Letter published in The Spectator 18/5/19 - Sartorial Caricature

Sartorial caricature

Sir: It is usual to take each individual on their merits and assume that people can rise above demographic or sartorial caricature, as not to do this would be in a sense the definition of prejudice. Reading Matthew Parris’s article ‘Are you a Tweedy or a Trainer?’ (11 May), I struggled to decide which category I fell into. I, and many of my Leaver friends, seem to fit neither.

I was also confused by an avowed ‘conservative’ making the imperatives of being a ‘socially liberal, progressive-minded, forward-thinking, outward-looking nation’ superior to anything else, as I thought that was almost the opposite of what conservatism is.

To add to this, I was dismayed to see Matthew Parris attach the implications of sinister ‘baggage’ to the clothing that people wear. Isn’t this just a reiteration of the wearying trope of the Leaver being an ignorant, authoritarian racist?
Guy Walker
Southsea, Hants