No Pasaran: they shall not pass

Felicity Dowling writes: This weekend the Far Right have been active in our streets and towns in an organised campaign of violence, hatred and racism. It is well-funded and organised. The Far Right has always been violent but this has escalated. In some cities they have gained support, of a sort, from frustrated angry kids. These kids are not all far right, they are just tanked or coked up and acting out. None the less, this is very dangerous.

People have been scared in their homes, been reluctant to leave their homes, and workers have been asked to work from home when their offices and workplaces have been seen to be at risk. Organisations supporting migrants have had to temporarily close.

Obscenely, the terrible deaths of three young girls, and injury to many more, has been used as an excuse for this outbreak of violence and hate. The opportunity to mourn properly has been denied to the families. This affects people way beyond close family but friends, neighbours, other dance teachers, the children’s school teachers and more. Nurses, doctors and paramedics who treated those children then had to treat the idiots who caused chaos. The opportunity to learn lessons from that tragedy has been lost.

We have to adapt very quickly to a challenge on a scale not seen for decades.

All the ingredients for this have been long in the making. Austerity, cost of living, hunger, poor housing, lack of resources for youth work, a restricted curriculum at school, the demonisation of migrants, all feed into it. There is also a loss of hope among much of the youth. The vile racism pumped out by sections of the media have changed the social dialogue.

We often think of young children when we picture those affected by poverty, but hungry teenagers are a real problem. They need more calories than a grown man. Malnourished teenagers, with access to alcohol and drugs are incredibly difficult to reason with, and are very impressionable, especially if those feeding them ideas also provide drugs and alcohol. Teenagers, however have always enjoyed baiting the police.

The racist and anti-migrant message has been spread by years of poisonous racist newspapers, social media and certain TV channels, the use of racism by the previous Government, and the Labour leadership in the election. Since Corbyn, no one has put out a strong message of hope.

Huge though these obstacles are, we have to get our message out to the youth in the working-class districts. We want to stop this becoming a white on black dispute but to win everyone in our communities to fight the Far Right together. Communities do have a right to defend themselves and their homes. This is far from an easy task, but links have been built during the Gaza crisis that can be used.

The RMT, PCS and FBU have responded well to the crisis, defending their members at work. Unite has issued a positive statement. Where are the rest of the Union’s leadership? Trade Unions have for years ‘outsourced’ their anti-racism. Today it is an issue of the day to day defence of our black and Muslim brothers and sisters, so this must be an integral part of everyday trade unionism.

The far right have said they will attack migrant support organisations this Wednesday across the country. They should be opposed. No Pasaran!

Opposing them is not always easy. Well-planned events properly mobilised for, properly risk-assessed and organised, are needed; when this can happen it makes a huge difference. A Bristol hotel was effectively defended from the far right by a brave set of anti-nazi protestors.

Safety procedures

It is important not to see these tips as a restriction on what you do. You probably can’t keep to every safety point but this is a useful list.

• Don’t plan on WhatsApp or Facebook. For more information please see this
• Legal observers should be present if possible. Have “bust” cards for everyone.
• Choose the way to take and publish photos so you are not providing evidence to the police to charge our people, doing legitimate defence. In the past counter-protestors have been arrested to show “balance”. Be particularly careful with vulnerable groups. This shows you how to blur pictures if you need to do so but most phones have good editing tools. Ask people’s permission to take photos or to publish them.
• Travel in and march in small groups who know or get to know each other, so no one is left alone in dangerous situations, especially at the beginning and end of actions. As events disperse people can be vulnerable.
• Take care of those marchers/attendees most likely to be in danger.
• Have organisers who liaise with groups.
• Have spotters looking out for problems. Monitor social media and have a handle on what the enemy is planning or has organised, if possible. Try not to take and/or post face shots of anti-nazi protestors.
• Have first aid kits.
• Covid is still here, so masks can be good.
• Know the area. Provide maps if necessary.
• Chanting can be a good means of defence for us, but relentless noise outside someone’s house is not sensible.
• If you can afford it use “burner” phones, but certainly delete anything from your phone that might be a risk to others.
• Asylum seekers could be at real risk being involved in the anti-nazi actions, but the final call is of course up to the individual.
• Be aware of the impact on the neighbours and local communities. Liaise with them, explain what you are doing, however you can.

As well as mobilising, pressure must be put on MPs and Councillors to speak out and to provide protection to people and buildings.

The experience of Liverpool

In Liverpool on Friday, we had a highly successful defence of the oldest mosque in the country. It was well-organised and done in close cooperation with the mosque. Liverpool has a good record of fighting fascism but we don’t always win. That’s not going to stop us though.

On Saturday the Far Right came to the Pier Head on the riverside. There was a “Unity” rally called by Stand Up to Racism with little consultation with local groups. It was some way away at St Georges Hall plateau which was not billed as a confrontation but at the end there was an unexpected announcement that the meeting would march down to where the far right were assembled. It was not well-organised, and people were put at risk. The real possibility of organising effectively and safely was lost. The only victory was that we stopped the far right marching through the city. The teenage lads in support of the Far Right then ran through the city centre causing harm, fear and destruction. Later they arrived outside another smaller mosque in the Walton area of Liverpool. The mosque was protected by the police and had specifically asked anti-nazis not to come. Unopposed, the kids and some locals caused immense damage to other places. The police who week by week manage crowds of 60,000 people at football matches were out done by a couple of hundred kids. The use of burning dumpsters as weapons against the police seems to have been effective. It is heart-breaking that they then burned down the Library on Spellow Lane. Some people even blocked the fire service from getting to the fire.

This may be a brief outburst but it is more likely that the violent far right will become a feature of life in Britain until our movement can develop organisation as deep into the working class as we had in the past. Everything we hold dear is at risk here.

No Pasaran: they shall not pass