Latest news with #StandUpToRacism
The National
3 days ago
- Politics
- The National
Anti-racism rally and music event set for Glasgow this weekend
Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) have organised an 'Aye Welcome Refugees' march through the city centre on Saturday, June 21, followed by the free We All Belong Carnival in the Old Fruitmarket. Attendees are expected to gather in Barrowland Park around 12pm before the march takes off, followed by a short rally ahead of the music event. Around 2000 people are set to join, with SUTR organising bus transport from Edinburgh, Dundee, Perth and Aberdeen for those wishing to attend. Whilst Glasgow City Council have not announced any formal roadblocks, Police Scotland are expected to implement rolling closures throughout the day. Which roads will be affected? The final route has not been confirmed, but the following streets are set to be affected: Moir Street London Road Trongate Glassford Street Ingram Street South Frederick Street South George Square St. Vincent Place St. Vincent Street Renfield Street Union Street Argyle Street Queen Street Candleriggs Who is performing? The family-friendly carnival, organised by Love Music Hate Racism Glasgow, will kick off after the march concludes. A number of stalls and activities, like henna tattooing, face painting, balloon artistry and puppeteering. Several Scottish acts will perform, with the lineup featuring Iona Fyfe, Pilgrims Society, Mellow Party and Cabaret Against The Hate's Tom Harlow. Why now? Saturday's festivities have been organised to mark World Refugee Day, which falls on Friday June 20. In a statement posted to social media, SUTR said: "Our movement fights our government's involvement in the wars that create refugees. "We also stand in solidarity with refugees trying to rebuild their lives while being scapegoated and demonised by the very same politicians.' The focus of World Refugee Day 2025 is solidarity with refugees, with the UNHRC stressing the importance of honouring refugees 'not just with words but with actions'. Who has endorsed it? A number of trade unions and charity organisations have endorsed Saturday's events. RMT, Glasgow Trades Council and West Lothian Trades Council are among the unions who have voiced their support. Charities such as Refuweegee and Stop The War Scotland have also expressed support.
The National
12-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
Peaceful protest announced for Katie Hopkins Edinburgh gig
Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) Edinburgh have invited those who wish to join their peaceful protest 'against the airing of obnoxious views' to attend the BMC Social Club in the capital, where Hopkins is set to perform a comedy gig on June 19. Hopkins, a former columnist for the Mail Online, The Sun and Canadian far-right website The Rebel Media, has garnered continued criticism for her extremist views on the disabled, migrants and Muslims since her appearance on The Apprentice in 2005. READ MORE: Refugee festival exhibition showcases work by displaced artists Q Manivannan, the Scottish Greens candidate for the upcoming Fountainbridge-Craiglockhart byelection, said: 'Our country is built upon care, hospitality, and tolerance. Not the hate that Katie Hopkins brings, mocking disabled people, calling for a racist 'final solution', and fat-shaming. 'Her hate is recognised worldwide with her readers in Exeter voting to dump her, the likes of Piers Morgan calling her 'despicable', being held guilty of libel in a court of law, being deported from Australia, and impressing the world with her life of distrust. 'Scotland rejects such hate and racism. It has no room in our local communities." READ MORE: UK 'currently' training Israeli soldiers on UK soil, Labour Government admits Steve West, an independent socialist candidate for the byelection, added: "I share Stand Up To Racism's disgust that the BMC Club is hosting the racist, so-called comedian Katie Hopkins, who has also insulted disabled people. 'The club needs to be given a clear message that this is unacceptable. Edinburgh has a proud record of inclusivity and we need to keep it that way." SUTR recently held a successful counter-demo to the 'Great British National Strike' and have garnered the support of major trade union organisations, as well as several Scottish public figures like Frankie Boyle, Humza Yousaf and Aamer Anwar.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Can Reform win big in Scotland? The establishment is terrified
Something that the progressive Left always feared but never took very seriously seems to have happened: the accusation of 'racist' has lost much of its power to silence opponents. Take Scotland. There has been an avalanche of media and political condemnation, bordering on hysteria, against Nigel Farage and the prospect that his party, Reform UK, will do well in this week's by-election in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse. The First Minister himself, John Swinney, used the R-word to describe Farage at an election rally at the weekend. But to what effect? Yesterday, Swinney's predecessor as first minister, Humza Yousaf, took to the stage at an event organised by Stand Up To Racism to inform us that Scotland, on whose behalf Yousaf claimed to be speaking, does not welcome Farage or his party. We'll discover the truth of this assertion when the votes are counted on Thursday, but all the polling and anecdotal evidence from the campaign trail suggests that at least a significant proportion of this decidedly working-class constituency does not share Yousaf's views. Worryingly for the main parties, recent front page splashes by Scottish tabloids and dire warnings of Scotland being engulfed in the shadow of 1930s Germany seem to be having far less of an impact than what might have been the case in days gone by. That is not to say that Scots in west central Scotland are relaxed about the arrival of a 'far-Right' party in the Scottish Parliament and in town halls, or the consequences of that party's policies on race relations. It's more that they seem to have grown somewhat cynical about repeated cries of 'Wolf!' and the subsequent non-appearance of said sheep-bothering predator. After decades in which ordinary people across the country were warned that criticising high levels of immigration was the equivalent of goose-stepping