Despised. Paul Embery
on the Left will hate this book and reject it wholesale. A more constructive approach would be one that engages with the arguments put forward by Paul Embery, a union activist and an authentic working-class Dagenham voice.’
Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham and Rainham
‘For anyone who wants to see a Labour government again, read this book. It’s a bitter pill to swallow but it’s essential medicine for some parts of the Left if they are serious about renewing the bond with the people they were founded to represent. Some of it will make you wince. All of it will make you think.’
Gloria De Piero, former Labour MP for Ashfield
‘Paul Embery is a gifted writer with political vision and great courage. This book tells the story of how Labour lost its way and can find it once more.’
Maurice Glasman
‘Paul Embery has become a key witness to the death of blue-collar social democracy in Britain. He describes how, in his home borough of Barking and Dagenham, and in British politics more generally, the combination of hyper-globalisation and identity politics has turned working-class politics upside down. Even if you are familiar with the critique of identity politics you should read this book; not only is it intellectually sharp but it is the account of someone who has experienced the change as a personal and collective tragedy.’
David Goodhart, author of The Road to Somewhere
‘Most voters lean left on economics and conservative on culture but no one represents them. Embery delivers a tight, passionately argued plea for the Left to rediscover its roots in social solidarity. Despised confirms Embery’s place as a leading force in the emerging left-conservative movement.’
Eric Kaufmann, Birkbeck College, University of London
‘Paul Embery is one of the most interesting, insightful and original voices to have emerged in British journalism for some time.’
Douglas Murray, Spectator columnist, author of The Madness of Crowds: Gender, Race and Identity
‘A polemic in the tradition of the Levellers, the Chartists and the trade union movement. Paul Embery’s brave book shows that Labour cannot win without the working class. The future of the Left is a politics of people, place and belonging.’
Adrian Pabst, Professor of Politics at the University of Kent and author of The Demons of Liberal Democracy
‘Tony Blair once raged against “the forces of conservatism”, but Paul Embery reminds us that Labour, like its lost working-class voters, has a history of social and cultural conservatism. If it wants to win back those lost voters, it will need to rediscover the conservatism that makes solidarity possible, and to do that its leaders should start by reading this hard-hitting and painfully honest book.’
Nick Timothy, author of Remaking One Nation: The Future of Conservatism, and Daily Telegraph columnist
Dedication
For the people of Barking and Dagenham
DEI GRATIA SUMUS QUOD SUMUS
Despised
Why the Modern Left Loathes the Working Class
Paul Embery
polity
Copyright © Paul Embery 2021
The right of Paul Embery to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published in 2021 by Polity Press
Polity Press
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Cambridge CB2 1UR, UK
Polity Press
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Medford, MA 02155, USA
All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.
ISBN-13: 978-1-5095-4000-6
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Embery, Paul, author.
Title: Despised : why the modern left loathes the working class / Paul Embery.
Description: Cambridge, UK ; Medford, MA : Polity Press, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references and index. | Summary: “Why the modern left will regret sneering at community, family and the nation”-- Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020024550 (print) | LCCN 2020024551 (ebook) | ISBN 9781509539987 (hardback) | ISBN 9781509539994 (paperback) | ISBN 9781509540006 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: Labour Party (Great Britain) | Right and left (Political science)--Great Britain. | Working class--Political activity--Great Britain. | Party affiliation--Great Britain. | Great Britain--Politics and government--21st century.
Classification: LCC JN1129.L32 E63 2021 (print) | LCC JN1129.L32 (ebook) | DDC 324.24107--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020024550 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020024551
The publisher has used its best endeavours to ensure that the URLs for external websites referred to in this book are correct and active at the time of going to press. However, the publisher has no responsibility for the websites and can make no guarantee that a site will remain live or that the content is or will remain appropriate.
Every effort has been made to trace all copyright holders, but if any have been overlooked the publisher will be pleased to include any necessary credits in any subsequent reprint or edition.
For further information on Polity, visit our website: politybooks.com
Acknowledgements
I owe a debt of gratitude to many people for their help and support in making this book a reality. My editor, George Owers, was a constant source of encouragement and sound advice. Thanks must also go to Evie Deavall and Julia Davies at Polity for their generous assistance and all-round professionalism, and to Tim Clark for his first-rate copy-editing.
The ideas and opinions in these pages have been influenced by countless individuals, but I must give a special mention to my friends and allies Maurice Glasman, Jonathan Rutherford, Adrian Pabst, Jack Hutchison, Liam Stokes and Tobias Phibbs, with whom I have spent many happy hours putting the world to rights (often together as a group over a beer or three at the marvellous Red Art café in Dalston). Needless to say, however, not all of the views expressed here will reflect their own.
I thank friends and colleagues, past and present, in the Fire Brigades Union, particularly Lucy Masoud, Grant Mayos and Joe MacVeigh, whose comradeship over many years has meant much. I also owe a great deal to the fine team at UnHerd, especially Sally Chatterton and Freddie Sayers.
I am indebted to my parents for their support