After endorsing Andy Ngo’s book, Marshall was harassed by an Antifa-led mob and smeared by left-wing media, prompting him to issue a hurried apology.
Pop musician Winston Marshall has broken his silence about the controversy he found himself embroiled in after endorsing The Post Millennial editor-at large Andy Ngo's book Unmasked: Inside Antifa's Radical Plan to Destroy Democracy. Marshall has also announced that he's leaving the band Mumford & Sons as a result of fallout from the controversy.
In March, Marshall tweeted “Congratulations @MrAndyNgo. Finally had the time to read your important book. You’re a brave man.”
He was then harassed by an Antifa-led mob and smeared by left-wing media, prompting him to issue a hurried apology.
Since then, Marshall has reflected on the mobbing and has now issued an eloquent explanation of the events invoking Solzhenitsyn and Churchill and decrying "cancel culture."
"Emotions were high. Despite pressure to nix me they invited me to continue with the band. That took courage, particularly in the age of so called 'cancel culture'. I made an apology and agreed to take a temporary step back," Marshall explained.
Marshall took time to retract his previous apology and reassert Ngo's bravery for reporting on Antifa. "I have spent much time reflecting, reading and listening. The truth is that my commenting on a book that documents the extreme Far-Left and their activities is in no way an endorsement of the equally repugnant Far-Right. The truth is that reporting on extremism at the great risk of endangering oneself is unquestionably brave. I also feel that my previous apology in a small way participates in the lie that such extremism does not exist, or worse, is a force for good."
On the topic of departure from the band, Marshall quoted a striking passage from Solzhenitsyn:
“And he who is not sufficiently courageous to defend his soul — don’t let him be proud of his ‘progressive’ views, and don’t let him boast that he is an academician or a people’s artist, a distinguished figure or a general. Let him say to himself: I am a part of the herd and a coward. It’s all the same to me as long as I’m fed and kept warm.”
"For me to speak about what I’ve learnt to be such a controversial issue will inevitably bring my bandmates more trouble. My love, loyalty and accountability to them cannot permit that. I could remain and continue to self-censor but it will erode my sense of integrity. Gnaw my conscience. I’ve already felt that beginning.
"The only way forward for me is to leave the band. I hope in distancing myself from them I am able to speak my mind without them suffering the consequences. I leave with love in my heart and I wish those three boys nothing but the best," Marshall said.
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