern Ireland that faced threats and harassment. There was also a situation where the offices of the Guardian published leaks of from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden and they faced an immense amount of pressure from the authorities. This eventually lead to the destruction of journalist materials and computers by the authorities and the detention of David Miranda, whose partner broke the story. It is said that attacks on journalists are rare and they can usually work freely and safely, but there have been instances where they are threatened.

In the political brief that I wrote last week, I talked about Jeremy Corbyn as a populist leader. While he is a famous leader in the populist party, there is another player that I have recently learned about. His name is Nigel Farage. Nigel Farage was elected leader of the UKIP party in 2006. The UKIP party is a right-wing populist movement that started off as an anti-federalist league that was founded to campaign for the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. Nigel Farage created an image of himself as a “man of the people”. Farage would smoke and drink in public and he would speak in an open manner and he appeared to be unscripted. After he resigned in 2009, he placed new emphasis on developing areas of local support. Farage’s main outlet of social media is Twitter. He has about 1.2 million followers on twitter. Nigel would use twitter to try and criticise the system, label individuals, and use sarcasm in ironic situations against other leaders. According to percentages, Farage’s tweets were 44.5% negative, 42.3% criticism, 3.9% insults, 5.4% group insult, 6.4% labeling, 9.7% wordplay, and 2.4% sarcasm. Most of the content that Farage posts on twitter are negative and criticisms, which is very similar to Donald Trump’s numbers.

[aliklein772-blog]

The United Kingdom has a Constitutional monarchy with a ceremonial or non-executive monarch, the queen, and a parliament democracy with two houses as a system of government. The two houses are the House of Lords and the House of Commons. This is when a separate head of government leads the executive. This would mean that the monarchy does not make executive decisions or get involved in politics. There has been one major change in, not only the political system but to the entire country. In 2016, The United Kingdom decided, through a national referendum, to leave the European Union. This is commonly known as Brexit. According to Classroom Country Profiles at the University of Washington Brexit was due to “some of the main arguments surrounding the decision to leave dealt with the so-called democratic deficit that exists within the EU and immigration policies” (2016). There have not been many significant changes in the political system. Queen Elizabeth II is a constitutional monarchy which means her role in the legislative process is mostly ceremonial. Prime Minister Theresa May’s job is a little more complicated. Theresa May became Prime Minister just in the wake of the referendum vote for Britain to leave the European Union. She called an early election in June 2017, which lead to a hung parliament and a conservative minority government. Populism looks like a few different events going on currently in the United Kingdom. One of the biggest events is Brexit and the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union. The idea of Brexit demonstrates that the EU is imposing rules, policies and ways of living to be a danger to national and local identities. This would be where populism comes into play. The United Kingdom is trying to prevent the loss of it’s national and local identities.

One of the main leaders of the populist movement in the United Kingdom is Conservative Jeremy Corbyn. Corbyn’s campaign style has been compared to Donald Trump’s style in that Corbyn has mass rallies, meeting with controversial figures or terrorists, characteristics of anti-semitism, and that the media is against him. According to John Gray (2017) “it is populism for the middle classes, serving the material and psychological needs of the relatively affluent and the well-heeled” (pg 35). This is in response to how Corbyn is not advocating for poor communities or communities with bad economies. It is saying that the middle class is “the people” that Corbyn is supporting. This does not exactly meet the definitions of “the people” that Mudd and Kaltwasser had provided. They mostly discuss how “the people” are farm people or the lower income class.

With Brexit being a hot topic in the United Kingdom, it leaves the country’s future to be unknown. There was a Brexit deal that was recently rejected by Parliament that said very little about human rights however it did provide guaranteed the right that EU citizens that live in the UK and UK citizens living throughout the EU. It even made a declaration for future United Kingdom-European Union that respects human rights to keep close ties. However, if the United Kingdom Parliament and the European Union don’t meet an agreement, the United Kingdom will leave the European Union on March 29th. This would be a concern for residence rights even though the United Kingdom says it will guarantee the rights of EU citizens that already live in the UK, the EU is saying that it is up to individual countries to guarantee the rights to UK citizens.