ATTACKS ON SHARON GRAHAM

IN THE OBSERVER on Michael Savage reported on Sun 27 Jun 2021

The only woman running to be the next leader of the powerful Unite union has revealed that she received “disgraceful” online abuse for refusing to stand aside for two more prominent male rivals.

Sharon Graham, who has attracted an unexpected level of grassroots support, said she experienced a “rough ride” after refusing to end her campaign. She said troll accounts had mocked up pictures of her as Margaret Thatcher, and she had warned her family that she might lose her job because of the row.

Graham has been criticised for refusing to engage in talks to agree on a single leftwing unity candidate to replace Len McCluskey, a key supporter of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour leadership. Howard Beckett, a vehement critic of Keir Starmer, has pulled out to support the frontrunner, Steve Turner. The left is determined to defeat Gerard Coyne, seen as more supportive of Starmer. Graham, however, remains in the race.

“Being a woman in the trade union movement, and obviously a woman who has gone up against some of the most hostile of employers, I’m really used to being in difficult situations – so it takes a lot to rock me,” she said. “But I can understand why people don’t run against the establishment. We’re not in a playground picking football teams. This is the leader of one of the most significant unions in Britain and Ireland.

“I was never going to be involved in doing deals. This is the problem we have in the movement. There’s a moment in time, right now, where the union needs to be doing what I’m suggesting – it needs to go back to the workplace. And I believe that the membership wants this choice.”

Graham, who received a surprising 349 nominations from some of the union’s most powerful branches, said that none of her supporters had asked her to pull out. She said troll accounts had been sending her abuse, including disparaging mocked-up pictures, after her refusal to stand down. “I thought it was disgraceful,” she said. “If you’re a woman in a leadership role, it’s all the usual sexist stuff that you hear. It will never deter me. Maybe they’re a bit worried I might win.”

Graham said that the union movement had reached a “crisis point” and a non-established figure was needed to return Unite to its main cause of representing workers and end “an obsession” with the Labour party.

“I absolutely feel that we are at a crisis point in the trade union movement,” she said. “I don’t think I’m over-egging that. The union movement is on life support. For way too long, and it has happened over years and years, we have moved away from our core business. We have got to get back to the workplace. It is absolutely critical that we get back to doing what is on the trade union tin. If we cannot do that, then I think the union movement will be irreparable in years to come.”

She added: “I don’t have any regional secretary backing me. That’s the machine,” she said. “Every person supporting me has gone against their region. They’re doing it against the regime. We’re in this to really make change.”

Unite remains Labour’s biggest donor. Graham said that there would be no “blank cheques” for Labour under her leadership, but that the party would have “no problem with me” if it pursued policies that improved the condition of workers.

“This obsession at the moment with the Labour party, almost like we’re a branch of it, has made us weaker, unfortunately. Yes, politics matters. But the Labour party has effectively almost become the centre of discussions, when in fact jobs, pay and conditions should be the centre.”

She said women had been “let down” by unions, who had failed to adapt to the new industries in which women are over-represented. “This is not pin money that women are turning out for,” she said. “They’re often doing more than one job. Without a shadow of a doubt, in the post-Covid world, they will essentially lose their jobs more [without union help]. I genuinely feel that we have let women down.”

**********************************************************************

Men, Women, Covid and Risk by Les May

A RECENT article on the BBC news website was headed; ‘Covid: Teachers "not at higher risk" of death than average’. But buried within it was a more interesting take on who in the working age population, that’s 20 to 64 year olds, are at the greatest risk of death from Covid 19.

The ONS looked at death rates from coronavirus in England and Wales between 9 March and 28 December 2020. It found 31 in every 100,000 working-age men and 17 in every 100,000 working-age women had died of Covid-19. This equated to just under 8,000 deaths among 20-64-year-olds. (Which you will note is rather higher than the ‘Anti-lockdown brigade’ would have us believe) Two-thirds of these deaths were among men.

