Alison, tush!
I am probably the most non-racist person in existence, my best friends
include the born-in-France but Alsatian-by-descent Roger, the Scots nitwot
Rob, the lovely Safia who doesn't even know whether her descent is Hindu or
Moslem, because all her family are atheists from South Africa, my two lovely
ladies: Victoria (who is Anglo-Italian-Welsh) and Lydia (who is part
Swedish, part American, part Irish)
etc, etc
Best
dave
----- Original Message -----
From: "Alison Croggon" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, January 02, 2006 1:29 AM
Subject: Re: Colonisation
> Yes David, it is possible to talk about racism without espousing racist
> attitudes. I'm just not certain that you were doing that.
>
> On 2/1/06 12:06 PM, "David Bircumshaw" <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
>
> > I do strongly disagree on this: there was never a cultural myth of
> > British 'innocence'
>
> Wow! Even my personal experience speaks otherwise. My mother (a product of
> the Raj, as were many of my ancestors - the administrative upper middle
> class that ruled India) is full of it. The British were benevolent and did
> the countries they colonised enormous good; they were there to civilise
and
> to help the "natives"; the "natives" loved them (like my Great Great Uncle
> George, who was "adored" by the Tibetans because he "looked after" them)
> &c&c. George Monbiot quotes a few of those myths as currently retailed in
> his article. And yes, Victorian English novels, children's histories and
so
> on are full of this kind of rubbish.
>
> Best
>
> A
>
>
> Alison Croggon
>
> Blog: http://theatrenotes.blogspot.com
> Editor, Masthead: http://masthead.net.au
> Home page: http://alisoncroggon.com
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