| Massive victory for anti racist movement as first Rwanda detention flight stopped at 11th hour – well done Care4Calais, PCS union and all the protests✊🏾 Anti racists everywhere will have been buoyed by the absolutely brilliant news at the 11th hour last night that the first scheduled flight to Rwanda as part of the government’s horrifying offshore detention plans, did not go ahead, thanks to the hard work of Care4Calais & PCS Union’s legal challenge, and all the protests in solidarity demanding #NoOffshoreDetention and to #StopTheFlights to #Rwanda, who said #RwandaNotInOurName 👉🏿 Murderous ‘pushbacks’ policy stopped ✅ 👉🏿First attempt to force through Rwanda detention flight stopped ✅ 👉🏿 Mass actions successfully stopping raids in Kenmure Street, Nicolson Square, Hackney and Peckham ✅ Let’s keep pushing back Patel and Johnson’s racist hostile environment – stop Rwanda offshore detention – scrap the Nationality and Borders Act – #AllRefugeesWelcome Care4Calais, Stand Up To Racism & Together With Refugees are also organising a major bloc on the TUC’s demonstration this Saturday 18 June. TO VOLUNTEER TO HELP STEWARD THE BLOC, EMAIL: info@standuptoracism.org.uk Over 1,000 protested outside the Home Office on the eve of the planned flight on protests that came together organised by Stand Up To Racism and Care4Calais and SOAS Detainee Support and Solidarity Knows No Borders. The defiant protest was joined by MPs Bell Ribeiro-Addy, Jeremy Corbyn, Zara Sultana and Beth Winter, as well as union delegations from NEU, RMT and others, and condemned government plans for offshore detention in Rwanda and pledged to continue to mobilise the movement. The following day, the day of the planned flight, Tuesday 14 June, a Stand Up To Racism and Care4Calais Britain-wide Day of Action to stop Rwanda offshore detention took place, with sizeable protests in towns and cities as well as outside Unison conference in Brighton where delegates joined a protest (see coverage here) and a brilliant protest where activists chained themselves together to stop those detained and scheduled to be taken from being driven to the flight. It was fantastic to see to protests, including at Brook House detention centre at Gatwick on Sunday, and the incredible response in Peckham, where a year on from Kenmure Street, and a month on from similar mass actions in Edinburgh and Hackney, a Home Office immigration raid was stopped by mass united action in the community – protesters refused to let their neighbours be taken. We need to keep mobilising, Stand Up To Racism sends its solidarity to all protesting and to the many who are organising demonstrations. Email info@standuptoracism.org.uk to find your nearest group and get involved. Stand Up To Racism has also held a series of fringe meetings at union conferences, including NEU, CWU, FBU, PCS, ASLEF, BFAWU and Unison under the title From Offshore Detention to the Nationality and Borders Act – No Rwanda Offshoring – End the Hostile Environment #AllRefugeesWelcome Joint protests over Rwanda offshore detention were also held at Unison and PCS conference alongside Stand Up To Racism and Care4Calais. The trade unions, at the level of every workplace, are a crucial part of the opposition we must organise to Patel and Johnson’s intensification of their racist hostile environment. Stand Up To Racism is also organising a series of regional and local rallies, From Offshore Detention to the Nationality and Borders Act, End the Hostile Environment – #AllRefugeesWelcome These mobilising rallies are lined up around Refugee Week in June, to scrap the borders act, oppose offshore detention in Rwanda, and organise networks in localities that can challenge the hostile environment, and stop detention raids when the Home Office attempts to inflict these attacks on our neighbours: York rally, Fri 17 June, 7pm Glasgow rally, Mon 20 June, 7pm Sheffield rally, Wed 22 June, 7pm Birmingham rally, Thu 23 June, tbc                 |
