#17 I’m no fan of Rishi Sunak, so why do I bristle when I see him being attacked?
This topic is a risky choice on my part, and if I’m particularly unlucky, a significant portion of my readership may already have sent me straight to trash.
If you’re still here, thank you, and please let me explain.
TLDR (and disclaimer): I do not hold Rishi Sunak, the UK's Prime Minister (PM), in high regard. I’d rather rescind my voting rights than support a political party that has enacted policies which have harmed the most vulnerable people in our society over the past 14 years. For many South Asians, he’s the personification of “Not all skin folk are kin folk”. That said, there is a distinct undercurrent of racism in our everyday discourse when it comes to Sunak. Discourse that I believe has its roots in his identity as a South Asian man.
The UK’s not racist; we have a South Asian Prime Minister
When Sunak came to power in October 2022, much was made of him being the UK’s first South Asian and Hindu PM.
It does signify a progress of sorts, especially if you consider that up to five weeks ago, three of the four nations that comprise the United Kingdom were led by men from minority ethnic backgrounds: Rishi Sunak, Hamza Yousaf - the former First Minister of Scotland and Vaughan Gething - the current First Minister of Wales. Yes, it’s notable, but it’s worth considering the following:
Sunak was appointed by default: 193 Conservative Members of Parliament (MP) nominated him to stand in a leadership elec. However, the contest was aborted when former PM Boris Johnson and fellow MP Penny Mordaunt dropped out of the race. Thus, the Conservative Party's base of 170,000 members was denied a say, and we’ll never know what their verdict would have been.
The latest polls for the upcoming election predict Sunak will preside over the biggest Conservative defeat since 1931’s ‘super defeat’. I’m not chalking that predicted result up to racial prejudice; it’s far more complex than that. People have had enough of the Conservatives, regardless of who leads them.
Political context aside, even if the economic outlook was rosier, I don’t believe the UK would directly elect a person of colour as PM. I lack the data points for my hypothesis, as it would be unethical to poll this question. However, if I were a betting woman, I’m not sure I would favour Sunak’s odds, especially when you consider that Hamza Yousaf and Vaughan Gething were also elected by their parties, not the electorate.
Increased representation does not necessarily equal progress: The topic of brown complicity in white supremacy is something I’ve explored before. Representation within a system that systemically prejudices Black and brown people, even when a Black or brown person is at the helm of that system, does not mean that their actions in the form of harmful policies are not racist. An example of this is the UK’s requirement for Voter Identification. Although we have very little electoral fraud, this policy was seen by many as a cynical attempt by the Conservative Party to make it more difficult for many working-class and people of colour - not typically Tory voters - to vote as they are statistically less likely to have official forms of ID. A South Asian PM upholding this policy does not make it any less problematic.
So why am I sticking up for Rishi? Is it because we share a South Asian heritage?
Yes, to some extent, but it goes deeper than that.
I've noticed two troubling TikTok trends that are central to this discussion.
The first is the commenting of “well, well, well” under specific videos.
The meaning behind the phrase is mysterious to most TikTok users, but many others have noted a disturbing pattern in the comments that suggests the phrase is a racist dog whistle.
It’s understood to have started with videos about Jewish or Jewish American culture and has spread to videos of people of colour. What these videos share is that they often feature common and harmful tropes for these communities; for example, a Black person or a Muslim being caught on camera for some form of misdemeanour or a Jewish person showcasing aspects of their lives or faith. One video, in particular, has received much attention from an entrepreneur explaining what he describes as a "Jewish Business Secret" his video is subsequently flooded with "well, well, well" comments, playing into a common trope of Jewish people dominating positions of power and influence. Commentators have highlighted that the trend allows users to be racist without the risk of the comments being flagged to moderators.
The second trend is the targeting of videos featuring seemingly affluent British South Asians with the words “another uppity Indian” It’s especially prevalent on accounts of young women, perceived as being well-spoken, middle to upper class. The comments are invariably from white people of varying ages.
‘Uppity’ may seem benign, but it has long been associated with people of colour who have ideas above their station and rank in life. Michelle Obama often had this phrase hurled at her during both of her husband’s presidential terms.
I’d suggest that a significant degree of criticism of Sunak falls foul of both notions. When Sunak skipped part of the recent D-Day commemorations, Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform Party, accused him of “not understanding our culture”. I appreciate Farage does not represent all British people, but it’s the ‘well well well’ and ‘uppity Indian’ notions in action. The idea is that we’re somehow different regardless of how much we assimilate into a wider society.
