Serial hate-monger Stephen Yaxley-Lennon (“Tommy Robinson”) has called a “Brexit Betrayal” march in London on Sunday December 9th in an attempt to stoke right-wing anger over the Brexit crisis and manoeuvre himself into position as leader of the angry, ‘betrayed’ Brexit voters.
Yaxley-Lennon has recently got himself appointed UKIP leader Gerard Batten’s “special advisor”. This finally seals the deal of UKIP’s steady march further and further right. Now they appear to be happy to be associated with an ex-BNP member, football hooligan, EDL founder and serial fraudster. Not that surprising given their recent history, but still a significant point – a political party that won the last Euro elections is now so closely linked with Tommy Robinson.
This is a critical moment. If at a moment of national crisis with everything up in the air, a racist Islamophobe like Tommy Robinsion is allowed to position himself as the representative of everyone who voted for Brexit and foment a right-wing backlash with himself at the front of it, far-right politics will be pushed even further into the mainstream.
A coalition of organisations including Momentum, Plan C, Women’s Strike Assembly, London Anti-Fascists, Labout Against Racism and Fascism, the Stop Trump coalition and many others has called a counter-mobilisation.
They say:
“The far right are using the Tory Brexit crisis to fuel a politics of fear and racism. We all know the Tory Brexit deal is terrible, but racism won’t fix it. The Tory Brexit deal is an attack on everyone, and especially on migrants. We want a world that meets the needs of the many, not scapegoating our neighbours and peddling conspiracy theories. The Tory deal will expand the existing racist border regime to millions of more migrants.
“It is more urgent than ever that we fight against Fortress Britain: against the hostile environment, immigration raids, detention centres and deportations. We need to fight together for all people to be able to live, migrate and work where we choose and for better wages, services and lives.
“Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is part of a newly energised and well-funded network of hate bankrolled by friends of Steve Bannon. Their far right politics is bleeding into the Tory party through Boris Johnson and other UKIP fellow travelers.
“Life is hard for millions of us. Thanks to universal credit and benefit sanctions millions of families now rely on foodbanks. Many of us can’t afford a decent place to live. Winter is around the corner and thousands of elderly people will die because of the cost of heating. Our NHS is being deliberately ground down ready to be sold off.
“We can’t let the far right provide racist solutions to the crisis we are in. We need build a future in which access to decent health, education and housing is a reality and not a dream. This begins with standing together against the racism and sexism of the far right.”
Support the counter-demonstration. Get yourself there. Invite everyone. Spread the word. Watch this space.
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