Who are we ignoring?

Cast your mind back to the heady days of 2016. It was the year which gave us both Brexit and President Trump. We are a year away from the next American Presidential election, and a major poll recently put Donald Trump as the hot favourite. The reasons for this are complex: President Biden has a solid track record of getting things done both at home and abroad, but he projects a frail, elderly figure. Although Trump is just three years younger, many voters do not see him this way, which is a victory for his messaging. Commentators point out that polls at this stage are completely notional. Add to this the fact that the numbers all turn to Biden if Trump is convicted of a criminal offence, of which there is a decent chance before the election, and everything becomes much more uncertain.

I was listening to a podcast recently which suggested that Trump continues to be the voice of working-class people who feel marginalised by the political system. He speaks directly to them in a way that most politicians do not. This may account for the fact that the January 6 insurrection, which from our British vantage point looks like a frightening attack on democracy itself, fails to register with many American voters today. Trump supporters tend to be much keener to engage with issues like the perceived weakness of the economy and the sense that America looks less powerful on the world stage.

Here in Britain, our politics have been highly volatile since the Brexit vote. We have had four Prime Ministers in seven years, and even a large majority did not guarantee Boris Johnson the premiership for a full parliamentary term. Today the polls suggest that many people feel that the promises made during the Brexit campaign have not been kept. We have not seen our businesses freed from enormous amounts of EU red tape and able to punch their weight on the world stage; rather we have seen them sinking under far more red tape simply to trade with our former partners. No one would argue that we are more prosperous, and I have yet to hear anyone observe that we are feeling any real benefits, even allowing for the negative effect of the Covid pandemic.

Brexit exposed deep divides in our society, between old and young, rich and poor, in prosperous and challenging local areas. Many voted for Brexit in part because they felt ignored by our political classes. During the vote and afterwards, Boris Johnson spoke for large numbers of these people. He has been unable to avoid taking the blame for many of the problems which happened on his watch as Prime Minister. Now the Covid enquiry is providing an unflattering picture from behind the scenes of our government at the time. A year away from the next general election, it feels like many of those who felt ignored when they voted for Brexit now feel let down by those who have been in power since.

Christians are concerned by the continued divisions in our society. The gaps have only grown larger since 2016 between rich and poor, old and young, north and south. We should be concerned that the problems with our political system have become more pronounced over this time. A system which used to reliably deliver stable government has done the opposite in the face of the huge challenges we have faced as a country. Our politicians appear to be doing little to bring people together. Now in the face of the Israel/Gaza conflict, we can add tension between Jewish and Muslim communities to the many dividing lines in our communities. We have to hope that our diverse Prime Minister and cabinet can galvanise people behind community cohesion at a tense time; alas, some of our politicians have stoked division instead of bringing people together.

Here in Woking we are into the second month of the Council’s major consultation on proposed cuts to its budget. At a meeting between Woking Borough Council officials and church leaders this month, it was clear that by far the largest amount of feedback has been received about the Pool in the Park. While this is a facility which is clearly useful and much loved, the Christians in the room were far more concerned by the projects where cuts will directly impact the most vulnerable, such as the Citizens’ Advice Bureau. The poorest in our borough are not going swimming; they can’t afford the entry fee or swimming costumes for their kids. Those advocating to keep the pool open represent those well able to make their views heard in our town, especially the high-powered professionals. The Council is working hard to hear the voices of those less able to contribute to their consultation and it is vital that Christians represent them where we can.

We do well to reflect on whose voices do not get heard in our town, our society, our politics and, indeed, our church. The Church of England was once characterised as ‘the Tory party at prayer’; while things have moved on, we are still a long way away from truly representing our communities. This is true at St Mary of Bethany, although we are beginning to grow younger and more ethnically diverse. We are taking some important steps in the right direction. At our next meeting our church council will look at the Racial Justice Covenant and Toolkit which the Church of England has asked us to adopt. These give us various pathways to help minority groups become better represented in our church family. As this happens more and more, we will grow in confidence to see all types of people involved in our ministry. In common with many churches, we are exploring how to properly involve children at every level of our life together as well. If you are a ‘typical’ St Mary’s member: older, middle-class, white; do reflect prayerfully on how it feels to join us as someone who is different. God wants us to grow younger and more diverse; let’s commit to praying for this. And as we get used to listening to people who are not like us, let’s also be advocates for them in our church, our town and our country, when their voices do not get heard readily by those in authority.