Child protection officials in the London Borough of Camden have come under fire for a leaflet which warns parents of the signs that their children might become extremists. The Camden Safeguarding Children Board (CSCB) is overseen by the local council and is tasked with looking after local children. While some of the warning signs they have highlighted are arguably reasonable, others have raised eyebrows.
In a section entitled “What are the signs to look out for?”, the leaflet lists some warning signs which many would say are sensible— it says “advocating extremist messages," “showing sympathy for extremist causes” and “accessing extremist literature and imagery," for example, could be cause for concern.
But here is where it gets controversial. They also included “showing a mistrust of mainstream media reports and belief in conspiracy theories” and “appearing angry about government policies, especially foreign policies,” as signs “more specific to radicalization.”
Critics have said that throwing suspicion over young people who criticize the government’s policies comes dangerously close to policing free speech. The policy director of the campaign group Liberty, Bella Sankey, argued that “children should be encouraged to take an interest in politics and think critically about what they see in the media, not deemed suspect for so doing.”
The document urges worried parents to contact police or local anti-extremism officials.
Dominic Clout, independent chair of the CSBC defended the leaflet, saying:
“None of the statements included are indicative of radicalization; rather they are a list of factors, which when seen in combination, may be suggestive of extremism. In isolation, none of the factors could themselves suggest extremism.”
Here is a screenshot from one of the document's pages.