along Nuremberg High Street, such colourful 'lessons from history' are taken significantly less seriously than in the past. Partly this is down to fascism fatigue: when everyone to the Right of Ed Miliband is a fascist, then no one is. And when commonly held opinions on immigration or gender ideology are considered by many to define the new fascism, the best response is to accept the new definition with a resigned sigh and get on with your life. Commentators often seek answers as to the perceived increase in the kind of political disillusion that has led to the relative success of Reform UK in recent opinion polls: they should look no further than how the definition of 'far-Right' has shifted in the last few decades, from violent bullying of political opponents and the subversion of democratic norms, to believing that you cannot change your biological sex. Much, though not all, of these culture war shenanigans have penetrated the previously comfortable political settlement in Scotland, where anything outside centre-Left opinion, as represented by the SNP, Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens, is seen as beyond the pale. The Scottish Conservatives are tolerated at Holyrood because they have never seriously challenged for office, nor are ever likely to, and they provide a handy contrast by which for lazy progressives can signal their many virtues. It's a cosy consensus just waiting to be blown apart, and Reform UK may be just about to do that. It was arrogant – but expected – for Yousaf to declare that Farage is unwelcome in Scotland. And of course, as has happened south of the border, all this attention given to Reform by politicians who sound increasingly desperate in their shrill warnings has done little to deter voters from supporting this most disruptive of new political forces. Has it ever occurred to the leaders of the SNP and Scottish Labour, I wonder, if they might consider their own policy and rhetorical failures as part of the reason that disgruntled voters might be turning to Reform? Rather than hosting 'anti-Right-wing summits' to warn poor, stupid, ignorant voters of the drawbacks of Farage and his party, might it be appropriate to try to recapture those voters' support by addressing their priorities? For some grandstanding MSPs and MPs, the rise of Reform is an excellent opportunity to remind voters which side they would have been on at Cable Street, even if the natural response to such assertions is: 'And?' And so a political class that already stands accused of forgetting how to talk like ordinary voters, who are no longer seen as concerned with the public's priorities, are compounding their mistakes by using hysterical language about a party that many Scots – by no means a majority or even a plurality, it has to be pointed out – might be considering flirting with at the ballot box. No one can say with any confidence who will win the Hamilton by-election on Thursday, although if I had to place hard-earned money on the outcome I'd say the SNP followed by Reform in second place. It could be any other combination of the leading three parties on the night. The point is that, at least for now, Reform is one of those leading parties, and I would caution any politician who, in Thursday's aftermath, might feel attempted to accuse local voters of racism or support for fascism. Worried politicians of the establishment parties love to attribute the rise of Reform to either the devilishly populist and dishonest rhetorical skills of Farage himself or to the ignorance of voters who never got a university degree, and are therefore uniquely vulnerable to Reform's message. Perhaps there needs to be an injection of honesty: the culprit who is guilty of the disillusion that has led to a public appetite for new solutions, new language and perhaps a new party, is staring back at them from their own mirrors. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
02-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Can Reform win big in Scotland? The establishment is terrified
Something that the progressive Left always feared but never took very seriously seems to have happened: the accusation of 'racist' has lost much of its power to silence opponents. Take Scotland. There has been an avalanche of media and political condemnation, bordering on hysteria, against Nigel Farage and the prospect that his party, Reform UK, will do well in this week's by-election in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse. The First Minister himself, John Swinney, used the R-word to describe Farage at an election rally at the weekend. But to what effect? Yesterday, Swinney's predecessor as first minister, Humza Yousaf, took to the stage at an event organised by Stand Up To Racism to inform us that Scotland, on whose behalf Yousaf claimed to be speaking, does not welcome Farage or his party. We'll discover the truth of this assertion when the votes are counted on Thursday, but all the polling and anecdotal evidence from the campaign trail suggests that at least a significant proportion of this decidedly working-class constituency does not share Yousaf's views. Worryingly for the main parties, recent front page splashes by Scottish tabloids and dire warnings of Scotland being engulfed in the shadow of 1930s Germany seem to be having far less of an impact than what might have been the case in days gone by. That is not to say that Scots in west central Scotland are relaxed about the arrival of a 'far-Right' party in the Scottish Parliament and in town halls, or the consequences of that party's policies on race relations. It's more that they seem to have grown somewhat cynical about repeated cries of 'Wolf!' and the subsequent non-appearance of said sheep-bothering predator. After decades in which ordinary people across the country were warned that criticising high levels of immigration was the equivalent of goose-stepping along Nuremberg High Street, such colourful 'lessons from history' are taken significantly less seriously than in the past. Partly this is down to fascism fatigue: when everyone to the Right of Ed Miliband is a fascist, then no one is. And when commonly held opinions on immigration or gender ideology are considered by many to define the new fascism, the best response is to accept the new definition with a resigned sigh and get on with your life. Commentators often seek