Gardners' Question Time caught up in race row

[-:Undertaker:-]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...-race-row.html

Gardeners' Question Time? It's so racist: Sociologist rails at references to 'non-native' plants

- Dr Ben Pitcher claims BBC Radio 4 programme is saturated in racism
- Sociology lecturer says its spreading covert racist stereotypes in disguise
- Believes the show is secretly feeding nationalist and fascist fantasies
- Appeared on another Radio 4 programme 'Thinking Allowed' on July 30

The panel from BBC Radio 4's Question Time, which has been criticised as being full of racial language

With its amiable discussions on greenfly and compost, it may seem as innocuous as a radio show could be.

So regular listeners to Gardeners’ Question Time will be surprised to find it caught up in a race row.

For an academic claims that Radio 4’s long-running programme is spreading covert racist stereotypes disguised as horticultural advice.

Dr Ben Pitcher said he believes the programme is saturated with racial language

Dr Ben Pitcher, a senior lecturer in sociology at the University of Westminster, says the panel show is ‘saturated’ with racial language.

From debates about native and non-native plant species to advice about the purity of different soil types, the programme’s resident green-fingered experts are secretly feeding nationalist and fascist fantasies, he claims.

Speaking on another Radio 4 programme, Thinking Allowed, he said: ‘Gardeners’ Question Time is not the most controversial show on Radio 4, and yet it is layered with, saturated with, racial meanings. The context here is the rise of nationalism. The rise of racist and fascist parties across Europe. Nationalism is about shoring up a fantasy of national integrity. My question is, what feeds nationalism? What makes nationalism powerful?’

Dr Pitcher said there is a ‘crisis in white identity in multicultural Britain’ caused by the fact that ‘white culture’ is historically associated with racism and far-Right views.

White people are therefore forced to find other ways of talking about white identity – such as through gardening – so they do not appear to be racist.

Speaking on the same programme, Lola Young, a crossbench peer and former professor of cultural studies, agreed with Dr Pitcher’s argument. She added: ‘I remember back in the late 80s-early 90s when rhododendrons were seen as this huge problem, and people were talking about going out rhododendron-bashing.

‘That was at a time when ****-bashing was something that was all too prevalent on our streets. This kind of slippage of language into alien and native is a thread in our language.’ It is not the first time Gardeners’ Question Time has been embroiled in a race row.

In 2008, listeners complained after a plant known as a ‘black man’s willy’ was mentioned. The BBC was accused of ‘pandering to political correctness’ after it apologised.

Last night horticulturalist Stefan Buczacki, who was on the programme for 13 years, said Dr Pitcher’s claims were ‘utterly absurd’.

‘Many things have been said about Gardeners’ Question Time, but you can’t say it is racist,’ he said. ‘His comments show a complete lack of understanding of the natural world.

‘Gardeners understand the fluidity of species over space and time.

‘They come and go, and adapt to different environments. That is what we mean by native and non-native species. It has nothing whatsoever to do with nationalism or racism.

‘There is enough real racism in the world without looking for it in places it doesn’t exist.’

A BBC spokesman said: ‘The passing mention of Gardeners’ Question Time was part of a broader discussion about language and race... the comment simply reflected the programme’s use of accepted gardening and horticultural terminology.’

Can you believe this? Y'know, here's yet another oh so typical case of another left wing academic, paid a lot on the taxpayer roll despite never having produced a product or a service anybody ever needed, telling the rest of us that we're racist simply for the crime of being white. HE is the racist and he's a **** too at that. And the same applies to Lola (Baroness) Young too, who I would like to know from official documents whether or not she's solely a peer of the realm based on tokenism as her Wiki profile doesn't exactly show anything amazing for such an honour.

Here's some of the top comments.

Marcus Publius, Hemel Hempstead, United Kingdom, 9 hours ago

Dr Ben Pitcher - a prime example of why sociology is a waste of time.

McKenzie, Glenrothes, 9 hours ago

I think I can safely say that Dr Ben Pitcher belongs to the variety political correctness raving loonicus.

Callan, Liverpool, 10 hours ago

I though we had gone as far as we possibly could with this political correctness and multi cultural mania. Seems I was wrong.

