Why has everyone forgotten about male suffrage?
While the story of female suffrage is taught at school from a young age, few people today know the long and gruesome history of how men won the right to vote, says Neil Lyndon
There is a reason why our view of this history is as biased, one-sided and prejudiced as the account of the Eighth Route Army that was taught to Chinese children under Mao.
The reason is that the whole truth is extremely inconvenient. It conflicts with the dominant feminist narrative which portrays women as the victims of repressive men, from whom liberation and progress had to be wrested by militant uprising. The true history of votes for women, however, is not a story of sex war but of a continuous progress of electoral reform over a century from 1832-1928 in which women’s suffrage was only one element.
It is also true that, as a whole, that complete story does credit both to Britain and to men whose memory deserves our continuing honour, compassion and respect.
Listening to Emma Barnett and Co enthusiastically championing the Suffragettes and ‘votes for women’ remarkably there seemed to be no mention that millions of men didn’t have the vote either…..which kind of puts a spoke in the BBC narrative that not giving women the vote was a political ploy to keep them alone oppressed and in the kitchen.
The Representation of the People Act 1918 gave the vote to 8 million women and over 5 million men….5 million men whom the BBC seems to have pretty much forgotten today.
The whole BBC narrative is one of men suppressing women but ignores the fact that it had less to do with gender and more to do with economics, who worked, who had money and property and who, they thought, had a real stake in the country and thus should be allowed to vote….and keep them in power.
Barnett otherwise was on form as usual…just why we had Juliet Stevenson, lovey actor, on I’m not sure….Labour supporter, pro-immigration and pro-Remain.
There was also Tory Victoria Atkins who has fled Twitter due to the abuse she gets…which immediately made the BBC headlines. Barnett though berated her for being in a Tory Party propped up by the DUP [called ‘backward and unpleasant’ by Muslim Mishal Husain for its Christian beliefs…LOL]…because that is ‘an issue’. The DUP are, according to Barnett, ‘uncomfortable bedfellows’ due to their opposition to gay marriage and being anti-choice as Barnett put it….a cuddly bit of spin meaning anti-abortion. Does she say the same thing about Muslim or Catholic MPs? Does she berate the Pope who is equally against such issues.
Of course not…it is only ‘an issue’ because the DUP are ‘propping up’ the hated Tories and keeping Brexit on track. The mass murdering IRA the BBC has no problem with….nor with Corbyn who was vocal in his support for them…and indeed them for him it seems now.
Labour’s Jess Phillips received a much warmer welcome with no difficult questions. All a bit of a love in today. Despite a programme dedicated to women’s issues and examining the abuse female politicians get Barnett didn’t raise any questions about Corbyn, Momentum and Phillips’ life under that regime despite headlines like this from last year….
Jess Phillips: ‘Labour under Corbyn feels like I’ve been locked out of my home’
When Jess Phillips said that the misogyny she received from left-wing men was the “absolute worst” they quickly proved her point. Last week the Labour MP’s Twitter feed flowed with “men telling me I didn’t understand sexism, that I deserved it, that I was fat, ugly, that I was probably on my period”.
The men who gained the vote in 1918 were for the most part white and working class. The BBC does not do White Working Class men, and the chances are that if they accidentally came across them they would be extremely unlikely to conform to the authorised BBC groupthink. I’d imagine the BBC are still trying to decide whether giving them the vote at all was really a good idea: – they are after all responsible for both Brexit and Trump.
The other unmentioned fact is the number of white British males who were killed in the Great War – according to the Royal British Legion this number was 750 000 at least . I guess 700 000 of those killed did not have the right to vote and were sacrificed to save Europe from the krauts.
Even in the centennial year of the end of The Great War this does not figure in the al beeb narrative .
They really do seem to have gone over board on this lady fest -speaking as a non woman
Another way of looking at it is that 8 million women got the vote for the death of one woman, while 5 million men got the vote for the death of 100,000 men; 8 million to 1 versus 50 to 1. ‘Gender equality’ is a wondeful thing.
The BBC serves lib-land not eng-land
so that’s why those middle class women getting the vote was so important ,
… and those young working class men getting their vote is less important .
March 8th is International Women’s day
Was it the Suffragettes or the Suffragists that ‘won’ the vote?
An interesting article at Conservative Woman.
It’s a good question Jim. A letter in the Telegraph today makes the point that the suffragettes held up votes for women. The writer says his grandmother claimed that if it were only the suffragists then votes for women would have happened in 1910.
That is a most interesting article. I feel I learned a lot from it. The standard version is that the Suffragists were pleasant enough but a bit meek and timid, until the Suffragettes came along with fire in their belly and made the government sit up. Complete cobblers of course. The Suffragettes probably did more harm than good with their exhibitionist behaviour and terrorism, driving away potential supporters and making it difficult for the government of the day not to agree without seeming weak and vulnerable to threats.
Thanks for this article, Jim. Very enlightening.
Am I alone, or dare I even mention it, but I am getting a bit fed up with women.
No, no, nothing to do with real women, but the subject of female politics that the BBC has been relentlessly ramming down our throats these last four months.
I am completely in favour of women’s equal pay etc. but blimey, talk about over-egging a subject! This week has been the culmination of my total intolerance – a perfect storm of female bombast that a poor bloke like me finds a bit too daunting.
Can I vote for a MALE to present the news on BBC TV. I haven’t seen
one this year.
Really?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_BBC_newsreaders_and_reporters
Women do make up more than half the population.
Cram brook/ilford phil
The nice touch is the idea of giving these terrorists posthumous pardons -let’s face it – that cxxx Blair pardoned Irish terrorists left right and centre so why not Wimmin terrorists ?
Apologies are fashionable these days so maybe they can get away with just saying sorry – as if it matters a dot
Yes, being an artist I take rather seriously anyone who attacks a painting with a cleaver. That is just criminal damage & cannot be pardoned.
Good call from Brendan O’Neill of Spiked
They changed aim to “Votes for tax paying women”
h/t Guido commenter
The bbc do like to drag everyone down with them. My morning email led with this:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-42968342?
Thing is, it is littered with classic BBC disclaimers and selected quotes, so quite possibly, it could be simply a claim punt a lady lawyer is using the BBC to soften things up in advance.
I am still shaking my head as to why the Labour party did not celebrate the 100 year anniversary of working men getting the vote. As we know the event was hijacked by elitist women in politics and the media to draw attention to the partial enfranchisement of women over 30 with a property or university qualification.
As I wrote yesterday in another thread, I do not seek to minimise the enormity of the change in the vote and the heroic campaign that led eventually to full female suffrage. But the Act, known at the time as the Fourth Reform Act, also gave the vote to ALL men over 21 and led to the most profound political changes in the coming years. The same men incidentally who lost almost one million from their ranks by fighting their way through the horrors of the First World War. And the same men who went on to elect Labour governments for the next hundred years.
Shame on the liberal elites for largely ignoring this great historical development and extra shame on the Labour Party that it can no longer celebrate male working class triumphs. Maybe m’lady Emily Thornberry just thinks they are all, to coin a phrase, a “basket of deplorables”.
The lesson for the liberal elites seem clear and it is one being learnt painfully by the Democrats in the United States. It is a lot easier to win power in a democracy if you don’t take your “base” for granted. It becomes impossible if you actually insult it.
I was looking forward to Hattie Harmon giving it the big one together with her poor husband – jack – I’m grate- droney . But sadly not heard her bleating on about how evil men are despite her dad apparently having been one and her mother taking him on as it were .
Mind you – all anyone has to do is remind her of her support for PIE and reducing the age of consent to 14 and that ends her reliable judgement
As exchange programmes go, I am still assessing quality over quantity and who got the better deal.
