In 2007, British-Canadian historian Rafe Heydel-Mankoo — whose parents immigrated to the U.K. in the 1960s — warned that the English were suffering the “greatest identity crisis” in all of Europe. BlazeTV host Nick Freitas tells Heydel-Mankoo that the state of Britain today — with all its sectarian “demonstrations” — proves that he was “correct.” “What did you see in 2007 that so many people failed to see?” he asks the New Culture Forum senior fellow.
“I saw obviously the beginning of identity politics, and of course, within the United Kingdom, we have the Scots, the Welsh, the Northern Irish, and the English. And it seemed as if when the Scots and the Welsh waved their flags, it was called progressive nationalism, but when the English did it, it was somehow racist,” says Heydel-Mankoo.
He notes the deep irony of this dynamic. “England made the modern world with the Industrial Revolution, the creation of America, Canada, Australia, the English language, common law, parliamentary…