Killian Forde attacks debate and discussion of immigration on politics.ie
According to a report in today's Irish Examiner, Head of the Integration Centre ("an organisation which promotes the integration and inclusion of immigrants") Mr Killian Forde said the following:
"Reports and surveys massively contradict the official figures of racist incidents recorded by the gardaí which are low.
This supports our view that only the smallest sample of racism is being captured and recorded. Respectable websites such as politics.ie and boards.ie regularly have discussion threads derailed by racist commentary.
Typically, online discussions on the economy degenerate into baseless, ill-informed debates on how immigrants are the fault of the current recession and the mass deportation of all non-Irish would solve our economic crisis."
Full report: Polls contradict rising racism levels, says integration body | Irish Examiner
Is this the same Killian Forde who left Sinn Fein for the more comfortable climes of quango-supportive Labour? Mr Forde, in his attack on free discussion of immigration, seeks to box cleverly - note using the old imperialist tactic of "divide and conquer" he seeks to praise politics.ie as a "respectable website" while those of us who post on it must be disreputable.
Capitalizing on recent criticisms of new media by those in traditional media and establishment politics, it is inevitable that those who fear open debate will seek to curtail it. An automative reflex action is to lash out at what are seen as their irritants especially those who present a soft target and politics.ie is now apparently seen by the likes of Mr Forde as fair game.
But do take a bow, politics.ie - you have increased status as what is said here matters. You have now been identified as an official target of the "left" and "liberal" alliance including apparently at least some of those in the professional migration industry who do not like their message, hitherto rarely if ever queried and disseminated without question through traditional media, being discussed by members of the public in media beyond their control.
The cynic might observe that it must be painful for such groups to see open skepticism of what they are doing occurring and as, if not more, painful for them the increasing realisation on the part of wider society and the body politic that the efficacy and efficiency of the funding of such groups needs to be scrutinised.
I have a question for Mr Forde who now apparently leads the Integration Centre on a fulltime basis. If and when you were in SF, did they never tell you about Section 31? If they did, you obviously were either not listening, you naughty boy or did not agree with it. Free discussion and debate in an open society is healthy, Mr Forde, and that includes the topic of immigration, even if the views expressed are not always to your liking.
