Breitbart London editor-in-chief Raheem Kassam covered a wide range of topics in a discussion with Jon Gaunt about his new book, Enoch Was Right.
Kassam’s, which launched as an e-book on the 50th anniversary of the Enoch Powell’s infamous ‘Rivers of Blood’ speech, and in paperback shortly afterwards, concludes that history had vindicated the former MP for Wolverhampton.
The first question the veteran broadcaster ‘Gaunty’ put to Kassam on Enoch Was Right was: “What was he right about?” — to which the journalist replied, “The better question is, ‘What was he wrong about?'”
Kassam recounted the politician’s “very illustrious career”, becoming a professor of classics by the age of 25, and then rising from the rank of private to Brigadier after he gave up his academic career to enlist in the Second World War, where he helped plan the campaign which defeated Rommel in North Africa.
Kassam discussed how polls by BBC Panorama showed Powell had massive support from the public after his speech, in which he warned that gross migration of around 50,000 would badly undermine Britain’s social cohesion and lead to inter-community violence — of the sort he had witnessed in India after the end of the British Raj — with around 74 per cent of respondents backing him.
With gross immigration running at over 500,000 in 2017 and crime, domestic terrorism, and community tensions now prominent features in Britain’s media landscape, Kassam believes Powell has been proved correct — not only on immigration in general, but also on the rise of a divisive race relations industry.
This is, in Kassam’s view, comprised of “talentless people” populating NGOs and publicly-funded quangos, who are only capable of making a living by exploiting identity politics and the politics of grievance.
Kassam also discussed Powell’s contribution to the long-running debate on Britain’s participation in the so-called ‘European Project’, with many of the arguments he first articulated in the 1970s — alongside left-wing patriots such as the late Tony Benn — returning to the fore in the EU membership referendum of 2016, when they finally prevailed.
You can listen to Kassam’s interview, which also covers the media blackout of his book and the ongoing campaign to deliver Brexit, among other topics, in full below:
Enoch Was Right can be purchased an ebook here and in paperback format here.