And no, it's not because of Oprah...
The Sun is Setting on the British Empire. They told us it never would, but the centuries of oppression and malfeasance are coming home to roost. To suggest that the fall we are witnessing is a product of their own making is an egregious understatement. Many would agree that Brexit was an historic self-own, but there are reasons beyond the obvious Brexit fiasco that contribute to this precipitous decline we are seeing play out.
The violence that has erupted in Belfast is being simplified from over-seas as solely a result of Brexit and the trade restrictions set as a result. The increased restrictions on border checks in the Irish Sea in order to maintain a soft border between the North and the Republic of Ireland were a conciliation by the British to the EU in order to avoid the violence experienced during The Troubles. In their perennial arrogance, the British concern revolved around preventing a reignition of Nationalist/Republican anti-British sentiment. In Brexit negotiations, considering the support of the EU fell squarely behind the Republican sentiment, this was quickly discovered to be an issue where the British did not have any firm ground to stand on and thus had no choice but to concede to the conditions that ensured a soft border. Despite all the “hard-Brexit” rhetoric and the fleeting inclusion of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in Teresa May’s Brexit coalition, the posturing by many British politicians that insinuated a strong support for the Loyalist/Unionist cause in Northern Ireland and a position of strength in negotiations with the EU were just that: posturing. The Pro-leave campaign never had a strong negotiating position – or a plan at all, really – that wasn’t based on their blatant fudging of numbers and stoking of xenophobic fervor. Similarly, the “Leavers” only used the DUP to form a coalition based on lies and bigotry (which works perfectly for the DUP,) but the rest of the Pro-Brexit coalition could not have cared less about paying the DUP back for it. Essentially, after more than a century of playing colonialism in their backyard at the brutal cost of their neighbor, the British have dropped their Unionist/Loyalist toys and forgot to clean them up. The DUP is on its own as it continues to naturally lose relevance demographically and now, no longer has its nanny to look after it.
This begins to explain the violence sprouting up in Loyalist communities. The final straw for these pro-British Unionists was apparently a much pettier, culture-related incident. The death of Bobby Storey, a former intelligence operative for the Irish Republican Army, is at the heart of what ignited this wanton violence. As Storey is both an infamous bogeyman figure to the Loyalist/Unionist community, and a beloved hero to the Nationalist/Republican community, his death would likely have always been a catalyst for tensions between these communities. But since his death occurred in the Summer of 2020, the focus rests on the attendance of his funeral which occurred during the government-mandated lockdown. Several Sinn Fein Republican politicians broke with lockdown restrictions in order to pay their respects to a man they see as a hero and friend. Those in attendance were initially charged with breaking lockdown restrictions. But the violence erupted after those charges were dropped by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). Outraged that there were not repercussions for politicians they don’t like, attending the funeral of a man they revile, Loyalist paramilitaries incited the youth in their communities to act out their fury against the PSNI who had neglected to chastise the mourners.
Astoundingly, but unfortunately not surprisingly, the DUP leadership prefers to focus on their political opponents. The violence in the streets of Belfast and other cities in the North is being openly perpetrated by Loyalist youth spurred on by paramilitaries. Yet Arlene Foster, leader of the DUP and First Minister of the devolved power sharing government in the North, tweeted condemning the violence, while distancing herself from it and claiming that it “…only serve[s] to take the focus off the real law breakers in Sinn Fein.”
Essentially, the official DUP response to violence they incited is:
‘I don’t know those kids, LOOK OVER THERE!’
Rather than this being a good reason to criticize those who are being targeted by the violence, it would seem that this is another step in the devolution of the Pro-British Unionist/Loyalist cause in the North of Ireland.
But this is not the only reason the sun is setting so dramatically now. There was a time when the British Empire spanned the globe and held sway over governments and populations the world over. Historian John Morris described the British view of its form of what it believed to be a Moral Colonialism thusly:
“…what might not be done if the moral authority of England were distributed across the earth – to tackle the evils of slavery, ignorance and paganism at source, to teach the simpler peoples the benefits of Steam, Free Trade and Revealed Religion, and to establish not a world empire in the bad Napoleonic sense, but a Moral Empire of loftier intent?” {1}
This incredibly charitable self-assessment gave the British a justification to criticize all other colonialism as immoral while congratulating themselves for being the good guys, doing the very same thing.
Today, British influence has diminished and its greatest export, Independence Days, are its most enduring legacy. And there look to be more of these on the horizon. Scottish independence and a referendum on Irish Unity are looking more and more possible as populations there grow increasingly frustrated with the consequences of retreating from the EU. It is becoming harder to justify their chosen title “United Kingdom,” as “Kingdoms” are rather taboo at this point, and the “United” descriptor becomes increasingly factually dubious. Up to this point, the power that Britain maintains has been largely financial. London’s position as a global financial hub, in addition to a very profitable handful of Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, the current strength of the British is mostly related to clandestine financing. This is a tenuous and unsavory position to be in. Especially when you consider that these “secrecy jurisdictions” and tax havens are the primary contributor to the existence of the current form of the Russian government. British journalist Ben Judah writes,
“[Russians] know that London is a center of Russian corruption, that their loot plunges into Britain’s empire of tax havens – from Gibraltar to Jersey, from the Cayman Islands to the British Virgin Islands – on which the sun never sets.” {2}
The result of this is illicit, corrupt Russian capital being heavily tied up in British power and stability, the most immediately identifiable consequence of which being that Russian offshore wealth in London drives up real estate prices there, at the expense of Londoners.
The last remnants of an empire are either erupting in sectarian violence or heavily financially leveraged by corrupt and illicit foreign entities. On top of all this, the recent scandals revolving around the antiquated spectacle that is the continued existence of the British Monarchy – which still maintains a weirdly significant position in British government and financial stability – do not help the image of the country around the world. While I will continue to insist that the credit for toppling the British Empire does not lie with Oprah, I admit, she has made a contribution to the effort.
This is not to suggest that England as a country is over, by any means - it has every ability to revitalize its image. But perhaps the slow dissolution of the monarchy, more calls for financial transparency in Parliament (which had begun to gain traction under David Cameron until the Brexit fiasco started,) and a repudiation of political parties responsible for violence in its backyard, would all be in its best interests. While the remnants of the British Empire remain for now, it might be time to flip on the porch lights, because it looks like the sun is setting.
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