The same pattern emerged among teachers when primary and secondary staff were taken together. There were 18 deaths per 100,000 among men and 10 per 100,000 among women. These figures are of course both less than for the whole population. Breaking that down by role, the figures for secondary school teachers were 39 deaths per 100,000 people in men and 21 per 100,000 in women. These figures are of course both more than for the whole population.

Amongst nurses the same pattern appeared, 79 male nurses per 100,000 and 25 female nurses per 100,000. For care workers it was 110 men per 100,000 and 47 women per 100,000.

Even if secondary teachers were at higher risk than some other professional jobs where few or no deaths have occurred it is nothing like the risks faced by non-professionals.

Per 100,000 men aged 20-64, the figures were 119 restaurant and catering staff, 106 metal-working machine operatives, 101 taxi drivers and 100 security guards. These compare with a figure of 31 per 100,000 for the working age male population as a whole. In approximately comparable roles for women the figures per 100,000 were 27 retail and sales assistants and 22 cleaners. In summary people working in insecure, low paid have suffered a higher death rate than ‘professionals’ and amongst them men have been significantly more at risk than women.

There’s nothing new in this. This is what I wrote in an article for Northern Voices last June with the title Levelling The Gradient. ‘There is little appetite in the UK for recognising the effects of our very unequal society on the lives of our citizens, irrespective of their skin colour. Even when studies to examine the impact of inequality are done, their findings are ignored. And it’s not just the Tories who are wilfully blind. In February two of the candidates for the Labour leadership felt that a Jewish pressure group and a ‘trans’ pressure group needed their public support, but when the Marmot review which looked at differences in health outcomes appeared later in the month it had zero impact on the campaign.

The media gave prominence to only one finding; that 'Female life expectancy declined in the most deprived 10 percent of neighbourhoods’ and ignored both the large disparity in life expectancy (LE) between people of higher and people of lower economic and social status, and that, irrespective of economic status women tend to live longer than men. (see page 18, Figure 2.4) reported in the review. (my emphasis).

http://www.instituteofhealthequity.org/resources-reports/marmot-review-10-years-on/the-marmot-review-10-years-on-full-report.pdf

These disparities also exist with regard to the disability free life expectancy (DFLE), i.e. the number of years of life someone will have free from disability. The review referred to these differences as forming a ‘social gradient’.

What the review showed was that in England, the difference in life expectancy at birth between the least deprived 10% of the population and the most deprived 10% was more than 9 years for men and more than 7 years for women. Life expectancy at birth for men living in the most deprived areas in England was 74 years, compared with 83 years in the least deprived areas; the corresponding figures for women were 79 and 86 years in 2016-18. (see pages 15-17, figures 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3) in the review.’

The British Left has become obsessed with ‘Institutional Racism’. I would like to see more attention paid to ‘Institutional Inequality’.

*******************************************************

Levelling The Gradient

by Les May

A COUPLE of weeks ago Kirsty Wark, the presenter of the BBC Two news and current affairs programme Newsnight, introduced an item which was supposed to deal with the question of discrimination in Britain using as an example the fact that there ‘weren’t many black CEOs’ (Chief Executive Officers). This intro told us little about whether there really is discrimination, and a lot about Wark’s priorities.

The assumption that you can lump all black, brown, Asian people together and label them BAME is a favourite modus operandi of armchair sociologists and media pundits.  This lazy approach to avoid thinking more deeply is akin to what has been called the ‘ecological fallacy’.  One example of this is the assumption that if one group is found to have, say a higher average income than another, then all members of the first group will have higher incomes than anyone in the second group. This is clearly nonsense.  Some individuals in the second group will be doing very nicely thank you and have incomes which are much higher than many of the people in either of the groups.   I have little doubt that Wark is significantly more wealthy than a very large number of white and non-white people alike.  She certainly has more power and influence.

By concentrating on single issues the questions raised by the huge inequalities in income, wealth, power and status we experience in the UK get ignored.  People like Wark give no sign of wanting to disturb the status quo and the hierarchies it fosters.  Without exploring the variation in income etc within BAME and white population we can never be sure that we are not mistaking differences caused by inequality as being caused by discrimination.

