THE REAL MOTIVE BEHIND PC

Peter Hitchens reflects on the recent discovery that there are in fact vey few homosexual couples in Britain:

"Almost all the supposedly persecuted minority groups in modern Britain are the excuse for social change, no other reason for it. I suspect most homosexuals do not want or need this new law. In the same way, few women want to be firefighters or soldiers or fighter pilots. And most black Britons want above all to be treated just like everyone else, not given special attention because of the colour of their skin.

The invention of persecuted minorities has been going on for decades because their alleged oppression provides the pretext for accelerating social change. If we really wanted the happiness of minorities, the liberation of women or the abolition of racial discrimination, we would not adopt the aggressive and divisive policies that we do. These suit only the militant and the extreme, often at the expense of the normal.

Why is it assumed that all women want to be wage slaves or single mothers? Research published last week shows that many just want to stay at home and look after their children, but cannot afford to.

Why is it assumed that all homosexuals want to make a public declaration out of a private matter? Why are rioters, rather than family-minded churchgoers, assumed to be representative of Britain's black population?

The answer is that our old friend, the non-existent ultra-sensitive disabled black lesbian, is at work - the revolutionaries' constant excuse for forcing unwanted change on us and silencing those who object by accusing them of being 'bigots'.

Most of us wish to be kind and tolerant, and quite right too. The cleverness of political correctness is that it harnesses this generous impulse for a mean end. It uses it to camouflage a relentless assault on all we have and are, from marriage and family to love of country."