| 15 OCT SUTR INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE: BOOK YOUR PLACE NOW Last night Suella Braverman’s speech at Tory conference was a disgustingly racist attack on refugees and migrants where she spoke of “her dream” to have a Daily Telegraph front page with a photo of a plane taking off to Rwanda with asylum seekers on board. Though, in the wake of protests against the Rwanda deportation policy and ongoing legal challenges, and a backdrop of several mass actions in communities to stop immigration raids, Braverman was forced to admit that it could be a long time before her “dream” is realised while it is fought through the courts. In the wake of the horror of the French, Swedish and Italian elections where fascists have made gains off the back of an increase in state sanctioned racism, and with the number of tragic deaths we have seen in the Channel, it is outrageous that Braverman celebrated the role of the French border forces and their role in enacting the dangerous racist hostile environment ment and Fortress Europe. Braverman defended the French border force for stopping 40-50 percent of Channel crossings a year. Braverman described the desperate fight of people to reach safety, who then are held in inhumane conditions, as “a blight” on the Calais region. The session at the conference on 15 October will discuss the next steps in organising to #StopRwanda deportations and detention, oppose the Nationality and Borders Act and Braverman’s vile, dangerous and dogwhistle policies that would breach the UN Refugee Convention, promising to deport anyone who arrives via so called “illegal” routes or who pass through a so called “safe” country. Braverman plans to block “low skilled” migrants is also a major attack, which will erect an even higher class barrier to overshadow human rights. Clare Moseley, Care4Calais CEO, told Stand Up To Racism, “This proposal by the new home secretary is barbaric, untruthful and unnecessary. The governments rhetoric around people crossing the Channel is simply false. There is a mountain of evidence that the vast majority are genuine refugees; this criminalisation of them is blatant victim blaming of incredibly vulnerable people, simply for the purpose of grabbing headlines. “Those who have escaped from the worst horrors in this world should not be risking their lives once again simply to claim asylum in the UK. The obvious answer is to give them safe passage. This would break the model of people smugglers and save lives. If this Government truly wanted to stop small boat crossings it would offer safe passage to those who have a viable claim for asylum.” Clare Moseley will join a very timely session on opposing the racist hostile environment at the Stand Up To Racism International conference on Saturday 15 October, co sponsored by Care4Calais and the TUC as well as the broad support for the #StopRwanda campaign. With less than two weeks to go and seats filling up fast – book your place today. The conference will run (10am registration) 11am to 5pm, with four consecutive running social forum style sessions… Session one: From Child Q to Chris Kaba, Resisting Institutional Racism Session two: #StopRwanda offshoring, Opposing the Racist Hostile Environment #AllRefugeesWelcome Session three: Cost of Living Crisis, Unity and Solidarity – Don’t Let The Racists Divide Us Session four: How Do We Stop the Racist and Fascist Right – No to Hate and Division This conference aims to bring all those fighting institutional racism, police racism, Islamophobia, Antisemitism, the rise of the far right, for refugee rights – people fighting racism in all its forms – together into one room to move forward as one united mass movement against racism that can win real change. Anti racists from across Britain and the world will converge in central London to discuss action, strategy and ideas for building the growing movement against racism. The conference will also run as a hybrid with access to online participation. Confirmed speakers so far include: Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP Dawn Butler MP Eddie Dempsey RMT assistant general secretary Shami Chakrabarti human rights activist Francesco Galleri Italian antifascist, 6000 Sardines Cas Mudde Politcal scientist and author of The Far Right Today Birdgirl (Dr. Mya-Rose Craig) ornithologist and climate activist Elise Bryant Award-winning US Author Clare Moseley founder of Care4Calais Michael Holding international cricketer and author Trevor Ngwane South African anti apartheid activist Patrick Vernon Windrush campaigner Lee Jasper politcal activist Marcia Rigg sister of Sean Rigg Kevin Courtney National Education Union General Secretary Jermain Jackman winner of the Voice 2014 Wilf Sullivan TUC Race Equality Officer Sarah Woolley BFAWU General Secretary David Rosenberg Jewish Socialist Group Chantelle Lunt Merseyside BLM Roger McKenzie Morning Star Juliana Ojinnaka UCU Black Members Committee Chair Ryan Colaço campaigner against police brutality Anzoumane Sissoko French political activist Denis Goddard French antiracist activist Cathy Pound Searchlight Talha Ahmad Muslim Council of Britain Mohammed Kozbar chair of Finsbury Park Mosque Paula Peters Disabled People Against Cuts Mohammad Asif Afghan Human Rights Foundation Fiona Sim Justice for Sim Family Book your place today, come together with anti racist activists from across the world and play your part in this crucial, international forum to shape and grow the mass movement against racism. |