The Auron MacIntyre Show English Identity and the Future of Nationalism | Guest: James Orr | 8/18/25
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Aug 18, 2025 James Orr, an Associate Professor at the University of Cambridge and chair of the Edmund Burke Foundation, dives deep into English identity and nationalism. He challenges the notion that Englishness is just a set of ideas rather than a real ethnicity. The discussion navigates the complexities of immigration's impact on national unity, critiques modern ideological challenges, and highlights the urgent need for dialogue on cultural identity. Orr also reflects on historical lessons while emphasizing the importance of faith and community in shaping a cohesive national narrative.
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English Identity Was Once Invisible
- English identity was historically the unspoken 'water' people swam in until rapid recent change forced explicit questions.
- Mass migration over the last 25 years created ethnic self-consciousness England lacked for centuries.
Britishness Grew Into A Civic Identity
- Britishness developed as a civic, imperial identity that could mask internal ethnic differences.
- Empire expanded British identity into a political and legal civic framework separate from narrow ethnos.
Double Standard In Multicultural Discourse
- Progressive discourse often sacralizes minorities while refusing to acknowledge the existence of a dominant ethnos.
- Denying an ethnic majority prevents honest discussion about majority-minority relationships.
