SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
zarah sultana
Far-Right UK Riots Spark 'Stand Up to Racism' Counterprotests
"The majority of people in Britain abhor Robinson and the far right," says one joint statement. "We are the majority, they are the few."
Aug 07, 2024
From Birmingham, Brighton, and Bristol, to Liverpool, London, Newcastle, and Northampton, counterprotesters gathered across the United Kingdom on Wednesday to decry far-right riots and attacks against immigrants and Muslims.
Since the weekend, far-right protesters have targeted mosques, libraries, and even a hotel housing asylum-seekers—responding at least in part to online disinformation about the suspect in a deadly stabbing attack on a children's dance class. The demonstrations and expectations they would continue Wednesday evening drew anti-racists to the streets in several U.K. cities.
"The far right are spreading racism, Islamophobia, and hatred," says a Stand Up to Racism statement published in the Daily Mirror Wednesday and signed by actors, artists, drag performers, journalists, labor leaders, musicians, peace advocates, and members of Parliament—including Jeremy Corbyn, an Independent, along with Labour's Diane Abbott and Zarah Sultana.
The statement calls out far-right activist Tommy Robinson as well as political figures in the United Kingdom—including MP Nigel Farage of Reform U.K. and former Conservative Home Secretary Suella Braverman—and across Europe, emphasizing that "racism and Islamophobia in Parliament is leading to racism and Islamophobia on the streets."
Despite Labour's unpopularity under Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the party last month ended 14 years of Conservative rule at the national level with a landslide electoral victory. While Starmer has condemned the recent far-right riots, critics including Sultana have called on him and other British to explicitly denounce the attacks as Islamophobic.
"All those who oppose this must join in a united mass movement powerful enough to drive back the fascist. The majority of people in Britain abhor Robinson and the far right," the new joint statement says. We are the majority, they are the few. Britain has a proud history of defeating fascists and racists. We can defeat them again. We must Stand Up to Racism, Islamophobia, and antisemitism."
In response to such calls, as The Independentreported Wednesday, "up to 25,000 protesters, some chanting 'hate not welcome' and 'refugees welcome here,' gathered in towns and cities like Walthamstow, Finchley, Birmingham, Newcastle, and Blackpool as nearly 100 far-right rallies failed to materialize."
As Sky Newsdetailed:
In Birmingham, several hundred anti-racism protesters—some carrying signs such as "no place for hate" and "bigots out of Brum"—gathered outside a migrant center in the Jewellery Quarter.
A large group then marched into the center of the city, with no signs of any far-right groups in the area.
Meanwhile,
"counterprotesters are outnumbering anti-immigration protesters in Brighton tonight by about a hundred to one," and chanting, "Fascist scum, off our streets," according toBrighton and Hove News.
BBC Newsreported that "thousands of people gathered in Old Market in Bristol to counter a rumored anti-immigration rally," specifically, "claims on social media that protestors were planning to target an immigration lawyer's business premises."
"Bristol is a very vibrant and a welcoming city," a man who is originally from Gambia named Habib told the BBC. "Bristolians would not allow anybody to bring chaos into Bristol... I'm gonna join the Bristolians to stop what's going to happen tonight."
"Like the old saying goes—divided we fall, together we stand," he said. "I think standing here together tonight is very significant."
The crowd in Bristol chanted, "Say it out loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here," a message repeated by signs carried in the English city and beyond it. Their posters and banners also forcefully denounced racism and fascism.
"In Liverpool they held banners such as 'Nans Against Nazis,' 'Immigrants welcome. Racists not,' and 'When the poor blame the poor only the rich win," The Guardianreported. "An elderly man with a portable speaker resting on his walking frame played John Lennon's 'Give Peace a Chance' on repeat."
In the city known as the birthplace of The Beatles, counterprotesters were protecting the Asylum Link building, according toThe Liverpool Echo. Addressing the crowd, Ewan Roberts, who manages the center thanked everyone for coming out "even when you weren't asked" and declared that "the people are stronger when they are united."
Counterprotesters came together in multiple locations across London, with some chanting, "When fascists attack, we fight back."
In Walthamstow, a town in an outer London borough, Clara Serra López told the BBC that "England wouldn't be anything without immigration."
"I'm here because I am an immigrant, a European immigrant, which comes with a lot of privilege," the demonstrator added. "It is quite an important time for white British and white immigrants to show up for the ones that might be really fearful to come here."
