Worldwide anti-racism demonstrations today, after Christchurch massacre

This 15 March 2019 video from England says about itself:

UK: Corbyn joins vigil outside Finsbury Mosque honouring New Zealand victims

A vigil was held outside London’s Finsbury Park mosque, Friday, following the terrorist attack in New Zealand’s Christchurch that killed 49 Muslim worshippers.

The Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn addressed the crowd, encouraging the people of the world to embrace one another and fight hate with love, celebrating London’s multiculturalism and vowing to fight racism.

The main suspect was identified as Brenton Tarrant, an Australian national. In a manifesto believed to be from the attacker, he justifies his acts through white supremacist and anti-migrant ideology.

Finsbury Park mosque was the site of a terrorist attack in 2017, when a man used a van to kill one person and injure nine more.

By Peter Lazenby in Britain:

Friday, March 15, 2019

Worldwide anti-racism demos ‘come at a critical moment’

A WORLDWIDE anti-racism demonstration tomorrow [so, today, SAturday] “comes at a critical moment” as it will fall a day after the massacre of 49 Muslims in New Zealand, an organiser of the British protests has said.

Stand Up to Racism (SUTR) co-convenor Weyman Bennett said that the terror attacks on two mosques in Christchurch is a result of long-term “demonisation” of migrants and Muslims.

“The global protests are about saying we have had enough, we will not allow a rise in racism and fascism to go unchallenged,” he added.

Protests will take place in 22 countries and more than 60 cities including London, Cardiff and Glasgow. Numbers are expected to swell following the horror of Friday’s terror attacks by white supremacists.

“We must robustly stand up to Islamophobia, in solidarity with Muslim communities,” SUTR co-convenor Sabby Dhalu said.

Shadow home secretary Diane Abbott, who will be at the London protest, said: “Deepest sympathies to the people of New Zealand following this horrendous terrorist attack.

“It has never been more important to mobilise here and link up with our supporters abroad to fight all forms of racism.”

Trade unions also made a call for anti-fascists to join the protests.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “The far-right are a growing menace in Britain, bolstered by a global network they are taking their hate-filled messages onto our streets and into our communities.

“As trade unionists we will continue to stand up to the forces of hatred and division and to promote our values of tolerance and diversity.”

Mick Cash, general secretary of transport union RMT, said: “For RMT members racism and associated hate crimes are a daily reality. All of the statistics show a rise in violence, abuse and threats across the transport network with racism an ever-present issue.”

Maswood Ahmed, assistant secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said: “Although much progress has been made, the crippling poison of racism, fascism and Islamophobia still persists.

“This national demonstration is an excellent example of solidarity for achieving the common good.”

David Rosenberg, on behalf of various Jewish groups who will march as a Jewish bloc during the protest, said the British government cannot escape criticism for being “openly allied” with far-right governments in other European nations and for having policies such as its own “hostile environment” for migrants.

This video says about itself:

Vigil for Christchurch, New Zealand

15 March 2019

What a sad, sad day yesterday was for my adopted country and for our Muslim brothers and sisters in humanity. I have been searching for words to share my sadness and support for those affected by this tragedy, and seem to only be coming up with music. As a white immigrant to this beautiful, peaceful country, mine is not the voice most needed to be heard and amplified at the moment. But I can’t seem to focus on anything else today, so here is my musical hand extended in shared grief and support.

From daily The Morning Star in Britain today:

Friday, March 15, 2019

In order to overcome racism we need to address its roots

THE tragic events of today have shocked the people across the world and, notwithstanding the disgusting attempt by one senator from Queensland to blame the attack on the victims, messages of sympathy and solidarity have been issued by governments and politicians, presidents and prime ministers.

There is a tendency with events like these to speak about them almost as if they were some terrible natural disaster or adversity that we all need to pull together to overcome.

They are not. This horrific attack was the result of a conscious decision, made by human beings, to carry out a massacre.

In order to “overcome” it, in order to prevent attacks like this in the future, we need to address its roots — to understand the thinking, the ideology, which justifies such an act.

This was fundamentally a racist attack. Whether dressed up as Islamophobic or anti-immigrant, at root, this is about racism, an ideology as old as class society itself.

That is somewhat arguable. While in the Roman empire there was discrimination between citizens and ‘barbarians’ who might be enslaved, barbarians and slaves were not just Africans, but might be Europeans or Asians as well. Roman society was a class society, but not yet a capitalist society. Arguably, modern racism started as an effect of the early capitalist trans-Atlantic slave trade.

Racism, as an ideology, is fundamental to sustaining racial oppression — the oppression of people based on their perceived racial or ethnic origin.

