The most important word in politics is ‘we’; how we use this word reveals who we identify with, who we stand and do not stand with publicly. Tommy Robinson wears a ‘Why I am a Zionist’ badge because he recognises Israel as an ethnic supremacist state which can serve as a model for the extreme right.
The broad Palestine solidarity movement similarly sees itself as a core element of the collective struggle against racism generally, including the extreme right.
Fascist and extreme right governments and movements virtually everywhere see Israel as an ally and inspiration. This understanding led the large majority of those assembled in George Square on the 7th of September to form a Palestine bloc while confronting the fascists face-on. We linked the struggle against Israel’s genocide in Palestine with the struggle against those who attack refugee hostels, promote vile racism and applaud Israeli genocide.
This unity is essential and makes the behaviour of ‘Stand Up to Racism’ utterly bizarre as they have allowed openly pro-Israel elements onto their Glasgow demonstrations, knowing that this repels the entire movement of solidarity with Palestine.
Equally sinister is their regular warnings against the rise of the extreme right internationally, which list the USA, Italy, Germany, Hungary, Bolsonaro’s Brazil until recently, and others but always excludes the genocidal regime in Israel from these lists. How can a regime openly using mass murder, disease and famine against the Palestinian people not to be included in a list of the extreme right?
Selective anti- racism is unacceptable which covers up anti-Palestinian racism, while allowing genocide supporters to join ‘anti-racist’ demonstrations.
That is why ‘Stand Up To Racism’ supporters were facing in one direction on George Square on 7 September, away from the fascists with union Jacks and an Israeli flag, while the substantial majority had their backs to SUTR in a dynamic pro-Palestine bloc that roared and sang and danced defiance to drown out the fascists. George Square witnessed one bloc of anti-fascists who included Palestinians in the collective ‘we’ and another collective ‘we’ which includes Zionists and has yet to officially condemn the genocide now ongoing for a whole year.