As ChronicleLivereported:
Thousands of people gathered in Newcastle's West End on Wednesday evening in a counterprotest in moving scenes outside The Beacon on Westgate Road. The crowd is estimated to have exceeded 3,000 as locals vowed to stand up to the far-right. Demonstrators held up signs reading "Geordies are of all colours" and "We love our West End".
One attendee of the counterdemonstration vowed: "This is a peaceful protest. We will defend our community."
"We were expecting big numbers of people, but you do have to see it to believe it. It makes me so happy to have seen so many here," Madina Mosque Imam Ali Asad, who attended the Newcastle demonstration, told the outlet. "It makes me happy to see the fact that this is beyond race or religion. It's about community."
In Northampton, footage shared on social media showed counterprotesters dancing on Kettering Road.
There were also demonstrations in cities including Sheffield and Southampton. In the latter, "around 50 far-right demonstrators turned up," according toThe Telegraph, "but their chants were drowned out by around 400 counterprotesters who sang 'there are many, many, many more of us than you.'"
Keep ReadingShow Less
UK Labour MP Says Right-Wing Politicians, Media Fueled Xenophobic Mob Attacks
"There are politicians and there are journalists who have played an active role in fanning the flames of hate and division, and we are seeing that play out," said Zarah Sultana.
Aug 05, 2024
As British Prime Minister Keir Starmer covened an emergency security meeting on Monday to respond to violent attacks on immigrant and Muslim communities that have spread across the United Kingdom in recent days, progressive MP Zarah Sultana said the crisis—fueled by rampant disinformation and xenophobia—must serve as a reckoning for politicians and journalists who have "fanned the flames" of hatred for years.
Sultana, who represents Coventry South in the House of Commons, appeared on ITV's "Good Morning Britain" to discuss the violent riots that have taken place in at least a dozen cities across the U.K. in recent days, mostly in England, with far-right protesters attacking mosques, libraries, and a hotel housing asylum-seekers.
The attacks have been in response to disinformation that has pinned the blame for a deadly stabbing attack on a children's dance class in Southport, England last week on undocumented immigrants. The suspect was born and raised in the U.K., according to police.
"Rather than saying, this is the result of political decisions made by consecutive governments, people have blamed and scapegoated minorities."
Sultana said that the violent attacks in cities including Blackpool, Leeds, and Manchester "shouldn't be a surprise," considering the years the British government—led for 14 years by the Conservative Party until the Labour Party won last month's elections—has spent pushing anti-immigration policies and demonizing asylum-seekers, with the help of national news outlets.
"There is decades of work by the right-wing press and by politicians who have fanned the flames of this hate," said Sultana in a panel discussion that also included journalists from The Daily Mail. "When we look at the role that media outlets like GB News has played, that The Daily Mail has played... There are politicians and there are journalists who have played an active role in fanning the flames of hate and division, and we are seeing that play out."
Andrew Pierce of The Daily Mail took issue with Sultana's remarks, demanding that she provide examples of anti-Muslim news stories in the paper.
The lawmaker did so after the broadcast, posting an image of 16 front pages from the outlet, including ones that asked "how many more" migrants the U.K. can take, referred to asylum-seekers as "illegals," and claimed that migrants are taking the majority of jobs in the U.K. and sparking a "housing crisis."
Sultana added that former Home Secretary Suella Braverman referred to refugees arriving in the U.K. as an "invasion" and far-right Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said in May that British Muslims do not share "British values."
"So when we look at the complicity," said Sultana, "there's a lot of mirrors that people have to be looking into."
Sultana also implored politicians and the British media to explicitly refer to the riots over the weekend as Islamophobic, noting that Prime Minister Keir Starmer and others have denounced the attacks as racist but have not clearly expressed solidarity with the Muslim communities that have been targeted.
"Naming it as Islamophobia is really important because that allows us to shape our response," said Sultana. "If we're not identifying what is happening, the language that is being used and what this is about, we're not going to be able to address this fundamentally."
"Why is there such controversy around calling it Islamophobia?" asked Sultana after "Good Morning Britain" host Ed Balls dismissed her concerns, displaying what the lawmaker called "sneering contempt."
The interview took place a week after three children were killed and 10 were injured in a knife attack in Southport. The 17-year-old suspect, Axel Rudakubana, was born and raised in Britain, according to authorities, who took the unusual step of making his identity public to counter disinformation that quickly spread online and fueled riots that first began in Southport the day after the crime.
The first riot included anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant demonstrators throwing bricks at a mosque in the town, setting cars on fire, and damaging a convenience store.
The authorities' decision to disclose the suspect's identity did not stop the violence from escalating over the weekend, with rioters setting a library on fire in Liverpool, burning books, and attempting to block firefighters from putting out the flames on Saturday.
