On Friday the 13th of December, Zoe Williams wrote this article about free-schools focussing on Steiner and Al-Madinah Schools.
Reading between the lines, it seems that Zoe Williams has gone far enough down the historical, “Steiner people are closet nazis” route to satisfy the academic elite, who are working up an unprovable case that is it largely or mainly the (vigorously disputed) racist nazi origins which are causing Steiner education to be actually dangerous to children today.
In doing so Williams has failed to mention at all the number one actual reported problem in Steiner education which is unchecked bullying, and its corollary, also reported globally - community mobbing, which was something Steiner critics were talking about a lot as recently as last year before dropping the subject almost entirely.
And that’s why I’m writing this, because in her article, Zoe Williams promotes and links to the very same website that I’ve been flagging up as misrepresenting these matters, including stark misrepresentations about possible agency for such a pervasive and important problem which, where it occurs, has the severest implications for children’s actual welfare.
Following this promotion of his blog, Dr Andrew Lewis boasted:
All of those people, including those directed there by the Guardian, have now potentially read Dr Andrew Lewis’ misrepresentations, both about the unique Human Rights settlement, about my family and myself, and about possible agency for this pervasive problem, while he and his supporters maintain defamatory and harassing blog posts at the top of Google targeting actual children coming out of this “dangerously misleading” education system.
I again contacted the Guardian, including Alan Rusbridger the Editor, who I had had cause to contact the week before when their moderators removed the same information about harassment, defamation and censorship from the comments on Nick Cohen’s piece about free-speech, in spite of it having been up for over 8 hours with no moderation problem and more than 8 recommends.
Having made him aware of the clearly, and in fact admittedly orchestrated censorship, on that occasion I again included the Editor in my email to Zoe Williams and to the Readers Editor which began:
“Dear Zoe Williams, It’s very important that you know that in your free schools article you’ve just linked to the website of a person who is involved in a campaign of harassment against a family reporting problems within Steiner Education, and in so doing you have enabled thousands more people to potentially read his defamation and misinformation.”
Zoe Williams’ response to my distressed objection was to say:
"I'm sorry you felt that your situation wasn't covered in the piece. Unfortunately, this was a short take on a vast subject; I had a very small amount of space to deal with people's principle objections to Steiner”
This response does not address any part of the issue I was flagging up, but it does co-incidentally echo the smears being put around concerning our motivation for addressing these matters which are, according to Dr Andrew Lewis on his website, that we just want “our story” to dominate all debate (as opposed to being allowed to take any proportional part in it - which evidence shows clearly we have been completely censored from doing).
I immediately wrote back to object to such an inaccurate and prejudicial reply, which moreover chimes in with the general harassment we are subject to, and I specifically asked for an acknowledgment of her and the Guardian’s awareness that what Ms Williams said we had complained about had not in fact comprised any part of my communication with her whatsoever. I also asked whether they had looked at the evidence I had sent them before replying to me.
This is what I continually got back from the same email addresses I had just communicated with the Guardian on just hours earlier:
Given first the BHA gig (which we were banned from attending so as not to inconvenience Dr Andrew Lewis with any awkward questions) and this promotion by the Guardian newspaper, the combined tactics of hiding the truth under personal harassment and defamation seem to be working rather well for Dr Andrew Lewis and his supporters.
What advantage such tactics offer to any actual children is hard to see.
As the inhuman actions of these phoney secularists force the matter towards Court, the actions of supposedly ethical organisations such as the BHA, of which Zoe Williams is a participatory member, and the Guardian, in knowingly promoting links to harassment and defamation, may become significant, and that is why I am recording it here.
Best wishes to all who have read this site in the last year for a more just 2014.
Reader Comments
Although there are major technical issues with hosting comments on this site, I’ve opened a page here, where polite, factual comments will be welcome.