How do you Combat Fascism?

We’ve all seen the violent riots staged by far-right thugs in towns from Southport and Hartlepool to London.

What can you do to combat this?

There’s no easy answer. Combatting the rise of fascism is one theme that Campaigns Committee is now working on.

We have just launched a "Greens Against Fascism” flatpack with advice and ideas you can use, including a placard/poster that you can download and print off.

We also warmly applaud the leadership shown by Green councillor Mothin Ali in Leeds in bringing his community together in the face of those who seek to divide it and inflame violent unrest.

Laughter is the best medicine

The worst thing we can do is respond to violence with violence. Fascism feeds on violence and chaos. Politicians of the far right aim to use fear of violence to win votes on the promise to “restore law and order”.

By contrast, your best bet is to keep your sense of humour. You may have read that the leader of the French Greens fought the French far-right with humour. The extreme right hate nothing more than being laughed at.

Download your flatpack now

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Green MPs bring fresh energy to Westminster

Meanwhile, it’s been an incredible month for the Green Party – the biggest Green vote ever at a general election and four brilliant new Green MPs at Westminster!

They’re already making a big impact, speaking up for climate, environment and social justice. After 14 years of Tory misrule, a new government opens up exciting possibilities for positive change that our Green MPs will be pushing for at every opportunity – as will Campaigns Committee.

Carla Denyer

And it was great to see several of our campaigning themes mentioned in their maiden speeches in Parliament. Follow the links to access campaign materials on all the issues they've spoken about.

Bristol’s first Green MP, Carla Denyer, highlighted the housing crisis and the need to give councils the power to introduce rent controls. As she noted:

“Private rents in Bristol have increased by 52% over the last decade, while wages have not even increased by a quarter. This is an untenable situation, but one that around half my constituents find themselves in as private renters.”

Carla also looked forward to a future where the UK can rejoin the EU, and deplored the damage to the UK’s reputation caused by our government’s refusal to clearly condemn the Israeli government’s war crimes in Gaza.​

​Adrian Ramsay

Fresh from winning Waveney Valley in Suffolk – a feat many imagined to be impossible – Adrian spoke of the horror his constituents feel about the state of their rivers, and called for our campaign for tackling the sewage scandal to be made a top government priority.
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Like Carla, he also underlined the extreme urgency of the climate emergency and the insanity of opening up new North Sea oilfields.

Ellie Chowns

Ellie achieved one of the biggest swings of the election when she unseated a seemingly impregnable Tory MP in North Herefordshire, spoke of the desperate need for new social housing, and for this to be “accompanied by the right infrastructure so that health, education and transport services are not put under yet more strain”.

She also highlighted the need to repair and properly fund our NHS, and to reward public-spirited health workers “not just with warm words and applause, but with training bursaries and salaries that keep pace with inflation”.

Sian Berry

In her maiden speech, Sian paid tribute to the remarkable legacy of Caroline Lucas, her trailblazing Green predecessor in Brighton Pavilion:

“I know that all of us sitting here today are humbly aiming to live up to the high standards, values and work ethic that she represented, and to serve here with the same energy and enthusiasm.”

Sian particularly noted “Caroline’s steadfast and long-standing opposition to threats to the public’s right to protest” – another of out long-standing campaigns - and a threat that was very much underlined by the savage jail sentences meted out to peaceful Just Stop Oil protesters earlier this month.

In stark contrast to both Labour and Tory governments kowtowing to roads being blocked by farmers and truckers, protesting against fuel costs and food imports.

It will be interesting, too, to see how the sentences handed to peaceful Green protesters compares with those given to the far-right thugs arrested last week.

Yours – nevertheless - with renewed hope for a Green future!

Campaigns Committee

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