In Rotherham, an anti-immigration mob broke into a hotel housing asylum-seekers and attempted to set the building on fire while blocking exits.
Nearly 150 people were arrested for taking part in the attacks, and Starmer warned Sunday that "those who have participated in this violence will face the full force of the law."
"This is not protest. It is organized, violent thuggery," said Starmer.
BJ Harrington, the National Police Chiefs' Council lead for public order, said in a statement Sunday that "disinformation is a huge driver of this appalling violence and we know a lot of those attending these so-called protests are doing so in direct response to what they've read online."
"Often posts are being shared and amplified by high profile accounts. We're working hard to counteract this," added Harrington. "They won't win."
While calling on the government and media to directly confront the Islamophobia that has been fomented in the U.K. in recent decades, Sultana said the new Labour government should also correct the austerity policies that have caused unrest and scapegoating of immigrants and Muslim communities.
"The economic system which has allowed inequality to exacerbate in this country, has brought down living standards," said Sultana. "Our communities have faced the brunt of Tory austerity, and what has happened on the right-wing side of politics, in the media and in politics, is that migrants, Muslims, and trans people have been blamed for people not being able to access council housing, not being able to get [National Health Service] appointments, not being able to find school places for their kids. Rather than saying, this is the result of political decisions made by consecutive governments, people have blamed and scapegoated minorities."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Tories Advance 'Indefensible' Anti-Worker Bill as Thousands March to Defend Right to Strike
"You're either with nurses, teachers, firefighters, and frontline workers. Or you're with the Tory government," said the Enough Is Enough campaign. "It's time for everyone to pick a side."
Jan 17, 2023
Lawmakers from the United Kingdom's Conservative Party advanced anti-strike legislation on Monday night despite the objections of tens of thousands of petitioners and thousands of demonstrators outside, but economic justice advocates made clear that the fight for fundamental workers' rights is far from over.
"After last night, the choice is clear," the Enough Is Enough campaign against neoliberalism tweeted Tuesday morning. "You're either with nurses, teachers, firefighters, and frontline workers. Or you're with the Tory government. It's time for everyone to pick a side."
Thousands of trade unionists and progressive activists gathered in London on Monday night to protest the Tories' so-called Strikes Bill as it was being read for a second time in the Palace of Westminster.
"This bill is really about... weakening the power of workers."
If finalized, the legislation would allow right-wing British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's administration to impose undisclosed "minimum service regulations" to force striking nurses, teachers, firefighters, rail staff, and others back to work. If they refuse, workers can be terminated, even during a labor stoppage to prevent pay cuts, and the union can be sued into bankruptcy.
The anti-democratic proposal comes amid a surge in labor unrest across the U.K., with teachers in England and Wales voting Monday afternoon to strike on February 1, the same day 100,000 other public sector workers were already scheduled to walk off the job to demand better pay and benefits.
Monday night's rally, which began at 6:00 pm local time, featured several speakers. Those who took the stage include Mick Lynch, the popular Rail, Maritime, and Transport union leader behind Britain's recent rail strikes; Communication Workers Union general secretary Dave Ward; Jo Grady, general secretary of the University and College Union; Fire Brigades Union general secretary Matt Wrack; Jordan Rivera from National Health Service Workers Say No!; Paul Nowak, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress; and left-wing Labour Party MP Zarah Sultana.
"Make no mistake," Nowak told the crowd. "This bill is a fundamental attack on the right to strike that will force workers across the public sector to cross picket lines or face the sack."
Public and Commercial Services Union organizer Clare Keenan described the bill as an "attack on my human rights and those of my fellow workers."
"You can't make people go to work five days a week and hav[e] to use food banks and remov[e] their ability to protest," said Keenan. "It's just a hurdle that they're putting in the way to stop workers from taking industrial action."
\u201cJust wow. What a powerful demo tonight. #RightToStrike #EnoughIsEnough\u201d— Fire Brigades Union (@Fire Brigades Union) 1673910647
\u201cThe Tories' proposed new anti-worker law would see nurses, firefighters, teachers and other key workers sacked for striking for fair pay.\n\nTonight, outside Downing Street, I pledged to fight this attack on our democratic rights: From Parliament to the picket line #RightToStrike\u201d— Zarah Sultana MP (@Zarah Sultana MP) 1673903506
Inside the House of Commons, meanwhile, Sultana delivered a fiery speech outlining why she voted against the Tories' anti-strike legislation.