Just like the oppression of women, sustained by sexist ideology, racial oppression is a structurally integral part of class society.

The oppression of women and of black people has enabled the economic super-exploitation on the back of which capitalism developed and on which it still rests today, while the ideologies of racism and sexism are used to divide the working class and ensure its continued subjugation to capital.

Just think of the continued gender pay gap, or the effects of institutional racism on the wages of black workers. Class, race and sex are fundamentally intertwined.

Of course, the ideology of racism comes in many forms, from the violent words and actions of the far right, through the “populist” Islamophobia of Stephen Yaxley-Lennon to the racist jokes of politicians like Boris Johnson.

But it is all part of the same ideology, an ideology whose purpose is to sustain oppression and to put people in their place.

And so we must fight racism in all its forms. We must fight for legal action to tackle hate speech, institutional racism and the activities of the far right.

We must mobilise on the streets to confront the far right when they try to march through our communities. We must work and build in those communities to unite people in opposition to racism. And we must confront racism ideologically, challenging the lies about immigration, exposing the racism behind policies like the “hostile environment” and the serious problems with initiatives like the Prevent strategy, and calling out casual racism by politicians and workmates alike.

But we must also go further. We need to build a positive sense of solidarity. The opposite to the ideology of racism and sexism is not simply the absence of racism and sexism, it is class ideology.

We must replace the politics of racism and sexism with class politics, and heal our divided communities by uniting the working class in the struggle for our rights.

If racism and sexism are systemic features of capitalism, essential to sustaining it in its current form, then the fight to overcome them, and to overcome the oppression of women and black people, is integrally intertwined with the fight to dismantle class society.

As we march tomorrow, and as we remember the victims of today’s atrocities, we must commit ourselves to challenging racism and oppression in all its forms, and to the struggle for a better society.

This video from Canada says about itself:

Toronto vigil honors victims of New Zealand mosque shootings

Hundreds showed up at Nathan Phillips Square to support and honour the victims of the deadly mosque shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand.

By Steve Sweeney in Britain:

Friday, March 15, 2019

New Zealand shocked as white supremacist guns down Muslim worshippers in mosques …

NEW ZEALAND is in mourning after a self-styled white supremacist shot dead 49 Muslim worshippers and injured dozens in terror attacks at two mosques in Christchurch. …

New Zealand police confirmed the recovery of a number of guns at the mosques. Tarrant’s rifles were covered in white supremacist graffiti.

The number 14 is visible on the rifles, likely referring to the 14 words of white supremacist slogan “we must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children.” …

In a “manifesto,” Tarrant described himself as an ethno-nationalist … He claims to have briefly met with Norwegian fascist Anders Breivik who shot dead 69 socialists at a Workers Youth League summer camp on the island of Utoya in 2011.

Tarrant also claimed to have been inspired by the Finsbury Park Mosque terror attack carried out by Darren Osborne who was jailed for life last February after he drove a van into Muslim worshippers. Osborne killed one man and injured many more.

Osborne had said that he wanted to kill Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn — who was punched on the back of his head by a man at Finsbury Park Mosque earlier this month.

He has also called for London Mayor Sadiq Khan, whom he calls a “Pakistani Muslim invader”, to be killed.

Demos across the world tomorrow [today, Saturday] — including in London, Glasgow and Cardiff in Britain — will rally against Islamophobia and fascism ahead of the UN’s Anti-Racism Day next Thursday.

On Friday, Mr Corbyn laid a wreath at a vigil outside the New Zealand High Commission in London. He told attendees: “We will not allow these people to divide us, we will stand in solidarity with all those who suffered egregiously in New Zealand.”

Speaking at a service at Finsbury Park Mosque after Friday prayers he said: “An attack on a mosque, an attack on a synagogue, an attack on a church, an attack on a temple is an attack on all of us.

“So, those people who’ve died in New Zealand, that’s an attack on all of us. The only answer is one of respect for each other, support for each other, and solidarity.”

Speaking at East London Mosque, Mr Khan announced that policing will be increased at places of worship in London over the coming days.

He added: “We may be more than 11,000 miles away from Christchurch in New Zealand but we feel the ripples of hatred, we feel the ripples of fear and we feel the ripples of sorrow of our brothers and sisters in Christchurch.”

Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand president Mustafa Farouk said his organisation was “seeking the prayers and support of all New Zealanders for the victims of this senseless attack.

“We ask our Muslim brothers and sisters to remain calm and display common sense. We are resolved to maintain cohesion and peace among all New Zealanders.”