Is the observation, and at the moment it is just an observation, that people in the BAME population seem to be disproportionately affected by Covid 19 disease due to the factors which also disadvantage many of the white population, such as huge differences in income, wealth etc?  Asking this does not exclude the possibility that it results from discrimination, cultural norms or the prevalence of morbidities caused by so called ‘lifestyle’ factors such as diet and exercise, which in turn may themselves be a reflection of differences in wealth.

There is little appetite in the UK for recognising the effects of our very unequal society on the lives of our citizens, irrespective of their skin colour.  Even when studies to examine the impact of inequality are done, their findings are ignored. And it’s not just the Tories who are wilfully blind.  In February two of the candidates for the Labour leadership felt that a Jewish pressure group and a ‘trans’ pressure group needed their public support, but when the Marmot review which looked at differences in health outcomes appeared later in the month it had zero impact on the campaign.

The media gave prominence to only one finding; that ‘Female life expectancy declined in the most deprived 10 percent of neighbourhoods’ and ignored both the large disparity in life expectancy (LE) between people of higher and people of lower economic and social status, and that, irrespective of economic status women tend to live longer than men. (see page 18, Figure 2.4) reported in the review. (my emphasis).

http://www.instituteofhealthequity.org/resources-reports/marmot-review-10-years-on/the-marmot-review-10-years-on-full-report.pdf

These disparities also exist with regard to the disability free life expectancy (DFLE), i.e. the number of years of life someone will have free from disability.  The review referred to these differences as forming a ‘social gradient’.

What the review showed was that in England, the difference in life expectancy at birth between the least deprived 10% of the population and the most deprived 10% was more than 9 years for men and more than 7 years for women.  Life expectancy at birth for men living in the most deprived areas in England was 74 years, compared with 83 years in the least deprived areas; the corresponding figures for women were 79 and 86 years in 2016-18. (see pages 15-17, figures 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3) in the review.

With regard to disabilities in later life the review said, ‘The social gradient in disability-free life expectancy is steeper than the gradient in life expectancy.  As a result, people living in areas with more disadvantage not only expect to live a shorter life, but also to spend more of that shorter life with a limiting long-term illness.’ (my emphasis)

The effect of ongoing and future rises in the age at which people become eligible to receive a state pension (SPA) will be felt most strongly by those of lower economic status (aka ‘the least well off’).  Only people in the least deprived 20—30% of areas will reach SPA before they can expect to develop a disability. Those in the more deprived areas will spend years with a disability before they reach SPA.

The Marmot review simply referred to ‘people’; not ‘black’ people, not ‘brown’ people, not ‘minority ethnic’ people, just people.  There seems to be no data on differences in life expectancy between these groups and ‘white’ people which are free of the influence of the socio-economic characteristics of the areas in which they live, i.e. the ‘social gradient’.

It is not unreasonable to assume that the differences in life expectancy (LE) and disability free life expectancy (DFLE), which show a clear gradient with socio-economic status, will be equally applicable to these groups also.   Getting a few more ‘black’, ‘brown’, ‘ethnic’ faces around boardroom tables will have no positive impact on the life chances of the people who happen to have the same skin colour.

We have heard a lot in recent weeks about ‘flattening the curve’.  When we know that there is a socio-economic gradient which means that women and men in affluent areas have a life expectancy at birth which is 7-9 years longer than those in poor areas, then I would suggest we direct our collective effort to ‘levelling the gradient’.

Obsessing over ‘race’, to the exclusion of all other considerations is a form of identity politics which allows people, who by any reasonable measure are privileged, to pose and be seen as, victims.   This comment is equally applicable to other forms of identity politics.   I would suggest that it is the inequalities in the UK of income, wealth and power which should be the main focus of attention for those of us who see ourselves as being ‘of the Left’ and not the politics of identity.  This would benefit far more people than a narrow focus on skin colour, sex, gender or preferred sexual partner.

*******************************8

If Black Lives Matter Then Show It

by Les May

ROLLING statues into a nearby dock or demanding they be removed because of something the figure’s father did may give a warm glow of self-satisfaction to those doing it.   But if you really do think that ‘black lives matter’ is more than a slogan, then why not do something practical?

If an African child is unfortunate enough to be born with a cleft palette or similar disfigurement they are likely to suffer ridicule, ostracism and eventually find it difficult to earn a living.  To put it right takes an operation that in UK money costs about £150

If an African child has ingrowing eyelashes blinking is a torture.  It is often the result of an infection with the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis.  Repeated infections cause permanent blindness. Infections can be eliminated by antibiotics costing as little as 15p per dose.

There are charities which work to raise money to rectify both these conditions Smile Train and SightSavers respectively.  Others such as WaterAid work to bring basic things like clean water and sanitation to people who lack them.

None of these problems result from colonialism.  They are the contingencies of life that some people have to face because of where they happen to live in the world.  You don’t have to be a Christian to understand, ‘There but for the grace of God go I’.

https://smiletrain.org.uk/

https://www.sightsavers.org/

https://www.wateraid.org/uk/why-wateraid

******************

Do we need to address 'Not Counting Niggers'?

AS I write statues are being toppled and historical figures are being denounced for alleged 'racism' and trading in slavery.  Dare I say it, it is as if a retrospective 'blacklist' is being drawn up by energetic individuals all over the world.

Back in July 1939, George Orwell wrote a telling essay for Adelphi entitled 'Not Counting Niggers' in which he questions what he calls the humbug of left wing politics generally towards what were then described as 'the dependencies'.  The long list of British dependencies as they were then called in the 1930s, were really the off-shore British proletariat.

Or as Orwell had it in 1939:
'What we always forget is that the overwhelming bulk of the British proletariat does not live in Britain, but in Asia and Africa.  It is not in Hitler's power, for instance, to make a penny an hour a normal industrial wage; it is perfectly normal in India, and we are at great pains to keep it so... It is quite common for an Indian coolie's leg to be thinner than the average Englishman's arm.  And there is nothing racial in this, for well-fed members of the same races are of normal physique; it is due to starvation.  This is a system which we live on and which we denounce when there seems to be no danger of it being altered.'

The fact is that over the last few centuries the people of these islands have all benefited from imperialism including the working classes. 

******************

Do Black Lives Matter?

  by John Wilkins

DISCRIMINATION of people from whatever social/ethnic group must be discouraged. Debate on Brexit unduly focussed on immigration, which sadly encouraged some with little knowledge of the benefits over centuries of immigration, to justify their xenophobia against East Europeans, people from BAME heritage and others.  Now we are faced with the apparent disproportionate infection and deaths in the BAME community and the renewed focus on discrimination by police forces in the US, and to a degree this country, against people of colour.   If we agree that discrimination is wrong, then it becomes far worse when it is institutionalised.

However, I want to focus on why people from African and Caribbean heritage need all our support.  My views on how we got to impasse were reinforced when I listened to a black health care assistant on ITV news.  She was sacked for complaining about poor quality of PPE and leaving work to get her own.   On her return to her shift she was fired.  Interviewer Emily Morgan asked her what her mother, a nurse, would have done in the same situation. The lady said her mother would have been more compliant and accepted the situation without complaining.

This anecdote sums up the problem faced by the black people here and particularly in the US. Centuries of abuse have taught many to be compliant in order to firstly survive and then get educated, certainly if they wish to progress in society.  Why else would a some black people, including a lawyer on Channel 4 News, be so vociferous in defending Trump's handling of the protests over the killing of George Floyd?

As the song goes:  'The times they are a changing'. Large - scale protests in the US and across the world have been swelled by people of diverse ethnicity with one placard I like saying 'White silence = violence'. EU's Fundamental Rights Group stated that EU countries 'must try to eradicate discrimination, harassment and violence against black people'.  They also admitted that 'racial harassment, violence and discriminatory ethnic profiling are commonplace in Europe'.

Violence rarely succeeds in reversing discrimination, it often leads to greater violence.  What can be the way forward?  Black representation needs to increase in police and politics in particular, with more at the top of those fields and in the boardroom.  I will make my observations first before quoting from two leading black voices.

Now married to a Nigerian I have spent a lot of time contacting my previous MP about the worsening situation there with regard to sectarian violence in Nigeria.  Try as I could I found little real desire to speak out by African friends and found some dismissive of it as a problem.  I found a lot of Africans are happy to talk politics but do not wish to get actively involved.  Which is why I was saddened that one Nigerian, Deyika Nzeribe, was so involved he put up to challenge Andy Burnham for the Mayor of Greater Manchester, but tragically passed away shortly before the elections were held.

So I would like to echo the plea that Lord Simon Woolley made at a Black History Month event at Manchester Cathedral last year. #  He brought a few young people forward at the end of his presentation and urged them to work with their community and if possible get involved in politics.

Next a few comments which I found from Charles Critchlow, formerly National Chair of BAPA (Black and Asian Police Association).  Speaking from 30 years experience in the police he says “Black Representation matters greatly, but Black police leaders are of little use in the struggle for racial justice as long as they are selected, nurtured and developed exclusively within a system that maintains white supremacy”.  He adds: “Racism is so hardwired within the British system and psyche that it’s often impossible to penetrate”.  Therefore “this is why we need to develop our leadership as much as possible, independent of this poisonous system”.

Other groups have suffered from discrimination but have have found the ability to organise and get more involved in the political landscape and have been more vocal.  Although it is understandable that people from different backgrounds band together, this can lead, and has led, to those with the weakest voice losing out. In many cultures a black person is placed at the bottom of the pile.  Accounts of Nigerians' treatment in China and Chinese exploitation of Africa shows contempt for black people.  With regard to the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, a ritual to promote the bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood by showing everyone equal in the eyes of Allah, there seems a hierarchy.   I am told by black Muslims it is Arabs first, SE Asian second and black Muslims bottom.  In S. Africa, even after apartheid it is whites followed by Asians, with most blacks at the bottom.  Even in the English language black has a surfeit of bad connotations, eg. black looks, blacklisted, black sheep of the family, black market, blackmail etc.

I will finish on a positive note. I see many young black voices coming out to seek an end to racism improve well-being and standing of the black community.  A local group here in Greater Manchester, CAHN (Caribbean and African Health Network), has raised awareness of medical problems more prevalent in their communities, such as diabetes, lupus, sickle cell etc.  They have also raised the profile of the black community through helping in events like Black History Month, remembering the Windrush generation as well as their health seminars.

I hope that the black voices will be more strident to chip away at decades of indifference to their plight.  Three things need to happen: stronger family units, better education and more political involvement.   Education is now more valued but there is, as Charles Critchlow says, a need for black leaders to come forward who can 'maintain a firm connectedness with the hopes and aspirations of our people and be in the vanguard of true black empowerment, this is the challenge for us in the 21 st. century'.   I hope we can use the evil of police brutality in the killing of George Floyd can be a catalyst for real change in reducing racism in ALL its forms.

# Lord Simon Woolley is a political and equalities activist.  He is the founder and CEO of Operation Black Vote and the Chair of the Prime Minister’s Race Disparity Unit.

******************

WOW-take a deep breath and give this a listen

 Forwarded to NorthernVoices by Dave Chapple

 

WOW-take a deep breath and give this a listen: 

Hope she's active in a trade union!

Can the TUC get Kimberley over to the UK for  BLM speaking tour?

:  https://www.instagram.com/tv/CBGUPgBApio/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

 *****************************

 Don’t think she’d be too upset about Colston going to a watery grave.

Trevor Noah on Instagram: “@kimberlylatricejones @djonesmedia” 190.5k Likes, 10.2k Comments - Trevor Noah (@trevornoah) on Instagram: “@kimberlylatricejones @djonesmedia” www.instagram.com

Why I Won’t Vote for Andy Burnham

by Les May

IN a few weeks time Andy Burnham will be soliciting my vote in an attempt to persuade me to re-elect him as Mayor of Greater Manchester in the poll to be held on 7 May 2020.  He will be wasting his time.

I have voted Labour all my life, but I will not give my support to any candidate who promotes policies which deliberately discriminate against people on the basis of their sex.

Burnham has been pursuing a policy which does just this since 2018 when he introduced a scheme to issue bus passes to those born between October 6, 1953 and November 5,1954 and hence too young to qualify for an English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS) pass, BUT ONLY IF THEY WERE FEMALE.  He now proposes to extend this to women born between November 6, 1954 and April 5, 1955.

However you care to wrap it up this is deliberate, systematic discrimination on the basis of a persons sex.  Imagine the outcry if Burnham introduced a scheme offering bus passes to people in this age group, but insisting that only those who were white would be eligible.

Men and women in that age group received exactly the same notice that the age at which they would become eligible for a State Retirement Pension and hence an ENCTS pass was being raised to 66 years. Does being a man make someone less deserving than if they are a woman?

Burnham needs holding to account for this.  The majority of people doing the ‘grunt work’ in our society are men. Feminists don’t seem to have been quite so enthusiastic about getting more women into these kind of jobs.  Perhaps it is time for men to press their unions to ask Burnham for some answers.

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/transpot-free-bus-pass-women-17693595

https://tfgm.com/tickets-and-passes/womens-concessionary-travel-scheme

https://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/services/freedom-pass/tfl-60-london-oyster-photocard

******************

Rochdale Council and Institutional Racism

by Les May

I BELIEVE that Rochdale Council is tainted by institutional racism.  I rest this claim upon the fact that its members appear to base some decisions about whether to act to give some sort of leadership to the people of Rochdale upon skin colour and ethnic origin.  The evidence I have for this is the response, and in most cases, lack of response, I received when I sent an open letter to all members of Rochdale Council regarding an attack on four white tree surgeons by a gang of about twenty Asian men in the Newbold area of Rochdale.

I provide below three paragraphs of this letter.

I am writing to you not as a representative of a political party, or of a particular ward, or because you happen to have been born with skin of a particular colour, but as someone who was elected to represent the people of Rochdale.

Two weeks ago the Rochdale Observer reported that a thug who had been ‘disrespected’ in ‘his country’ organised a gang of about twenty males who were armed with weapons such as knuckledusters, claw hammers and an axe to attack four men working as tree surgeons.  One of the men had his hand hacked off in the attack. Before the attack the four men had been called ‘white bastards’.

In the name of common decency I call upon all councillors, both individually and collectively, to condemn this attack and the language which preceded it, by bringing a motion to this effect before the full Council at its next meeting.

The full letter can be read at:

http://northernvoicesmag.blogspot.com/2019/11/an-open-letter-to-rochdale-councillors.html

I print below the responses that I received from individual councillors and my reply to them.  As I believe that the racism is present at an institutional level because it exists as a shared understanding, whether conscious or unconscious, amongst members of Rochdale Council that some things must never be drawn attention to, I have chosen to remove the name and anything that would identify individual Councillors.  This was impossible to do without mutilating the response in one case so I have excluded it.

Dear Mr May

Thank you for the information of which I knew nothing.  Unfortunately the next Council meeting is a short meeting with no motions due to the Freeman and Alderman meetings to follow.  I will discuss with colleagues, but if I had been asked for a comment I would condemn this attack as indeed I would any attack regardless of colour, creed or sexuality.  There is no support for any form of violence I would hope from any member of Council, and this and any attack should be condemned by all.

Dear Councillor ***,

Thank you for your response to my e-mail.

I believe that this is a matter of such importance to the promotion of harmonious relations within the town that I would like to see it debated and condemned by the full Council at a later meeting, if the next one is not appropriate.  This is the reason I have written to every councillor in every ward in the town, I believe it should be condemned by every councillor both individually and collectively.

If you or your colleagues wish to obtain further information a report which includes material taken from the court hearing can be found in the Rochdale Observer of 23 October and on the GMP website below.

https://www.gmp.police.uk/news/greater-manchester/news/news/2019/october/Four-men-have-been-jailed-for-their-part-in-a-brutal-gang-attack-which-left-a-man-with-life-changing-injuries-after-being-hit-with-an-axe-in-Rochdale/

I would be grateful if you would share this with your colleagues.

Les May

Hi Les

I have no idea why you’d want me to comment on this particular incident, given I have never commented on any police investigation.  I’ve had a look through my inbox and it seems you’ve never emailed me before demanding I call out racist attacks in Rochdale.  I have no idea why this one might be different.

It seems to me that the legal system has dealt with the criminals - not being involved in the case or having any legal training, I can’t say either way whether there are any issues here.

To be honest it’s the first I’ve heard of this terrible incident, not some cover up of anti-white racism.

It’s a shocking incident.  All racism is wrong.

Do you have any potholes or grot spots in **** I can help with?

Dear Councillor ***,

Given the nature of the incident which involved an unprovoked attack by a gang of up to 20 young men armed with an axe, knuckledusters and a claw hammer on four workmen which resulted in one of those attacked having his hand chopped off, I think it is self evident why some comment is needed.   I am not aware that there has been an attack of such a nature in Rochdale before.  I am not asking you to 'call out' racism, which I note that you clearly identify this attack as being tainted with, I am asking that you use your best endeavours to have this attack debated and condemned by the council.  Twenty young men being assembled quickly and carrying weapons, coupled with the use of the term 'my country' by the leader who claimed he had been 'disrespected', suggests to me that what we have here is a case of gangsterism which may well spread into the wider community. I would like to see it halted before it does.

This attack was reported on the front page of the Rochdale Observer of Wednesday 23 October 2019, so quite a lot of people will be familiar with it.

I should add that every councillor in Rochdale has received the e-mail I sent you.   I will file your response along with theirs.

Les May

Hi les

Thank you for including me in your email.  I have and always will stand up against any form of racism and will continue to do so

Regards *** ***

Dear ***,

This is not about racism, though there are clearly racist overtones. It is essentially 'gangsterism' when someone justifies the attack by saying he has been 'disrespected' in 'his country'.  That is why I want it condemned by councillors individually and collectively. The racism will be if there is an unwillingness to condemn it because it was carried out by up to 20 young men identified as Asian.

Les May

Hi Les,

I am saddened to hear what you have alluded to in your email. ******* I am not aware of the matter you mention but will establish the facts and contact relevant officers.   I apologise that you have not had a response before now.  Please let me have a few more details abut the incident such as when, where etc it occurred. I realise you may be further upset by my asking for this but it will save me some time.  I am grateful. ***

Dear ***,

Thank you for your very positive response.

The incident occured on October 17, 2017 and came to court in October 2019.  It was reported in the Rochale Observer of 23 October but the story was very garbled and differs somewhat from what was reported on the Greater Manchester Police website. I have given the link below.

https://www.gmp.police.uk/news/greater-manchester/news/news/2019/october/Four-men-have-been-jailed-for-their-part-in-a-brutal-gang-attack-which-left-a-man-with-life-changing-injuries-after-being-hit-with-an-axe-in-Rochdale/

Although there is a racial element in this attack which I think has deterred people from commenting on it, the main problem appears to be gangsterism.  If this is indeed the case it will be very detrimental to everyone in Rochdale and especially in Newbold.  I believe there was a similar, but much less serious, incident in the Greave area during the summer.   This is why I would like it condemned by individual councillors, and debated and condemned by the full Council.

Thank you again for your positive response.

Les May

I have absolutely no doubt that had this been an attack on four Asian men by a gang of some twenty white males armed with an axe, knuckledusters and a claw hammer, it would have been publicly condemned by most, and probably all, of our Councillors.  I believe that this view would be shared by many people in Rochdale. If this belief is correct then our Councillors do not represent the views of the people of Rochdale.

I can only offer four possible reasons for the unwillingness of Councillors to go on the public record and condemn this attack for what it is; gangsterism exacerbated by racial abuse.  These are: a desire to keep certain councillors ‘on side’, a desire not to alienate what is seen an individual Councillor’s ‘natural constituency’, a fear of being called ‘racist’ by others and not considering an attack in which a young man had his hand hacked off with an axe to be sufficiently serious that it has to be publicly condemned.

To Rochdale Councillors I say this: ‘Telling me in a private e-mail that you are not racist and how you have always been against it, is not good enough.   I will start to believe you actually understand what racism is when I see that you are willing to stand up and be counted by publicly condemning gangsterism and similar crimes, irrespective of who the perpetrators are’.

I stand by my belief that Rochdale Council is tainted with institutional racism.

*******************

Northern Zionists Score Spectacular Own Goal!

by Chris Draper

WHEN “North-West Friends of Israel” (NWFOI) and other assorted Zionists tried to provoke a city-wide boycott of an “Interfaith Conference for Palestine” they got more than they bargained for when their bigoted and abusive behaviour was exposed and denounced by Chester community leader Roderick Heather MBE.

The free entry, open-to-all conference was due to begin at St Columba’s Church, Chester on 1^st November 2019 but forty-eight hours before it convened a wolfpack spearheaded by NWFOI and led by Anthony Dennison and Raphi Bloom, bombarded Chester’s numerous church halls and community venues with telephone calls, emails and social media messaging all warning them not to host this conclave of “Anti-Semites, Holocaust Deniers and Hate-Speakers”.  Unfortunately for the bigots after they succeeded in bullying the Bishop of Shrewsbury into cancelling the church booking the Conference found an ideal alternative at Hoole Community Centre where the Chairman of the Trustees, Roderick Heather courageously withstood a barrage of intimidatory NWFOI communications.

Unlike the local Labour MP Chris Matheson who ignorantly obliged local reporters with prejudiced and ill-informed comments of the “We don’t want holocaust deniers in our town” type, Roderick Heather actually took the trouble to attend the conference as an observer and judge for himself whether this was indeed an anti-semitic event or rather, a free, open-minded conference which included criticism of Israeli State policy.

After spending a day at the Conference, Mr Heather informed those attending that he was very impressed by the content of speeches, quality of discussion and conduct of the meeting and assured everyone present that they would always be welcome to return to the Hoole Centre.  This contrasted with his conclusions about the behaviour of the NWFOI and to them he addressed the following message;

“Your intervention (and the various other coordinated extreme ones we received today) did nothing to help foster good community relations here in Chester or to improve the understanding and sympathy for the Jewish cause nationally in the UK.  The ill-informed and bigoted telephone and social media campaign that we have witnessed today is a disgrace.  It was unfounded and unnecessary and has done your cause much harm. Be aware that I am ensuring that as many people as possible (locally and nationally) are made aware of the vitriolic, verbal bullying we have been subjected to today.”

Roderick Heather MBE

Chairman Hoole Community Trust

The North’s Zionist lobby is demonstrably determined to intimidate anyone who sticks their head above the parapet and criticises Israel.  The tactic is to conflate criticism of Israel with anti-semitism. Jews who criticise Israel (like those who attended the Chester conference) are branded “self-hating Jews” and dismissed. Archbishop Tutu describes Israel as an apartheid state but merely to agree with him is sufficient grounds for anyone to be expelled from the Labour Party.  Free speech is a precious commodity that’s found a friend in Mr Heather and sinister enemies in NWFOI.  Perhaps Mr Dennison, Mr Bloom,  Mr Matheson or the Bishop of Shrewsbury would care to reply and offer a justification for their appalling behaviour but I rather think not for they evidently fear quiet, honest, open, reasoned debate.

************************