I am writing in response to your article about a recent booking of Calne Town Hall for an event featuring Carl Benjamin.
This booking enquiry has prompted concern among members of our community, but I believe it is important to address the ethical implications of deciding whether to host such a figure in a public civic space.
I disagree with the judgment by some of my fellow Councillors that Calne Town Council should cancel the booking. What kind of society has a clique deciding what can and can't be discussed calmly and openly in a public forum?
A core principle of free speech is that everyone has the right to be heard, especially if their views are objectionable - so that we, the public, can expose them, analyse and judge them for ourselves.
Regardless of my personal opinions on the characterisation of this figure, exposing all ideas to scrutiny is, surely, a very valuable exercise in itself?
If Councillors or anyone else wish to challenge his ideas, I would invite them to attend the event and let's scrutinise the ideas publicly, in the spirit of respectful open debate, as I plan to do. There is a public appetite for dialogue and the public deserve to hear their elected representative’s views on the topics discussed, too.
Like many public figures, his views may be uncomfortable to some, but discomfort should never be grounds for silencing speech.
It is all too common for media narratives and even Governments to label and damn critical voices as ‘far-right,’ a label also too readily applied to figures such as Nigel Farage, Jordan Peterson and Douglas Murray—individuals who, regardless of one’s agreement with them, have evidently contributed to public discourse in meaningful ways.
I would also like to point out that advocates for a National Grooming Gang Enquiry had also been tarnished with this exact label until a few days ago, when the Prime Minister Starmer U-Turned on this decision following Baroness Casey’s report.
In summary, freedom of speech is fundamentally important to this country and our people, and so I respectfully encourage the Council to uphold the booking and allow the event to proceed, provided of course the proper security and insurance provisions are in place. I would also encourage Councillors who disagree with Mr. Benjamin’s views to respectfully attend, listen, and challenge those ideas in the public square; an essential part of any healthy democratic society.
Cllr Augusta Urquhart-Nicholls
Calne Chilvester and Abberd
Related stories: Calne Town Hall event featuring far-right speaker sparks controversy
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