Photo via “Why I’m Leaving Mumford & Sons”

After coming under fire for his endorsement of Andy Ngo’s book Unmasked: Inside Antifa’s Radical Plan To Destroy Democracy, Mumford & Sons banjoist Winston Marshall has penned a lengthy essay announcing his departure from the band.

“Finally had the time to read your important book,” the banjo player publicly wrote to Ngo in a since-deleted, March 2021 tweet. “You’re a brave man.”

Marshall quickly received backlash online, leading to a formal apology and a leave of absence from the band. Marshall has since deleted all of his tweets, save for his recent essay.

The 1200+ word missive chronicles Marshall’s love for the band – and their meteoric rise – before finally arriving at his controversial endorsement.

“I failed to foresee that my commenting on a book critical of the Far-Left could be interpreted as approval of the equally abhorrent Far-Right,” Winston writes. “Nothing could be further from the truth. Thirteen members of my family were murdered in the concentration camps of the Holocaust.”

(In the world of political science, Ngo is regarded as a right-wing conspiracy theorist whose journalistic credibility has been repeatedly called into question; in a 2019 piece, the Columbia Journalism Review called him a “discredited provocateur.”)

Later, Winston discusses the fallout from the tweet, how his band reacted and the public’s ongoing criticism.

“Emotions were high,” he writes. “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. Rather predictably another viral mob came after me, this time for the sin of apologising. Then followed libellous articles calling me ‘right-wing’ and such. Though there’s nothing wrong with being conservative, when forced to politically label myself I flutter between ‘centrist,’ ‘liberal’ or the more honest ‘bit this, bit that.’ Being labeled erroneously just goes to show how binary political discourse has become. I had criticised the ‘Left,’ so I must be the ‘Right,’ or so their logic goes.”

In turn, Winston will step away from the group, allegedly freeing himself to “speak my mind without [the band] suffering the consequences.”

He claims, “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.”

In response to Marshall’s departure, Mumford & Sons tweeted, “We wish you all the best for the future, Win, and we love you man.”

Read Marshall’s full declaration here.