language

The government is using many of the classic tools of propaganda to influence our thinking about 'welfare' and those who receive it, says Jill Segger. She argues that we need to turn again to the real meaning of Jesus' transformative relationships with the despised.

Everywhere we look see and hear the phrase “The Sick and Disabled”. It is as if somehow 'these people' are a separate commodity - other than us, says Karen McAndrew. A breed apart. Seeing ‘them’ like this is what allows politicians and journalists to discuss ‘their’ future in terms of statistics. Talking of ‘them’ in these terms makes it easier for people to dissociate and thereby give consent for actions which will have an adverse effect. The arguments over the deeply flawed Welfare Reform Bill are a clear example of this. The Spartacus campaign is a key part of the much-needed reversal.

The World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) has called for a concerted international campaign to protect linguistic diversity and to promote multilingualism, as local cultures are threatened by narrow globalism.