Stop fascist Britain First in Birmingham

BRITAIN FIRST: RACIST, FASCIST, HOMOPHOBIC – NOT WELCOME IN BIRMINGHAM

On Saturday 20 June, the far right hate group Britain First plans to bring its message to Birmingham calling for ‘Remigration and mass deportations’. This is a thinly veiled threat to half the population of Birmingham. Formed by ex-British National Party members, it is led by Paul Golding – a convicted race-hate criminal jailed for religiously aggravated harassment. His former co-leader, Ashlea Simon declared “English people can’t be black. English blood is white”. This isn’t ignorance- it’s dangerous, white supremacist bigotry.

A RECORD OF HATE AND VIOLENCE

Britain First is notorious for storming mosques and spreading Islamophobic propaganda. They promote the ‘‘Great Replacement’ conspiracy that Europe is being taken over by non-white people. This conspiracy myth has inspired hatred and racist murderers including Darren Osborne who attacked worshippers at Finsbury Park Mosque. Thomas Mair, who murdered Labour MP Jo Cox shouted “Britain First” as he killed her in the street. They target Muslims, migrants, asylum seekers and LGBTQ+ people; they plan for an authoritarian dictatorship, they are a fascist organisation.

BIRMINGHAM STAND UNITED – TOGETHER AGAINST THE FAR RIGHT

The united march in London on 16 May outnumbered the far right, we can do the same in Birmingham. We need to rally in large numbers in a peaceful demonstration to show that we are the majority. We reject the politics of racism, hate and division. Our city is proudly diverse, built by working class people, black, white, brown, local people and migrants from all over the world. The real causes of hardship - low pay, crumbling public services, unaffordable housing, high energy bills come from a broken system owned and managed by the rich who make us pay for their failures. We have a strong tradition of defeating racist and fascist groups – from the National Front to the BNP to the EDL, the Football Lads Alliance and more. The threat from the far right is now greater than ever but we’ve mobilised before, many times and we’ll keep doing it.

WORLD REFUGEE DAY

Britain First have chosen to come to Birmingham on World Refugee Day. This is an international day designated by the United Nations to honour refugees around the globe.

Let’s make sure Saturday 20 June is not just a counter-protest against fascism but a celebration of our values. The values of unity, diversity, inclusion and solidarity. The values that make our city, in spite of the challenges it faces, such a great place to live.

Join us in mobilising to defend our city, and everyone that chooses to make it their home.

Peacefully, resolutely, together, in solidarity with all our neighbours, we will say NO TO FASCIST BRITAIN FIRST.

(Please note, you do not need to register here to attend the counter-protest. But if you do it will give us a rough idea of how many people we can expect and you will recieve email updates)

Sign the petition here: https://www.change.org/p/refuse-permission-for-britain-first-to-use-birmingham-council-spaces-sign-open-letter?recruited_by_id=a883cdb0-4d3d-11f1-bdf8-ab4a6f0fd9b7&utm_source=share_petition

Supported by:

Beyond Racism
The Big Ride for Palestine
Birmingham Artivistas
Birmingham Climate Justice Coalition
Birmingham Friends of the Earth
Birmingham NEU
Birmingham Race Impact Group
Birmingham TUC
Birmingham UNISON
brap
Brum Together
Brummies United Against Racism & Hate Crime
Community Interfaith Alliance
CWU Midlands
Extinction Rebellion Birmingham
Indian Workers Association
Kings Heath United Against Racism
NEU West Midlands Region
PCS Midlands
RMT Midlands
Solihull Muslim Women's Circle
South Birmingham Woodcraft Folk
Strichley Is For Everyone
SUTR Birmingham
SUTR Black Country & South Staffs
Unite 6030 Birmingham South branch
Unite Community Birmingham
Unite The People
University of Birminghm UNISON
West Midlands Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Windrush Movement UK
Women Against The Far Right