answers as to the perceived increase in the kind of political disillusion that has led to the relative success of Reform UK in recent opinion polls: they should look no further than how the definition of 'far-Right' has shifted in the last few decades, from violent bullying of political opponents and the subversion of democratic norms, to believing that you cannot change your biological sex. Much, though not all, of these culture war shenanigans have penetrated the previously comfortable political settlement in Scotland, where anything outside centre-Left opinion, as represented by the SNP, Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens, is seen as beyond the pale. The Scottish Conservatives are tolerated at Holyrood because they have never seriously challenged for office, nor are ever likely to, and they provide a handy contrast by which for lazy progressives can signal their many virtues. It's a cosy consensus just waiting to be blown apart, and Reform UK may be just about to do that. It was arrogant – but expected – for Yousaf to declare that Farage is unwelcome in Scotland. And of course, as has happened south of the border, all this attention given to Reform by politicians who sound increasingly desperate in their shrill warnings has done little to deter voters from supporting this most disruptive of new political forces. Has it ever occurred to the leaders of the SNP and Scottish Labour, I wonder, if they might consider their own policy and rhetorical failures as part of the reason that disgruntled voters might be turning to Reform? Rather than hosting 'anti-Right-wing summits' to warn poor, stupid, ignorant voters of the drawbacks of Farage and his party, might it be appropriate to try to recapture those voters' support by addressing their priorities? For some grandstanding MSPs and MPs, the rise of Reform is an excellent opportunity to remind voters which side they would have been on at Cable Street, even if the natural response to such assertions is: 'And?' And so a political class that already stands accused of forgetting how to talk like ordinary voters, who are no longer seen as concerned with the public's priorities, are compounding their mistakes by using hysterical language about a party that many Scots – by no means a majority or even a plurality, it has to be pointed out – might be considering flirting with at the ballot box. No one can say with any confidence who will win the Hamilton by-election on Thursday, although if I had to place hard-earned money on the outcome I'd say the SNP followed by Reform in second place. It could be any other combination of the leading three parties on the night. The point is that, at least for now, Reform is one of those leading parties, and I would caution any politician who, in Thursday's aftermath, might feel attempted to accuse local voters of racism or support for fascism. Worried politicians of the establishment parties love to attribute the rise of Reform to either the devilishly populist and dishonest rhetorical skills of Farage himself or to the ignorance of voters who never got a university degree, and are therefore uniquely vulnerable to Reform's message. Perhaps there needs to be an injection of honesty: the culprit who is guilty of the disillusion that has led to a public appetite for new solutions, new language and perhaps a new party, is staring back at them from their own mirrors.
The National
02-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
Nigel Farage clashes with Scottish media over Aberdeen protests
Farage, speaking to a Reform UK press conference organised in Aberdeen, said he would be taking a question from our sister paper The Herald last due to unfounded allegations that they had revealed the event's location to Stand Up To Racism campaigners outside. NEW: Nigel Farage's visit to Scotland has been met by a group of protesters brandishing banners and chanting 'refugees are welcome here' — The National (@ScotNational) June 2, 2025 Around 20 demonstrators had turned up to protest the Reform UK leader, holding banners with messages including 'Farage not welcome in Scotland' and chanting slogans such as 'Farage, Farage we know you, you're a racist through and through'. The chants were audible throughout Farage's press conference, which saw him announce the defection of Scottish Tory councillor Duncan Massey to Reform UK. Taking the final question at the press conference, Farage said: 'Now, The Herald. It seems that you're involved with this group of protesters outside.' Responding to a flat denial, Farage went on: 'Well, it's funny isn't it? That you come, and your newspaper also manages to have another one of your correspondents as a protest correspondent. So you knew more about this than we did.' Andrew Learmonth, The Herald's political editor, said: 'That's not true at all Nigel, sorry.' As Farage expressed disbelief, Learmonth went on: 'Absolutely not. We have two reporters in Aberdeen. Come on.' The Reform UK leader continued to express disbelief, adding: 'You must have so many staff and so much money it must be remarkable.' The BBC's James Cook then interrupted, saying that 'to be clear' The Herald were not the only outlet with more than one reporter on site. Farage then said: 'Fair enough, if you say that, I believe you.' Learmonth responded: 'I don't know if you do believe me, but I didn't.' READ MORE: Scottish Tory councillor defects to Reform UK Responding to another member of the media saying the allegations were 'not on', Farage said: 'Well this location was only sent to you guys. 'It wasn't put out on the public wires, we didn't put it out to our membership, and yet they knew. So it came from one of you.' Fraser Adams, a spokesperson for the Stand Up To Racism campaigners, said Farage's suggestion that they had been tipped off by the media was 'absolute nonsense'. Adams went on: 'We are a committed nationwide group of anti-racists. We have our own methods of organising, we have our own system of information. We've got this information on our own. 'We knew they've been coming to Aberdeen for weeks. We didn't find out where they were meeting until this morning. You can't get this many people to Aberdeen without somebody noticing 'Aberdeen's an anti-racist city. There are people who are passionate in making sure that Farage does not come to Scotland un-countered, unprotested. We don't need any tips.'
