A confession: I also framed it that way. And it’s true that much of the referendum result can be attributed to working-class disaffection with an unjust status quo. I’ve been to Doncaster, one of the birthplaces of the Labour party, where traditional industries have given way to insecure and low-paid work; and to Barking and Dagenham, where a housing crisis has left many working-class residents struggling to get a comfortable, affordable roof over their heads. It is also true that only among middle-class professionals was there a majority for remaining in the European Union. But as a complete story of why this country is leaving the EU, it is too simplistic. That matters, not least because a singular, flawed narrative will increasingly be used to silence dissent in Britain. [...]
As elsewhere, the result defied any predefined class dynamic and confounded the stereotypes. While Fareham is cast as part of an anti-establishment vanguard, Tower Hamlets – which has prevalent child poverty and two-thirds of whose residents voted for remain – is subsumed into the caricature of a pampered liberal elite. Most working-class Britons under 35 opted for remain, while most middle-class people over 65 voted for leave. Most working-class people who are white went for leave, most working-class people from ethnic minorities went for remain. Consider that the next time the Brexit press imposes its simplistic narrative on a complicated reality. Applying their logic, black supermarket workers and young apprentices form part of the privileged remoaner elite. [...]
For the left, class politics is about who has wealth and power, and who doesn’t, and eliminating the great inequalities that define society. The populist right, on the other hand, denounces “identity politics”, while indulging in exactly that: transforming class into a cultural and political identity, weaponised in their struggle against progressive Britain. The left must be able to counter that approach with arguments that resonate in Doncaster and Thanet, and no less in towns like Fareham.
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