Academic sparks Good Morning Britain debate over whether BBC should drop 'racist propaganda' Rule Britannia from Last Night of the Proms

Kit Heren24 August 2020

An academic has joined calls to drop Rule Britannia and Land of Hope and Glory from the Last Night of the Proms, calling the songs "racist propaganda".

The BBC is reportedly considering scrapping the flag-waving anthems from the end-of-summer event in the aftermath of the Black Lives Matter protests.

Kehinde Andrews, a professor of Black Studies at Birmingham University, told Good Morning Britain that the songs, which date back to the days of the British Empire, do not represent the UK of the 21st century.

Discussing the lyrics to Rule Britannia, Mr Andrews said: "[The line] 'Britain never shall be slaves' — that's racist propaganda from a time where Britain was the leading slave-trading nation in the world.

PA Archive/PA Images

He argued that the songs should have been left behind years ago.

"I'm sorry, but the fact that we're having this conversation now - that is a disgrace. I remember my school 20 years ago took Rule Britannia off the hymn sheet because they realised it was totally inappropriate and offensive."

Pressed on how he wanted the BBC to treat the songs, Mr Andrews said he did not believe in censoring them but wanted British people to question if the songs represented their values today.

He added: "It's just saying 'some songs, particularly those two [are] racist propaganda which celebrates the British Empire which killed tens of millions of people... many people [in the UK] now like myself... are descendants of those victims of colonialism.

Audience members wave EU flags amid the Union Jacks at the Last Night of the Proms
BBC

"It's totally inappropriate to have these songs. It's not about banning and censorship. It's about saying what songs do we want to represent the modern moment.

And if - and it's a big "if" actually - we do want an anti-racist Britain, then songs like this just don't need to be celebrated."

But another Good Morning Britain guest disagreed, arguing that it was hypocritical to denounce the colonial-era songs while not criticising rap music, which often refers to gang violence

Freedom of speech campaigner Inaya Folarin said: "Kehinde has a very particular ideological world view, he has a very one-dimensional view of Britain, he sees it as a land of racism and hate...

"I think that's completely and fundamentally divorced from what most people believe to be Britain. We recognise it has a complex history full of horror and terror but also triumph and many uplifting things.

"We need to teach history holistically and not try and teach a narrative of cultural self-loathing which I think is very divisive.

"I don't think this helps a single ethnic-minority life. I find it very hypocritical that a lot of people don't have a problem with music that talks about stabbing and violence and the n-word... but a song that brings a lot of joy and upliftment to the majority of British people is an issue of censorship.

"This is not a democratic decision - this is an opportunistic endeavour, using the coronavirus to... push through changes that the majority of people don't support."

The Last Night of the Proms will take place on September 12. There will be no audience in the Royal Albert Hall this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Getty Images

The BBC said last week: "The current situation with Covid-19 means the season we had originally planned is sadly no longer possible.

"Instead the Proms in 2020 have been re-conceived in a different format, but our aim remains the same - to create the world's greatest classical music festival by reflecting world-class music-making from leading artists around the globe, highlighting emerging talent, and featuring work by some of today's most exciting and innovative composers."

BBC Proms director David Pickard said: "These are challenging times for our nation and the rest of the world, but they show that we need music and the creative industries more than ever.

"This year it is not going to be the Proms as we know them, but the Proms as we need them.

"We will provide a stimulating and enriching musical summer for both loyal Proms audiences and people discovering the riches we have to offer for the first time."

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