The prog mentions her founding the Communist Party of GB
(prog started at 11am)
It says in 1922 they saw the danger of the rise of fascism
So whilst others went to fight against it in Spain, she went to Ethiopia to fight for independence against fascist Italy
Triggered by Mussolini’s invasion of the country in 1935
I posted this on the other page, but it belongs here. Remember the White Feather Movement which the BBC have ignored
History is not as simple as we want it to be .. “Pankhurst – The White Feather Betrayal of History” – YouTube
Yes GW that sent plenty of boys to a sad death . I’ve always thought how evil group think can be – not here – plenty of like minded people rather that the insane collective evil of the al beeb mind
1918 Woman : “thank god I have the vote”
2016 libmob “That stupid woman, voted for Brexit, her vote is worthless
.. she is so weak and feeble and let her self be conned
..We’ll have to have a second vote , so she can vote right next time”
Now libmob want to honour the suffragettes
..but they’ve just spent the last 2 years dishonouring the vote of the 52%
‘The 1918 Act is, rightly, most famous for having brought more than eight million women into the electorate; but, for the first time, it also enfranchised more than five million men over the age of 21 without regard to property or class. ‘
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/11509811/Why-has-everyone-forgotten-about-male-suffrage.html
Merkel (open borders) aiding the vision of Schulz (United States of Europe) with the new coalition? What could go wrong?
Martin Schulz wants ‘United States of Europe’ within eight years {theguardian07dec2017}
In a speech at the SPD’s party conference in Berlin that called for the creation of a “United States of Europe” by 2025, as well as a more robust social security net and a phasing out of coal power, Martin Schulz made the case for entering open-ended talks with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).
It wasn’t women who won the vote.
It was men who gave women the right to vote
It seems they got a deal last night. The SPD got all they wanted: all policy details. And the CDU got all it wanted: Chancellor Merkel for four more years.
Good outcome, nicht wahr?
So now we will have open borders, no upper limits to immigration, families can join, etc.
Macron will be pleased. The ever closer Union stuff will mean a ‘Schuldenunion’, Eurobonds etc.: French debt becomes German debt, German resources become French resources etc.
Poor old Jerry: A hundred thousand Lancasters tonight, followed by two hundred thousand Superfortresses , no resistance, couldn’t do more damage.
We’re well out of there. Or are we? For one thing, expect many, many more unaccompanied ‘children’ at Calais. I can see a tear on Mrs May’s cheek even now.
Sorry, think this belonged under ‘Open Thread’ (Can’t be ruled out that Merkel will ban men entirely, in which case it can stay here.)
From Biased BBC Aviation Correspondent
The US never used the B29 Superfortress in the European theatre during WW2, it was used in the cold war as a stop-gap until Canberra and V Bomber force was established. In RAF Service the B29 was called the Washington…..i feel better now
More news of PC-Feminsm : ASA bans Poundland Elf , & Tunnoc’ks bun in cheek , tennis skirt advert
\\This morning they have banned Poundland’s teabagging elf, for being “demeaning to women”.
Tunnock’s Tea Cakes advert was also censored, with the ASA ruling it objectified women and was socially irresponsible//
https://order-order.com/2018/02/07/asa-censors-poundlands-teabagging-elf-tunnocks-tennis-treat
I bet the actual censors are white middle-class men, who over egg the game, hoping to stay in with wimmin’s libbers and get a shag out of it .
ASA panel is all white except for one South Asian woman
https://www.asa.org.uk/about-asa-and-cap/people/asa-council.html
The Tesco’s £4bn equal pay action
… is being brought by Leigh Day ..the infamous lawyers
I used to work in Tescos, they basically begged me to work nights
cos most of the women wanted days so they could handle their kids
I got a night time supplement , and it was my free choice.
I stacked the crates of beers and wine etc
.. it’s more physical than stacking sweets .. but I got the same wage
Stew
The amoral Leigh day will look for an out of court payout but tesco should look to give it a run or look for more ways to reduce people wage bills by technology .
Times Biz : Corps are running around announcing CDOs Chief Diversity Officers.
I’m waiting for al Beeb to start campaigning against Valentine’s Day as in encourages people to interact with others which can amount to harassment , intimidation , consensual heterosexual sex and buggery , stalking – child sex – delete as applicable.
I’m guessing the evil Muslims don’t do valentines as they don’t do queer and all their 12 year old girls have Sharia marriages with 60 years to bang out more mo s.
Am I the only man who finds modern,british women insufferable?
Kingkp,
You’ll get the naughty mysoginist badge … seriously I think you are right …. it’s difficult but I try to ignore them now. . Saying or doing anything in their presence can lead to an altercation . I don’t give up my seat on the train any more . The non white ones are just begging for a comment to shout racism and make a hate crime allegation . I’m talking London obviously .