Since the death of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, conservatives have nearly deified her in the same way they did Ronald Reagan. She’s credited with everything from helping to end the Cold War to single-handedly saving the British economy.
Certainly, she broke the glass ceiling through perserverance and determination. For that she deserves respect. But the rest of her legacy is far less certain.
Thatcher did everything in her considerable power to bust labor unions. She supported apartheid leaders in South Africa, calling Nelson Mandela a “terrorist.” She refused to negotiate with the Irish Republican Army. She led her nation to war with Argentina in the Falkland Islands in order to defend the last remnant of the British Empire. Her decision to introduce a poll tax caused riots in Scotland, eventually leading to Scotland’s liberation movement. Her supply-side, free market economy suppressed inflation by suppressing salaries for workers. And she maintained cozy relationships with some of the world’s worst dictators.
Now, I understand the media’s hesitation to speak badly of the recently departed, especially of someone who was an ally. But the media does everyone a disservice by glorifying the good accomplished by Thatcher, and ignoring all of the bad.