Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1016519
12 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 19 AUGUST 2018 NEWS THE declarations by the spous- es of Joseph Muscat and Adrian Delia decrying bullying epi- sodes against their children has rekindled a debate on the class division between parties. Everyone has a personal bi- ography. Mine makes me par- ticularly angry at the caricature often presented of the 'working class' as a segment of society misrepresented as being more tolerant of political impropri- ety than others, and for being solely concerned with material gain. It is a caricature that cuts across the political spectrum: the outcome of the 2017 elec- tion is often blamed on work- ing-class and other voters who put bread and butter issues before corruption. But it is al- so the flipside to an argument made by Labour supporters who rail against 'holier-than- thou' anti-corruption activists, which suggests that propriety is only an expectation of a re- stricted elite. In reality, what is funda- mentally wrong with the self- righteousness of some – but definitely not all – good gov- ernance crusaders is not their concern for propriety, but their partisan blinkers. And the conclusions of the Egrant inquiry may have not exorcised political impropriety but exposed the one-sided nar- ratives that depict one side as the source of all evil. The 'enlightened' children of the working class I always wondered what my social class background says about me, especially in view of my inclination towards left- wing politics and my failure to fit squarely into the two-party system. I lived my childhood in Fgura and Gzira. Like many others my family lived through sheer hard work, experienced periods of hardships, but always found the monies for my education. I also attended a church school which attracted a mixed middle-class cohort. I was exposed to politics dur- ing the turbulent 1980s. It was a period that helped me to grow up questioning authority. My aversion to favouritism stems from a distant memory of the long queues of people wait- ing in front of Labour minister Lorry Sant's villa in Fgura. I was always imbued with a sense of propriety, to never expect fa- vours from anyone. At home my right for private judgement was always respected, even when I started reading Marxist literature in my teens and at- tending protests and frequent- ing environmental and Alter- nattiva Demokratika actions when I was 15 years of age. I also happen to be acquainted with several friends who grew up in similar environments, brought up in working--class families which valued educa- tion and who now also base political choices on both mate- rial and ethical considerations. In the past election some voted AD, others PN and others La- bour. But all gave due weight to ethical issues. Including Pan- amagate. The Caruana Galizia legacy The recent reflection on class and politics was triggered by the reactions to declarations made by Michelle Muscat and Nick- ie Vella de Fremeaux on their children's experience at being excluded by other kids – both parents send their children to expensive, private schools. Obviously they do raise a valid point: being nasty to other kids is wrong, irrespective of wheth- er the mechanisms of social ex- clusion are triggered by politi- cal allegiance or class prejudice. Both women attributed the exclusion not to social class, but to political hatred. Howev- er, since social class remains a factor in the political divide be- tween and also within political parties, the discussion triggered on social media was weap- onized by class sentiments (one wonders how possible it will be to expect students to remain politically aloof when they will be called to vote at 16; maybe encouraging rational debate in schools could become the best antidote to politics based on prejudice). Surely enough, class preju- dice remains a key element in the way a particular segment of society – which De Fremeaux inelegantly characterised as 'those who put flowers of Caru- ana Galizia's monument' – de- monizes its political adversar- ies. Daphne Caruana Galizia's death shocked people from a wide spectrum of Maltese so- ciety, including those with no class pretensions as well as ac- tivists who attended protests after the assassination. But in her writings Caruana Galizia never shied away from contributing to class prejudice. It was wrong. She could have still cut down powerful people to size without resorting to raw class prejudice. But Caruana Galizia also enjoyed ridiculing bad taste, which is where the fine line between taste and class hated was sometimes crossed. And while this has nothing to with the call for justice after her assassination, her legacy has unfortunately split Malta be- tween hagiographers and deni- grators with little room for nu- ance – the same lack of nuance that pervades arguments about class prejudice in Malta. New Labour and class politics One cannot deny the linger- ing class prejudice against La- bour supporters. But this too has become anachronistic when consider- ing that Muscat's Labour rep- resents little threat to the class structure except perhaps by widening the ranks of the rul- ing class to new upstarts and so far exempting everyone else from painful austerity. Labour can be credited with greater social inclusion for peo- ple of different sexual orienta- tion, but it has shown very little political will to address class division. And while Joseph Muscat's leadership on LGBTI issues did result in a change of attitudes in working class mores, his lack of leadership on good governance sends the message that corruption is not so bad after all. It explains why Labour voters deemed it fit to Snobbery is wrong. But the real issue is inequality After class division reared its head in complaints about politically bullying at school, JAMES DEBONO makes a personal ref lection on how class is invoked with gusto when denouncing snobbery, but remains taboo when it comes to challenge unequal access to power and wealth JAMES DEBONO Class acts: Top, Joseph Muscat takes out EU leaders for a traditional Maltese pastizz, declared 'crude and common' by the PN's former president Ann Fenech, which comment instantly backfired; right: Michelle Muscat dolls up for the Malta Fashion Awards; bottom: Adrian Delia's private school bill on an extra-curricular activity A caricature that cuts across the political spectrum: the outcome of the 2017 election is often blamed on working-class and other voters who put bread and butter issues before corruption. Surely it is also our duty as parents to educate children to grow up as citizens who are not easily exploited by demagogues DEBONO