Darren Lewis

Over the past year Darren Lewis has written consistently about his concerns around the language used by political figures and the oxygen of publicity that rhetoric has been afforded.

He takes no satisfaction from seeing his warnings have been vindicated by the outburst of racist violence witnessed in August.

His column on June 18 this year - ‘Normalisation of hatred from this seven-time loser’ - focused on the platforming of Nigel Farage and fact and the fact that, despite his xenophobic language, he has been made a household name.

As we now know, his and others’ divisive language have been among a number of contributory factors to this summer’s unrest.

At the other end of the spectrum, the issues around educating young children formed the basis for Lewis’s column: ‘Homework does work. It can save disadvantaged kids”.

It was crafted after the comments from TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp who believes homework for children under ten has, in her words “zero benefit”.

In building a case to the contrary, he was able to rely on my and others’ experience of the education system, the injustices within it and the wider social injustices that make learning a priority.

These include a 2024 report showing 106,000 five-year-olds in England don’t meet the expected standards in literacy. Also the figures from the Centre for Social Justice figures revealing 41 percent of Year 6 children in England left primary school without meeting expected standards in English and maths.

Throw in the gender and racial inequalities in relation to pay and opportunities and both underline the reasons why a foundation of learning is crucial, particularly in underprivileged families. His third piece, though light-hearted, centres around the growing trend of pile-ons instigated by social media opprobrium.

Often it sweeps along impressionable minds who have no idea why they are as outraged as everybody else. In this case.

In this case the issue was the “playful take” by sportswear firm Nike on the flag of St George ahead of England’s football match against Brazil in March.

The spike in anger and reaction saw questions asked of then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his then-opposite number Sir Keir Starmer.

Looking back, it was the latest in a number of occasions on which the influence of social media sparked an anger which for many would prove ruinous, months later.

The trio of pieces included here are indeed just a snapshot of the issues his column has covered for many years now. Others include mental health, the Middle East, police strip-searching children of school age without their parents’ consent and the lack of young Black male candidates in the last general election.