A different species’
The British Labour Party and the Militant ‘other’, 1979-1983
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12585677 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Richard Jobson (Department of Archaeology and History, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK), Richard W Jobson (0000-0002-1822-9634, University of Exeter, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 38 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 483-509 |
| Publication date | 2024-01-24 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Contemporary British History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1361-9462 • E-ISSN: 1743-7997 |
| Publisher | Routledge (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/13619462.2024.2305434 |
| OpenAlex | W4391169175 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 13 |
This article assesses the efforts that were made within the British Labour Party to isolate and exclude the Militant Tendency, a Trotskyite entryist group, during the period 1979 to 1983.It argues that the battle over whether or not Militant should be expelled from Labour was, primarily, a battle of metaphor and semantics.More specifically, it suggests that these years witnessed the successful construction of Militant as Labour's unwanted and malignant 'other'.Five central discursive motifs (medical, subhumanal, emotional, ideological, and historical) for 'othering' are identified.These motifs were operationalised in a systematic and sustained manner by individuals and groups who were hostile to Militant, such as the Labour Solidarity Campaign.Over time, Labour leader Michael Foot, who had, initially, been reluctant to take action against Militant, also adopted the language of this active and purposive rhetorical strategy.In response, Militant's main counter-discursive strategy, the 'witch hunt' narrative, failed to shape party opinion decisively and prevent the initiation of exclusionary processes.By 1983, the pattern of interrelated discursive motifs for 'othering' that would be applied to Militant throughout the decade had been established: a hegemonic narrative, concerning the tendency's imminent 'threat' to Labour, had permeated all levels of the party
Economics · Labour economics · Militant · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes · Irish and British Studies · Law · Political and Economic history of UK and US
Rhetoric
‘It Ain’t What You Say…’
Undemocratic Discourse
A new and disturbing form of subversion’
The Labour Party’s Inquiry into Liverpool District Labour Party and expulsion of nine members of the Militant Tendency, 1985–1986
Narrating Crisis
Locking out the Communists
Dark Strangers” in Our Midst
Chronicles of a Death Foretold
The Labour Party and the Militant Tendency
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |