The Bains Agenda

As an ethnic minority and someone firmly on the left, I’ve witnessed first-hand how Britain’s racism problem is deeply rooted in its colonial past—a history built on white supremacy and the dehumanisation of Black people, Indians, Muslims, Jews, Irish people, and countless others. Real racism exists and must be confronted.

Yet there’s a disturbing trend that demands our attention: well-intentioned progressives who misdiagnose racism are not only missing the mark, they’re actively harming the very communities they claim to champion.

This isn’t just irritating, it’s dangerous. It’s a form of nasty, dirty politics that continues unchallenged, and I’m determined to change that.

When Performative Anti-Racism Backfires

Consider the revealing case of Speedy Gonzalez. When non-Mexican activists attempted to cancel the cartoon character as racist, they were met with an unexpected response: Mexican viewers overwhelmingly supported Speedy, forcing his return. This episode perfectly encapsulates the problem—it’s infinitely easier to wage war against a cartoon than to confront the actual discrimination Mexicans face in America.

While activists congratulate themselves for symbolic victories, real minorities suffer from actual discrimination that goes unaddressed. This isn’t anti-racism; it’s performative theatre that distracts from genuine struggles.

The Hijacking of the Immigration Conversation

Let me be crystal clear: Calling for managed migration and integration is not racist or fascist. Yet nuanced discussions about immigration policy are routinely shut down through accusations of bigotry. This silencing tactic has effectively handed the entire immigration conversation to the right, a devastating strategic error that hurts both the left and minorities.

Look at Frankie Boyle‘s disturbing insinuation that Labour having a mug saying “controls on immigration” was racist. This kind of rhetoric doesn’t advance anti-racism—it sets the debate back decades. I don’t know a single person in real life who equates immigration controls with racism, and Boyle has no business making such claims.

Blasphemy law case study

Combating prejudice against Muslims is a left wing position as the right wing stokes hatred. However there is incredible naivety.

The proposed Islamophobia definition by MP Tahir Ali was a dark day in PMQs history. Islamic majority countries have been known to kill for blasphemy against Islam. This kind of thing has actually already happened in the UK with the infamous case of Salman Rushdie and his fatwa.

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey endorsed this definition, presumably believing it to be a liberal, anti-racist position.

What Davey overlooked speaks volumes: Britain’s first Muslim MP, Khalid Mahmood, opposed it. So did British Sikh organisations because it would have effectively criminalised discussion of their history.

So which scenario seems more believable? That Mahmood, secular organizations, Sikh groups, Jewish groups, and I are all secretly right-wing “Islamophobes”? Or that progressives have become dangerously out of touch with the very communities they claim to defend?

Cultural Differences: The Uncomfortable Reality

Here’s a truth that progressive orthodoxy refuses to acknowledge: cultures are different, and sometimes those differences manifest negatively and deserve internal criticism. Recognising this reality is not racism, it’s honesty.

Many ethnic minorities are themselves critical of aspects of their own cultures and religions. They possess insights and perspectives that outsiders simply cannot have. Yet progressives have so thoroughly monopolised anti-racism that minorities often cannot publicly express nuanced views about their own communities without facing accusations of betrayal or racism.

The result? A stifling environment where meaningful dialogue becomes impossible and genuine concerns go unaddressed, further marginalizing the very people progressives claim to support.

Was Malcolm X Right?

Malcolm X’s warning about the white liberal as a fox, appearing friendly while potentially being as dangerous as the wolf, resonates powerfully with many minorities today. This isn’t what I want to believe, but he said it for a reason: it’s exactly how it feels when progressives speak over us rather than with us.

I am not alone in this sentiment. Countless minorities find themselves silenced not by right-wing racists, but by left-wing allies who paradoxically claim to amplify their voices while simultaneously drowning them out.

A Path Forward: Real Anti-Racism

If progressives genuinely wish to combat racism and support minorities, they must:

1. Listen to diverse minority voices—especially those who don’t conform to progressive expectations
2. Acknowledge that cultural criticism isn’t inherently racist—and sometimes comes from within those cultures
3. Allow nuanced discussions about immigration and integration—without reflexive accusations of bigotry
4. Focus on substantial issues rather than symbolic gestures—prioritize impact over performance
5. Engage directly with minorities in real life—not through the filtered lens of media narratives
6. Do not speak for us

I say this to help: if you actually wish to understand minorities, try actually talking to us in real life rather than downloading your opinions from Guardian op-eds. True anti-racism requires engaging with the full spectrum of minority perspectives—not just the ones that conveniently align with progressive orthodoxy.

Minorities are an easy way to appear righteous. Racism exists and it is bad – I am not racist therefore I am good. That is not morality, that is a performance for yourself.

Only through honest, unfiltered dialogue can we address genuine racism while avoiding the counterproductive misdiagnoses that currently undermine both the left and the minorities it claims to support.