Stand Up To Racism’s ‘Stop the Far Right’ model motion for Trade Unions

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“All those who are disgusted by this resurgence of the far right in parliament and on the streets must join in a united mass movement powerful enough to drive them back.”

Following the outbreak of racially motivated far-right violence and the inspiring response from anti-racist campaigners and activists across the country, Stand Up To Racism has published a model motion for trade unionists to pass in their union branches and regions.

You can find the full text of the motion below.

This union branch/region/NEC notes:

  1. Fascist riots have taken place in towns and cities across Britain leading to attacks on mosques and hotels housing migrants.
  2. Robinson, Nigel Farage and others exploited the horrific knife attack in Southport to stir up Islamophobia and sow division by spreading misinformation about the attacker’s identity. This led to a racist mob rioting in Southport and elsewhere, violently attacking the mosques, refugee accommodation and black and brown people on the street.
  3. Across Europe we see the rise of far right and fascist forces, from Marine Le Pen in France, to Georgia Meloni in Italy to the AfD in Germany. In Britain after the general election, there are, for the first time, 5 far right Reform UK MPs in parliament giving a much bigger platform for their racism.
  4. Fascist Tommy Robinson mobilised over 15,000 in Trafalgar Square on 27 July. He is threatening to return in the autumn.

This branch/region/NEC believes:

  1. This is the most serious breakthrough of violent fascists onto British streets for at least a decade.
  2. Racism and Islamophobia in Parliament is leading to racism and Islamophobia on the streets. When Robinson asked the crowd at his London protest who voted for Nigel Farage and Reform UK, almost every hand went up.
  3. Suella Braverman emboldened this latest iteration of fascist mobilisations, with her claims of an “Islamist” threat, policing “double standards” and refugee “invasion” inflammatory rhetoric. The far right are spreading racism, Islamophobia and hatred.
  4. All those who are disgusted by this resurgence of the far right in parliament and on the streets must join in a united mass movement powerful enough to drive them back.
  5. We can defeat them. We must Stand Up to Racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism. We must unite and mobilise against the far right and fascism.

We therefore resolve to:

  1. Support Stand up to Racism’s emergency unity fund to stop the far right, to make a donation to the fund, to encourage members to support the fund and join with Stand up to racism in opposing the far right wherever they seek to mobilise.
  2. Encourage our members to support all counter demonstrations against the far right locally, regionally and nationally called by Stand Up to Racism.
  3. Send delegations, banners and flags onto these demonstrations.
  4. To affiliate to Stand up to Racism and send delegations to Stand up to Racism Conference on 16th November.
  5. Send this motion to Regional and National bodies as well as to the General Secretary.