"There was a brief period in the pandemic, where we all recognized who keeps our country running. And it wasn't the city bankers, hot-shot lawyers, or big business executives," said Sultana. "It was the people who drive our buses, who sweep our streets, who post our mail, it's people who teach our kids, and nurse us back to health."
"Briefly, even the members opposite thanked them," Sultana said, referring to Conservative MPs. "They called them 'key workers' and 'heroes,' and clapped for them with the cameras rolling."
"But as key workers knew, clapping doesn't pay the bills, and with a decade of falling wages, they couldn't go on," Sultana continued. "As the cost of living has soared, workers are saying, 'enough is enough,' and they are demanding a better deal."
"Of course, the government's line has changed," said Sultana. "Members opposite are now calling workers 'greedy,' saying they are 'selfish.' They've started pitting workers against each other, saying that railway workers couldn't get a pay rise if nurses weren't, but that nurses weren't allowed a pay rise either."
"And now they've stooped to this: An anti-worker bill that threatens the civil liberties of us all," she added. "This new law would see key workers like nurses, railway workers, firefighters, and teachers fired for going on strike. From clapping nurses, they're sacking nurses."
According to Sultana: "They say it's about safety, but that word isn't mentioned even once in the pages of this bill. They say it's about bringing us in line with other European nations, but Britain already has some of the most restrictive anti-union laws in the Western world. And no matter what they say, it's definitely not about resolving current disputes; it's only inflaming tensions and making negotiations harder."
"What this bill is really about," she argued, "is shifting the balance of power: weakening the power of workers and making it easier for bosses to exploit them and for the government to ignore them."
On social media, Sultana slammed Tory MPs for "disgracefully" backing the bill but stressed that "the fight isn't over."
"Let's now build a movement to defend the right to strike and build a Britan fit for workers," she wrote, linking to an Enough Is Enough petition that has been signed by more than 160,000 people.
The Tories' anti-strike bill is not yet law. It remains at the committee stage in the House of Commons, where it must be passed for a third time. If that happens, the House of Lords must approve the legislation on three separate occasions as well before it becomes law.
"The right to strike is the vanguard of democracy and freedom."
Sunak's attempt to curtail the right to strike has been widely condemned. According to King's College, London law professor Ewan McGaughey, the legislation is best characterized as a "pay cut and forced labor bill" and would constitute a "gross violation of international law."
"The right to fair pay and collective action are inalienable rights, enshrined in the Universal Declaration that followed the Second World War, and the International Bill of Rights of 1966," McGaughey wrote Monday. "These rights exist because workers, faced with authoritarian employers and governments, could always do one thing: they could just say 'No. If they don't pay, we won't work.'"
McGaughey continued: "Strikes brought down the Kaiser. Strikes forced the Empire to quit India. Strikes opened the Iron Curtain. Strikes finished Apartheid in South Africa. The right to strike is the vanguard of democracy and freedom, and whether they have the self-awareness or not, Sunak and [Business Secretary Grant] Shapps are treading blindly down the road to tyranny, like Viktor Orbán's Hungary, or Vladimir Putin's Russia."
"What should the government do to stop the strikes?" McGaughey asked. "First, it should not cut public workers' pay: an inflation-protected pay rise would cost just £10 billion, after tax and National Insurance receipts, on the government's own figures. This money can come from taxing Shell, BP, and big fossil fuel polluters whose excess profits have inflated bills and prices. Second, it should rebuild fair pay scales through sector-wide, good faith collective bargaining, and the right of workers to elect at least a third to half of directors on their enterprise board. Third, it should repeal the anti-strike laws, and enshrine a positive right to take collective action, including in solidarity, against reckless management shut downs."
Speaking in the House of Commons on Monday night, Labour Party deputy leader Angela Rayner gave voters a reason to show up for the next election, vowing to repeal the Tories' anti-strike bill, which she dubbed the "sacking nurses bill" and called one of the most "indefensible and foolish pieces of legislation to come before this House in modern times."
Sultana, for her part, delivered "a message to those watching at home who aren't sure about the strikes."
"If your pay is too low and your bills are too high, if you're struggling to make ends meet, if you can't get a doctor's appointment, you're not alone," said the lawmaker. "But the problem isn't striking workers. Your problem isn't migrants, refugees, or trans people either, or whoever the right-wing press is scapegoating today. Your problem is this Tory government and their 13 years of disastrous rule and the rigged economy that they've built."
"Because alongside record numbers of food banks, Britain has a record number of billionaires, record profits for big business, and record wealth for the top 1%," Sultana noted. "So let's bring together everyone who's had enough, and from the picket line to Parliament, let's fight for a better deal."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular