BNP wipe out - THANK YOU

It is almost unbelievable. But the stain of far-right politics has been wiped off the face of Barking and Dagenham. Not only was the BNP thoroughly beaten in the general election, the council lost 12 councillors. This means the number of councillors left on Barking & Dagenham council went from 12 to 0 overnight.

We cannot thank those who made this possible enough. Huge respect goes to Nick Lowles, Matthew Collins, Sam Tarry, Caroline Alabi and all those who have worked so tirelessly organising activists against the BNP in the Borough for many months. And huge thanks to almost 1,300 people who have volunteered valuable time over the course of the election - in Barking & Dagenham (where we put out 130,000 pieces of literature), and in Stoke-on-Trent - where the BNP were also humiliated.

We have had brilliant support from pensioners, black and Asian voters, white voters, young voters, women and men. On Monday 385 people delivered 55,000 leaflets and even on polling day we had 175 people out knocking up the vote. We also had huge moral and financial support from hundreds of thousands of people across the country, and fantastic support from the Mirror which kept us all going.

As ever our celebrity supporters have been magnificent, from Billy Bragg, Eddie Izzard and Speech Debelle, to the casts of The Bill, Hollyoaks and Emmerdale, plus too many more to mention. Thank you one and all - you've done a wonderful thing.

Mirror

A sunny day out in Barking & Dagenham...

Amazing day today in Barking & Dagenham. There were 530 volunteers at last count posting 82,000 Hope not Hate special newspapers through every door in the Borough. The papers were made in conjunction with the Daily Mirror, and featured some of the paper's best known columnists like Fiona Phillips and Oliver Holt.

Local boy and Bard of Barking, Billy Bragg, was amongst those leafleting the area, along with Jon Cruddas MP. Out on the doorstep, Billy had a frank exchange of views with Richard Barnbrook, the BNP's only London Assembly member.

Otherwise, the sun shone and there were lots of families, a perfect day for Hope. Then, all 500 people came back to HQ for a curry lunch and impromptu gig.

As well as a local gospel choir who'd signed up to Hope not Hate after getting eggs thrown at them on the way into church, Billy Bragg sang a tribute to his own personal Route66 - the less glamorous A13 - one of the only songs to feature rhymes with Wapping and Shoeburyness. He also sang Half English, and his favourite Woody Guthrie song, All You Fascists Are Bound to Lose.

"There are worse things than the BNP being elected in Barking," Billy told the crowd. "The worst thing would be if the rest of the country turned its back on Barking and decided it was full of racists. Because it's not."

Mirror

BNP conceal leaflets filled with racist lies in kids' library books

The Mirror's Hope not Hate tour visited Nottingham yesterday as it emerged the racist BNP has targeted children in the city.

Our round-Britain bus campaign visited a sports celebration for school pupils in one of the most multi-racial parts of the country. At the same time, staff at a library in the suburb of West Bridgeford discovered BNP activists had planted promotional leaflets - featuring American actors posing as British workers - between the pages of children's books.

Meanwhile police chiefs were furious after postmen stuffed BNP leaflets inside their newsletter before delivering them to homes. A Northants Police spokeswoman said: "Was are an apolitical organisation and we would not want any political leaflets delivered with Home Beat." The Royal Mail said: "Our guidelines state that no materials should be combined with another customer's mailing. If this has happened we apologise."

BNP deputy leader Simon Darby said: "Would the police have complained if it had been the Lib Dems or Labour? I think they are showing their own political bias."

Today the Hope Not Hate bus visits Sheffield city centre (10am) and Barnsley Community Centre (3pm).

Mirror

Hope Not Hate: Our journey begins

Hope not Hate Daily Mirror anti-racism bus is back on the road

From the cobbles of Corrie to the corridors of power, the Daily Mirror's Hope Not Hate bus is hitting the nation's towns and cities to spread the message of anti-racism.

Following last year's successful celeb-backed campaign (check out the pictures from 2007 on the right), today we're revving up our bus for another 14-day national tour aimed at celebrating modern Britain. And where better to start than Liverpool, the European Capital of Culture?

This year's campaign has the backing of an array of big names, including Jamie Oliver, Joe Cole, Sir Alan Sugar, Sir Trevor McDonald and Amir Khan. As Sir Alan says: "Racism is bad for business and bad for Britain and that's that's why I'm supporting the Daily Mirror's Hope Not Hate campaign."

Over the next two weeks, our open-top Bristol Lodekker will visit many towns and cities, ending up in London on the day before the council elections on May 1. Along the way we'll drop in on soap stars, sporting heroes and politicians. And there will be exciting events to celebrate our country's rich culture - every thing from carnival dancers to brass bands, tikka masala to Lancashire hotpot.

We will carry the same message as last year - that modern Britain is a place of tolerance and diversity, where people of all races and religions can live and work together peacefully. As TV presenter Paul O'Grady says: "Support the Mirror's Hope Not Hate campaign - diversity is what makes this country special."

Every day a three-minute film will appear on the Mirror's website and on YouTube showing what we've been up to the previous day. You can also join our Facebook group to register your support. Never has that been more important than in the run up to the council elections. The far-right wants to divide us, spreading suspicion, fear and violence. The BNP - which doesn't even support the England football team because it has black players - wants to persuade people it is the patriotic party!

If you're proud to be British and to live in a diverse country that is the envy of other nations, come along and support our bus.

Daily Mirror

Sticky: Hope not Hate organising meeting

HOPE not Hate
London organising meeting
6pm Monday February 25th
TUC Congress House, Russell Street, London

Just a quick reminder that the next London Hope not Hate organising meeting is being held at 6pm on 25 February at the TUC headquarters at Congress House, Russell Street. A map is available by clicking here.

With the election only 11 weeks away it is vital we begin to organise. Over the next few months Searchlight and its partners are organising a rolling programme of activity.

We are also pleased to announce the support of the Daily Mirror newspaper. The Mirror is producing 750,000 copies of a special London edition and these will be distributed both within the main newspaper but also at dozens of activities over our Weekend of Hope (14-16 March). The final week of the campaign will see the Hope not Hate bus in the capital.

We hope you can make the meeting. The nearest tube stations are Tottenham Court Road and Holborn.

Celebrities call for vote for HOPE

Hope not Hate film uploaded

Searchlight has once again teamed up with the Daily Mirror to urge people to vote for HOPE not hate tomorrow.

In an open letter to readers in today's Mirror, celebrities such as footballers John Terry and Frank Lampard, singers Beverley Knight and Corinne Bailey Rae, businessmen Richard Branson and Alan Sugar, boxer Amir Khan and chef Jamie Oliver urge everyone not to vote for the BNP. Click here to view the Mirror's HOPE not hate website.

Searchlight has also produced a six-minute film of our HOPE not Hate bus tour of Britain. Covering 1,700 miles and visiting 30 towns and cities over 14 days, the tour combined celebrities and local community projects. The film includes messages from the Proclaimers, Sugarbabes and Amir Khan, music from Billy Bragg and short interviews with stars from EastEnders, Emmerdale and Coronation Street. Visit the HOPE not hate website here to view the film.

Searchlight has also produced a 12-page magazine on our HOPE not hate tour. This is available free to readers of this email by clicking here.

The BNP is standing 878 candidates across the UK. We know that the majority of people are opposed to the BNP's politics of hate but this means nothing if people do not get out and vote. We also know that not everything is perfect in Britain and many people are disillusioned with the political parties, but we urge you all to vote to stop the racists from winning. The BNP can only bring further division to our communities through their racism and lies and no one can benefit from that.

To understand the true politics of the BNP click here.

Truth is clear - BNP just want to stir up hatred

by Gordon Brown

I want to congratulate Searchlight and the Daily Mirror for organising this fantastic Hope Not Hate nationwide tour.

Celebrities including the Sugababes, actors from Coronation Street and The Bill, Amir Khan and Corinne Bailey Rae have rallied to support the campaign and stand against the bigotry and racism of the BNP.

More important, thousands of people in towns and cities right across Britain have backed the campaign too.

Just a few days ago 50,000 Searchlight newsletters were delivered in Sandwell in the West Midlands Black Country. Another 20,000 were put through doors in Dudley a few days earlier.

The story has been the same across the country - ordinary people from all races and religions, from all ages and backgrounds, coming together to celebrate what's best about modern Britain and tell people the truth about the BNP. And that truth is clear. The BNP are not a mainstream political party but a group of extremists trying to stir up division and hatred in those communities they are targeting.

WE all know there are problems in Britain. Our country is not perfect and we've still got a lot of work to do but the BNP don't have the answers. The vast majority of the British people know that support for the BNP is completely incompatible with the true nature of Britishness and the great British values of democracy and decency, freedom and fairness, tolerance and equality that the rest of us stand for.

Where we want to unite our country around the great British beliefs we all share of liberty for all, responsibility by all and fairness to all, the BNP want to divide our communities on the basis of the colour of your skin, where you were born or what you look like. They oppose any racial integration and even mixed marriages. They want to create a country where ethnic minorities are second under the law. They believe that people should be given preference in the jobs and housing market, and even in choice of schools on the basis of the colour of their skin, regardless of their ability, talents or contribution.

That is not what the vast majority of British people believe. We don't care what you look like or what colour you are - if you work hard and do your best, you can be part of our community. That's what matters to me. We're in it together and we work for each other. To me, that's what's best about Britain. That's what living in Britain is all about. And May 3 gives us all the opportunity to speak up for the great British values we all share, to make a stand against the BNP, to vote for hope - not hate.

Mirror

Hope not Hate Update: Day Eleven

We are entering the final stretch of the tour and it is really picking up momentum. The Daily Mirror is devoting more space to our activities, and local newspapers and radio stations are carrying their own reports.

There is a real buzz amongst the team. Maybe it is because the end is in sight but I would like to think that we are still on a high from Sandwell on Sunday. It is hard to describe just how brilliant the day was. A massive turnout of 221 people delivered over 45,000 newspapers in nine wards in the borough. We know from feedback from within the BNP that they are really gutted, none more so than BNP councillor Jamie Lloyd whose refusal to cooperate with police over a series of violent incidents dominated the front page of the local edition of our newspaper.

But mere figures can't express the brilliance of the day. There was a real buzz about the place and that certainly helped people do that extra bit of work to prevent the BNP from winning seats in May. There is already talk of another day of action in Sandwell before polling day.

Today we were in West Yorkshire and although the weather turned it was another great day. We began in Keighley where we met up with local folk from the Bracken Bank estate. This was once a firm base for the BNP but no more. Angela Sinfield, a woman who continues to inspire me, came along with several other mothers from the estate. It was people like her who led the fightback against the BNP and are now determined to work to improve the local area. The principal of the college was also there, telling us how her students were involved in a project to improve local community facilities.

Next stop was Bradford city centre. Bradford has had its problems over the years but there is a lot of great stuff going on locally that is rarely reported. One project involves former local BNP organiser Andy Sykes going into local schools to warn kids about the dangers of extremism. Tong School's head is the first to say that Andy's work has had a profound impact on the young people there.

In the afternoon we headed into Heckmondwike, in Kirklees. The BNP has a firm base here but Labour is running a really hard-hitting local campaign and becoming increasingly confident. A Brazilian band played outside the Morrisons car park while we distributed t-shirts, newspapers and badges.

In all three locations the local media covered our activities.

While most of the team headed over to our hotel in Leeds, Greg (one of the camera crew) and I returned to Bradford for the formal launch of Hope not Hate Yorkshire. Over 300 packed into a banqueting suite to hear Jon Cruddas MP, Marsha Singh MP, and host Imran Hussain welcome the campaign. The Hope not Hate workers, Paul Meszaros and Lorraine Fitzsimons, gave a brief summary of the campaign. Angela Sinfield was again on hand to stress the importance of tackling the tough issues. With the speeches over it was time for another curry – our sixth on the tour so far!

Greg and I eventually arrived at the hotel at 10pm. It had been another long day. Given that the others had been here since 5pm you would have thought they would at least have cleaned up the bus. But no, we found them in the bar … again.

Hope not Hate

Hope not Hate update: Day nine

This was the big one. A staggering 221 people delivered over 45,000 newspapers in the BNP's strongest area outside Barking & Dagenham. It was a truly inspiring day and an excellent start to the election campaign.

The Sandwell anti-BNP day of action might have been scheduled for Sunday 1 April but the work for this event had begun much earlier in the week. Over the last few days teams of activists had been bagging up the 50,000 newspapers into street walks, preparing food and information sheets. When we arrived at the African-Caribbean Resource Centre in West Bromwich we were greeted by the fruits of this work. Ten tables had been laid out, each containing newspapers for a specific ward. Everyone was signed in and a minibus ferried people across the borough.

It was a model of organisation.

The Mirror's Hope not Hate bus arrived at the centre at 10.15, a quarter of an hour before the day was advertised to start. However, by now, 61 people had already arrived and were off out leafleting. The All Nations Steel band, from the Albion estate in West Bromwich, set up in the hall and created a great atmosphere as more people poured in.