UKCitizen, London, United Kingdom, 2 hours ago

As laughable as this may be there are those in power who will be seriously reviewing what he is saying. Never take anything said in the name of the new anti racist ideology as a joke, they are deadly serious.

Peter, Dundee, 55 minutes ago

"'White culture" is historically associated with racism ...' How racist can this idiot get? 'White culture', if there is such a homogenous culture, is no more racist than any other. Is not what we see in the Middle East, or in many parts of Africa (remember Rwanda) also racist? Or is this man one of the fools that think only white people can be racist?

The likes of these two need to be told we're not taking this PC bullcrap anymore, like below.

Thoughts?

[GommeInc]

The heck did I just read? I didn't know plants were capable of feeling discrimination... Why is a sociologist transplanting (ha) humans motions onto plants and calling a show about horticulture racist because one plant can't grow in one type soil? Did I bang my head again and this is some dream? He's a blight on the sociology subject - too pathetic and nimby when real sociology used to actually be mildly important and separate to psychology, while now both seem to be mixing together creating a mess on the floor.

[FlyingJesus]

Hahahaha what this bloke must be loving this getting paid to talk absolute bol- oh he's a sociologist, business as usual then. But yeah it's surely an example of Poe's Law where someone's trolling so well it appears genuine, or at least I hope no-one's actually that dense. Next he'll be claiming that bottles of "extra virgin" olive oil are sex-shaming devices

[The Don]

I've just listened to the entire show in the hopes that nobody was this stupid, or that this had been taken grossly out of context. Unfortunately I was wrong, this guys a complete idiot and is reading into things which aren't there.

[GommeInc]

I've just listened to the entire show in the hopes that nobody was this stupid, or that this had been taken grossly out of context. Unfortunately I was wrong, this guys a complete idiot and is reading into things which aren't there.

His academic background is really peculiar.

http://www.westminster.ac.uk/about-u...pitcher-dr-ben

He studied Literature as a BA, Cultural Studies as an MA and no idea what he did as a PhD. He doesn't really scream "sociologist". Heck, the literature and cultural studies bit makes me thinks he did a PhD in Cultural Fiction (if such a thing exists?) which may explain why he makes up issues that don't exist - like plants who feel discriminated against.

[peteyt]

I fear a world where we can't say anything in fear of it offending. The thing is, we never seem to talk about racism the other way - For example apparently we are supposed to call a black board a chalkboard but we still call a whiteboard a whiteboard. We need politicians who aren't afraid of their own shadows.

Interestingly I caught a little bit of the show Sunday Brunch the other day with the comedia Adam Hills a guest. Someone was telling him how he'd been told off for calling the main olympic event as the normal olympics and yet one of the actual paralympians basically said well it is the normal olympics do I look normal. Basically the people these so called politicians are trying to protect, don't give a dam.

[The Don]

I fear a world where we can't say anything in fear of it offending. The thing is, we never seem to talk about racism the other way - For example apparently we are supposed to call a black board a chalkboard but we still call a whiteboard a whiteboard. We need politicians who aren't afraid of their own shadows.

Interestingly I caught a little bit of the show Sunday Brunch the other day with the comedia Adam Hills a guest. Someone was telling him how he'd been told off for calling the main olympic event as the normal olympics and yet one of the actual paralympians basically said well it is the normal olympics do I look normal. Basically the people these so called politicians are trying to protect, don't give a dam.

I've never seen anyone complain about a blackboard being called a blackboard, you need to stop believing everything you hear in the daily mail, and everybody in this thread agrees that this guy is an idiot.

[GommeInc]

It reminds me of when apparently brainstorming was considered in appropriate. A rumour created by the media and spread by idiots. I think the reason was something really stupid like individuals with mental disabilities can't think yet clearly they can and have brains. Or it was PVS but that's even worse.

[peteyt]

I've never seen anyone complain about a blackboard being called a blackboard, you need to stop believing everything you hear in the daily mail, and everybody in this thread agrees that this guy is an idiot.

Well it wouldn't surprise me ha. But still we focus too much on one side of racism.