IT’S very easy to point the finger of ridicule at “Covid deniers,” “anti-vaxxers” and other conspiracy theorists — but in fact we need to recognise that very large numbers of people, particularly working-class people who have been worst affected by the pandemic, are becoming increasingly angry that their lives have been turned upside down, and may give such populism a hearing if our movement doesn’t give a powerful lead.

These are people who are often confined to cramped housing, their jobs destroyed or threatened, increasingly unable to make ends meet and care for their families, having to turn to foodbanks, separated even from family support, ripped off by profiteers, worried that they may be kicked out of their homes — all as a result of the government’s big business priorities.

Ministers’ handling of the virus crisis has been both callous and at the same time incompetent — so why would working-class people not want to protest and take some sort of action — perhaps any sort of action?

But their growing anger is in danger of being channelled into equally dangerous populist expressions of “resistance,” not just by conspiracy theorists of the most bizarre kind, but by the far right and fascist grouplets who, whatever they say, are determined to let the crisis-ridden, corrupt capitalist system off the hook and turn anger elsewhere.

At the moment, they are squabbling and fighting between themselves, as we saw at Saturday’s “freedom rally” in Trafalgar Square, which attracted very significant numbers of angry people. 

But before they begin to make any sort of sense to the hundreds of thousands — millions, even — of people whose lives are being devastated by the government’s cynical manipulation of the crisis, the working-class labour and progressive movement must give a clear and direct lead in terms of why we are where we are and what needs to be done. 

We need to be the most angry and the most resistant to the continuing government class-based abuses and incompetence — and the trade unions that have recruited so many tens of thousands of new members must take the lead in this, adding real strength to community organisations such as the People’s Assembly.

Last Saturday, David Icke strutted around the base of Nelson’s Column condemning a “tiny world elite” which controls everything under cover of the “illusion pandemic of Covid-19.” 

Other organisers had reportedly discouraged him from identifying that tiny elite, as he has frequently done before, as a strain of extra-terrestial lizard shape-shifters (including the royal family, God bless ’em) which is sucking the humanity out of us. 

We must unequivocally identify the real tiny elite — the monopoly capitalists of the world and their national and international political and economic organisations.

What Saturday’s rally cheerleader referred to as “scraps” broke out between various factions, as some unfurled a flag showing the symbol of the British Union of Fascists, while some others carried placards saying that there really is a real risk of infection (but masks make it worse), while another group promoted the “QAnon” conspiracy theory (the world is run by a cabal of paedophilic Satan-worshipping Democrats and Hollywood celebrities), while yet others turned on anyone nearby who was “fucking idiot enough” to be wearing a mask.

As Icke jigged and twitched his way through his Trump-style rant, it was not difficult to remember that in 1991 on Terry Wogan’s TV show he declared himself to be the son of God, and in that position was able to reveal in 2012 that the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games was a Satanic ritual designed to harness negative energy, and that “the Olympic stadium is strategically placed on the earth-energy grid to tap into the immense London and British power centres and this is why Glastonbury Tor, one of the most significant earth-vortex points in the UK, is a centrepiece of the opening ceremony.”

Now all this has made Icke a millionaire — which, if he isn’t just a wild eccentric, must be why he does it. 

But the question is, what sort of organisation would want such a troubled person to be the main speaker at their event? Apart from the US Republicans of course.

And then. Just when you thought it couldn’t get more ridiculous, a technical hitch after Icke’s embarassing impression of one of his lizards screeching: “FREEEEEEDOM!” gives the event’s MC the opportunity to just say, just in passing, that vaccines “go into your DNA, and keep replicating, and remove who you are as they go down the line, that’s after it’s sterilised you, and then you are no longer human, you are transhuman and you know what else … then you can then be killed as you are no longer human, it wouldn’t be genocide … so will you let them do that to you or your kids?”

Despite an increasing amount of muttering confusion spreading through the crowd during this wacky rant, they all joined in the cheering.

Of course they did. They had decided that they have had enough of the restrictions, of the impositions, of the double standard one-law-for-us normality, of the uncertainty and threat that hangs over them, and the dangerous future that stares them in the face. And they were rejoicing in a voice that seemed to echo their frustrations.

So, back to our movement. It is great that a growing number of unions and the TUC regions are now putting in place plans for a way forward based on the needs of the people; that the People’s Assembly’s marathon of online discussions — 21 over as many weeks — is bearing fruit in terms of analysis of the crisis, of the role of government and big business, of the development of a plan of action, including the organisation of mass protest across Britain against ’30s-style mass unemployment.

Perhaps this needs to include clear commitment to fight and overcome the abuses that working-class people have particularly been subject to throughout the pandemic — abuses too numerous to mention.

Perhaps a “People’s March for Jobs and Social Justice”? Could local preparations and mobilisation in the next few months for such a national event in 2021 begin to bring that progressive leadership from the pages of reports and publications of the movement into reality, real action within our communities? 

Perhaps local online and physical events, street meetings and rallies could raise all the questions of job loss, of the rights of working people to work and decent homes, of the inequalities integral to the economic and political system. And centrally, of the need to rid ourselves of this Tory government.

We have TUC regions, individual union branches, trades union councils and People’s Assemblies active in all our communities throughout Britain — we need to all act together in order to drive out the lizards of the populist and far right from any influence in our class, and to build an integrated people’s movement to meet need, not greed.