The bus moved off to the Great Bridge market where the steel band and Billy Bragg performed to shoppers while other people distributed newspapers. Several shoppers remarked that they had already received the newspaper through the door that morning. It was good to know that people were at least registering our material.

We knew the BNP would not be happy with our newspaper. While all our other editions carried a positive front page the people in Sandwell decided to have a more aggressive approach. 'Gangland Sandwell – what is the BNP councillor hiding' was the frontpage headline. The story went on to explain how the leader of the BNP council group, Jamie Lloyd, had his pub closed after a series of violent incidents, including a shooting and a machete attack, yet he refused to cooperate with the police, even withholding vital CCTV footage. What was more strange was that Lloyd had been the target of these attacks.

As the band played in the market the BNP began to arrive. First two women, then a 4x4 full of blokes. They sneered and stared, paraded their dogs and glared, but there was simply nothing they could do.

Back at the centre food was being served. Unfortunately the vegetarian chilli had been forgotten, which caused a bit of consternation amongst the vegetarians who were offered a plate of salad. However, Gurinder, a long-time friend of Searchlight, came to the rescue, ringing around the local Sikh temples and restaurants and soon pan loads of vegetable curry appeared.

Over 100 people went out for a second leafleting session and soon we were able to dismantle the tables. It was a great feeling seeing the huge piles of stuffed plastic bags disappear. To round off the day the Steel Band performed again and then Billy Bragg, who had been out leafleting twice, did a turn. The audience was fired up and dozens of people offered their help for the forthcoming campaign.

It is days like these that make all the hard work worthwhile.

Hope not Hate

City gets message as bands sound note against racism

Liverpool's Victoria monument was the backdrop to an anti-BNP concert yesterday.

The city’s only black woman councillor Anna Rothery was among the speakers at a rally ahead of the free Love Music Hate Racism event, in Derby Square outside the Queen Elizabeth II law courts.

Liverpool youth bands including all-girl R&B trio Miss Africa, Indie five piece We See Foxes, and GK and the Renegades all performed.

The event was organised by the national Hope Not Hate campaign, which aims to send a message that racists should not be elected. It coincided with anti-fascist week, organised by the Merseyside Coalition Against Racism & Fascism.

Spokesman Alec McFadden said: “We are well aware that the BNP is intending to stand candidates in the local elections and we are ‘getting our retaliation in first’ to quote a football saying. Wherever the racist parties stand in elections or distribute leaflets, a rise in racial tension and racist violence takes place.

“We are proud that no fascist has ever been elected to any public office in Merseyside and we intend for Merseyside to remain a fascist free zone.”

The national Hope Not Hate campaign is supported by actor Ricky Tomlinson, the magazine Searchlight, the Trades Union Congress and Trinity Mirror, which owns the Mirror newspapers and the Liverpool Daily Post, and sister title the Liverpool Echo.

Liverpool Daily Post

Anti-fascism Around The Country

Anti-fascists around the country have started campaigning against the threat posed by the British National Party (BNP) at the elections on 3 May.

Activists in the Yorkshire and Humberside region of Unite Against Fascism went leafleting last weekend in Leeds, Barnsley, York and Scarborough calling on people to use their votes against the Nazi BNP.

In the West Midlands, Unite leafleters, including Labour and Liberal Democrat councillors, covered Redditch’s Winyates ward. The BNP’s David Enderby gained a council seat there last year – but has since been convicted of assaulting his wife.

Unite campaigners in Luton will blitz the Farley Estate with anti-BNP leaflets this Saturday. Luton Unite is calling on people to assemble at 10.30am at the Farley Community Centre on Delphine Way.

Meanwhile Love Music Hate Racism (LMHR) has kicked off a national tour of universities to build support for the movement against the Nazis.

Full details of the tour are available at http://www.lovemusichateracism.com/

LMHR has also teamed up with the NUT and NASUWT teaching unions to launch a range of anti-fascist educational material for schools. This includes a CD compiled by Drew McConnell of Babyshambles which will be distributed free to schools across Britain.

Activists in the GMB trade union in Barking & Dagenham, east London, turned out last Saturday to campaign against the BNP in nearby Thurrock, Essex, as part of the Daily Mirror’s “Hope Not Hate” tour.

Tom Baillie, branch secretary of Barking GMB, told Socialist Worker, “The majority of people in this borough reject the fascist politics of the BNP – and we’re out to show that.”

http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/article.php?article_id=11036

Socialist Worker