Tory MP’s Racist Facebook Shame

Politicians enjoy false equivalences, and Ashfield’s new Tory MP Lee Anderson exhumed a particularly stupid one yesterday: talking to the deeply repellant Mike Graham on Murdoch property TalkRADIO earlier, he declared that lead Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker should invite refugees into his home, because he wants the Government to show compassion to them. This had the usual right-wing suspects cooing in agreement.

Lee Anderson and his pal Bozo

To no surprise at all, that included the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines and his rabble at the Guido Fawkes blog, who declared “During the election campaign it became obvious that should he win, Ashfield Tory candidate Lee Anderson would be right up there amongst the most plain-talking Tory MPs. … Anderson is now living up to that reputation”.

Sadly, though, The Great Guido has failed to do his homework on the less savoury side of this new and “straight talking” MP. But Alex Tiffin certainly has. And what he has found is that Anderson is presiding over a cesspit of bigotry in his invitation-only Facebook group, including Islamophobia, anti-black racism, and a smattering of anti-Semitism.

“Perhaps Tory MP for Ashfield [Lee Anderson] would like to explain why he's not calling out his friends suggesting [Dawn Butler] is taken out and shot” he muses, going on to point out that “This is on his PERSONAL Facebook page” and emphasising “For context, not just anyone can friend Lee Anderson MP on Facebook, he has to send a request himself. Therefore, he's sent requests to the very people now being racist and has said nothing after 24 hours of racism and abuse, despite being on FB since”. What say Anderson?

There was a terse “Don't know the individual who made the comment, I profoundly disagree with every word he has commented and I have immediately removed him from accessing my page. Owing to the hundreds of comments I get do not see every comment and am grateful to you for highlighting this with me”. In reply. But there was more.

As Tiffin has pointed out, other abusive comments about Ms Butler stayed up, as well as the Islamophobia aimed at London Mayor Sadiq Khan, including “Respect our rules and country or fuck off somewhere else”, “he has his own Muslim agenda that’s why he can’t do his job properly”, and “not only will statues be pulled down but Christian churches and well [sic] all find ourselves on prayer mats and on our knees praying to Allah”.

Could it get any worse? Sadly for Anderson, it could, as Tiffin goes on to show: “Tory MP Lee Anderson's friends also like to be Antisemitic about Jewish Labour members in London”. One of them commented “It’s because the Jewish Labour members mainly in London don’t want to be equal they want control and you know what they can have it”. Tired anti-Semitic trope suggesting Jews control everything.

And for those complaining about FREEZE PEACH, remember this: the comments unearthed by Alex Tiffin are not just some random outpouring on social media - they have been made, and have remained up, in a group whose members are only there through the express approval of a Tory MP. That is what makes it totally out of order.

Will the Tory Party censure their new man for that? Don’t bet on it.

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