On Saturday 8 November, over 350 delegates representing 79 SUTR groups and 71 trade union branches, regions, national bodies and trades councils attended the Stand Up to Racism AGM. They came together to discuss building opposition to the growing threat of the far-right – both Reform UK at the ballot box and the far-right and fascists who are following Tommy Robinson’s lead.
The AGM was centred around discussion of three strategy documents, workshops and the election of an executive committee and officers. The AGM showed a growing and broadening SUTR, with whole new layers of activists, trade unionists and campaigners involved in driving our strategy.
Strategy documents have been written reflecting the discussion and debate at the AGM to guide our work nationally and locally for the year ahead. Amongst them are 5 key campaigning priorities:
- Mobilise for the national demonstration against the far right in March. Make this a unifying focus for all who oppose the far right and build the biggest possible turnout for a decisive display of unity and a leap forward for the antiracist movement.
- Continue to build counterprotests with the broadest possible support. Build with local campaigns, unions, refugee organisations, faith groups, the Palestine movement, and students. Counterprotests show solidarity with targeted communities and deny the far right control of the streets.
- Call local unity demos. Build broad coalitions locally for unity demos and other positive events that can draw in wider numbers than counterprotests, bring new people into SUTR and give confidence to antiracists.
- Campaign against Reform in the May elections. Expose Reform as a racist party of the super-rich through mass local campaigning, leafleting, stalls, and meetings. Encourage union and workplace involvement in the campaign.
- Strengthen local organisation and committees. Build local steering committees that reflect the breadth of the national campaign and root SUTR locally. Set clear roles for conveners, press, social media, and treasurer, and launch local membership and affiliation drives and fundraising for SUTR.
Jason
I choose to attend the workshop on Organising the Women Against the Far Right Campaign. We had an introduction from Samira Ali from Women Against the Far Right before splitting into groups to discuss how to build organisations in every town and city across Britain, taking on racist arguments, organising counter protests and sinking roots in local communities. I found this informative as we had women who had been on marches and demonstrated at hotels across the country who gave their first hand accounts of their experiences.
We then spoke about how to encourage women to become more involved in our local communities. We spoke about many areas that we could improve/target more involvement of women.
- Local Womens Groups
- Faith Groups
- Trade Unions
- Pride
- Cross Party
- Trans Rights
- Art Colleges
- Students @Universities and Colleges
- Feminist Societies.
It was felt that young women, students & art colleges in particular could be a focus to network and build more members.
- Meeting to create banners for events to call out the Far Right rhetoric.
- Mass leafleting by all members.
Other points raised were;
- Reform was no friend of Women and that we needed to develop more resources against
- Reform that was easily accessible for groups across the country.
- Women’s football groups linked into show racism the red card was discussed as a means to engage more young women.
- Use social media as a tool to engage more members to get out in their local communities when events are organised by SUTR.
In the workshop discussion I spoke about the Peace Walk I was involved in organising on the day of the SUTR AGM. Women from different community groups in Lichfield met at the Mosque recently to organise a Walk for Peace & Unity. We were pleased to have had approximately 250 people turn out on the day. A poem by Benjamin Zephania was read out before the procession went from Speakers Corner through the Market Square and made its way to Beacon Park. Children waved ribbons, squares had been knitted and strung up on the railings too. The knitted squares were removed later and made into a Peace Blanket.
Diane Abbott MP who is Stand Up to Racism President spoke at the meeting.
I am proud to support Stand Up to Racism. Their work bringing communities together to challenge racism, hate and division is more important than ever.
She also went on to say that the March in September saw SUTR outnumbered 20 – 1 and the importance of building numbers is vital to continue the renewed fight against racism.
Diane stated that,” this was the most important battle of our lifetime.”
Carole