Dave Stewart

It’s always nice to hear from my good friend and coffee lover Keith Melville, especially when it’s in response to a letter of mine in the Beacon letters.

His reaction to my support for human rights does make me concerned for his health though.

While defending our council adopting a DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) policy he reports he found “the supportive sentiments were somewhat nauseous”. Crikey, that’s no good.

One of the symptoms of conservatitis (irritating inflammation of the conservative glands) is being made to feel nauseous when people discuss human rights. And it is something I’ve noticed is a bit of a pandemic recently.

While Mr Melville says: “Most of us would agree we must respect the rights of others including the handicapped, marginalised, those with gender differences, and people with alternative views, but do we really need a policy set in a silly woke stone?”

Well, the answer is that the rights of, for example, the handicapped, and simple access to buildings was challenged when people started to agitate for it. Mr Melville and I are both old enough to remember it.

Simple things such as ramps to access buildings did need to be set in stone and was challenged and fought all the way.

Same with the marginalised and those with gender differences. They were legally discriminated against until we set in stone policies to stop it.

And today, those with alternative views opposing this kind of discrimination are blanketly derided as “woke”.

The fact is that in the never-ending battle for human rights there is a front line, and progressives have always been at that front line.

But the front line moves as one battle is fought and won and we move forward.

In the 70s and 80s, it was disabled access and racism in sport, but it didn’t stop there. Today it’s gender rights.

In my letter, I said the same arguments that were thrown up then to oppose human rights are being thrown up now. And Mr Melville’s letter did just that.

Dave Stewart