Whilst I maintain that Sunak is an awful PM and I dislike what he represents, it’s important to ensure that when we criticise him, we’re mindful not to unleash harmful tropes. It’s easier said than done, and that’s what makes it particularly insidious.
Something to think about.
June recommendations:
📱 WATCH Queenie, the adaptation of Candice Carty-William’s 2019 bestselling novel of the same name. Queenie tells the story of Queenie Jenkins, a 25-year-old Jamaican British woman whose life slowly unravels when her long-term boyfriend asks for a break from their relationship.
I loved the book and have been eagerly looking forward to the adaptation. Having inhaled the eight-part series in two sittings, I agree with the critics that the show is less gritty than the much-loved and critically acclaimed book. However, I think that’s just the downside of most adaptations—it’s impossible to fit everything in. What it may have lost in grit, it made up for in heart.
Image ID: A twentysomething Black woman (actress Dionne Brown) is sitting on a brown-patterned sofa in a living room with 1970s-style wallpaper and carpet. She rests one foot on a cardboard box, surrounded by other brown boxes filled with her possessions. On the wall are pictures of her family, and on a side table is a decorative plate with the Jamaican flag in the centre. The woman, Queenie, has her hair in braids and tied up in a bun; she sits on the sofa beside her open laptop. She wears a white t-shirt featuring a series of Black women of various skin tones, blue jeans and black and white Vans trainers. She looks despondent and fed up. Her name, Queenie, is placed above her head in an exaggerated-shaped pink font.
Williams served as a writer and Executive Producer, and I think that involvement is evident in the beautiful characterisation of Queenie and her extended family. Dionne Brown especially excels in the title role.
My only minor complaint is the inclusion of Queenie’s inner monologue. It felt unnecessary and detracted from Brown’s nuanced performance. Other than that, it’s a gorgeous adaptation that I think everyone should watch.
Queenie is available to stream on Channel 4 and Hulu.
📖 READ Why tackling accent bias matters at work: a think piece from the Financial Times. I wouldn’t typically link to an article behind a paywall, so here are a few highlights. (If you do want to read it - there is currently an offer to access it for £1)
In the next few weeks, the UK is predicted to elect a Labour government that will sound markedly different from the Conservative government that preceded it. This is noteworthy given that Oxbridge graduates have historically dominated British politics, and the UK has had 20 Prime Ministers educated at Eton College.
Accent bias is prevalent in the UK, with Received Pronunciation (commonly known as the Queen’s English) being the highest-rated accent despite only being spoken by an estimated 3% of the population.
The Birmingham accent was rated lowest in the bottom 10, alongside African-Caribbean, Indian, Liverpool and Cockney accents.
76% of employers confessed to discriminating against candidates based on their accents, which is concerning when considering how many people’s careers this may have curtailed.
If you’ve followed me for a while, you’ll know that this is a topic that I return to often. It will always puzzle me why we hang on to this outdated idea of what we must sound like in business and public life. Surely, it’s the words that matter versus the accent that carries them?
You can read the article here.
📻 LISTEN to ‘New Nigeria County’ by Clare Brown.
Brown is best known for her anti-racism TikToks, which flip the script on what it’s like to be the recipient of race-based microaggressions. Most of her videos are from the POV of a Black woman going about her daily life and targeting the white people she encounters with various microaggressions. It’s such a unique mechanic to deliver anti-racism education, so I’m not surprised she was approached by publishers Simon & Schuster to turn these into longer-form content.
New Nigeria County tells the story of a white family moving into an affluent Black community and how a “misunderstanding” between neighbours escalates until the entire town is swept up in the drama. It’s thought-provoking and super smart.
New Nigeria County is available on Audible and Spotify, and you can follow her on Instagram and TikTok.
Okay, friends, that’s it for now. If you’d like to follow me on @_languagematters that would be lovely. If you have anything to say or ask, please don't hesitate to let me know in the comments below.
As always, thank you for reading this post. I’m so glad you’re here. If you like what you’re reading, please consider sharing this newsletter. If you have the time to like it, that would mean a lot to me, as it’ll help more people see it.
Until next month, take care,
I understand your standpoint. If you feel it was necessary to have that disclaimer, it means it is the right choice for what you want to express.
Thank you for writing this piece which, in my opinion, rings a bell even more as conservative and far-right parties are taking over Europe, with many BIPOC supporting them.
Such a pity that you have to put a disclaimer for this because it shows even among people considering themselves 'progressive' (how much I hate this word) there seems to be no nuance. You can't talk about two things holding two truths at one time without being pilloried.