LAST WEEK my good comrade, Adam Alarakhia, CWU’s Leicestershire Branch chair, was being interviewed by CWU Live and told quite a shocking story.
 
Amid the rioting and distress taking place across England and Northern Ireland, Adam said his son phoned him to ask if he could play outside on his bike, but Adam told him no, he couldn’t, the risk was just too much, too much for a father to allow his son to play outside in case something might happen to him — because he was black and because he was Muslim.
 
Our movement rightfully recoils at the scenes we have witnessed and the fear and tension that is being inflamed by far-right thugs. There have been demonstrations in over a dozen towns and cities in England and Northern Ireland.

In Rotherham and Tamworth in particular, violent thugs attempted to set fire to hotels hosting asylum-seekers — deliberately attacking and seeking harm on some of the most vulnerable people in our world.
 
Thankfully, we have not seen similar scenes here in Scotland so far, but it would be wrong for our movement to sleepwalk into Scottish exceptionalism.

While a recent ScotPulse poll found four in 10 people in Scotland wanted immigration reduced (compared to five in 10 in England) this was a 14-point increase on last year.

This needs to be put into context, especially given the low numbers of immigration in Scotland compared with England.

The fear and the anger that exists, after 14 years of failed Tory governments, are very real and are driven by the same discontent no matter the geography — and while the far-right in Scotland does not appear to be as organised to the same degree as it is in England, it would be foolish to assume that the same opportunities for them do not exist.
 
That is why it is so important that our trade union and labour movement is organised in Scotland in response. In the immediate term, we must continue to oppose the far right wherever it appears and provide reassurance to our Muslim and BAME brothers and sisters that we stand with them.

The CWU across Scotland will be organising in that struggle, particularly in the run-up to the demonstration in Glasgow on September 7.

We know that this is at the core of our values — for just as trade unions are key to building unity and solidarity in the workplace, we are also key to building unity and solidarity in society.

We already see some of this great work in initiatives like Fans Supporting Foodbanks — with the slogan being “hunger doesn’t wear colours” — backed by Unite and the CWU in Scotland, for example, that seeks to break down the barriers that exist in our society in fighting for a common purpose — the elimination of hunger — a purpose plain regardless of colour, creed, or background.
 
However, combatting racism and anti-migrant ideology specifically in the workplace is fundamental. Many of our social institutions have broken down, their credibility weakened, opening the doors to the misinformation that is widespread and maliciously conceived.

Workers therefore need a genuine source of information that is on their side. In this, we as trade unionists can play a vital role. We know that unity of purpose can exist between all workers in the workplace.

When we in Royal Mail were on strike for 18 days in 2022, I was proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with colleagues from Pakistan, India, Poland, Lithuania, and Bangladesh — to name just a few. We face problems in the workplace together, and so we must build the solutions together.
 
This knowledge needs to be organised and given the opportunity to express itself in the workplace. Therefore, pressure must be brought to bear on employers and governments to enable this.

If employers are genuine in their commitments to tackling racism, they need to do more than virtue signal with flags and bunting but commit to genuine engagement and a process of learning and understanding.

They can do this by allowing trade union reps time to speak to workers as a collective and to allow our BAME reps time to access the workforce and vital trade union education structures. In this way, we can help establish longer-term structures that can help tackle racism and misinformation in the workplace and in society.
 
On behalf of the CWU in Glasgow and the west of Scotland, I want to extend my support and solidarity to all our Muslim, BAME and Jewish brothers and sisters across Scotland and Britain.

We stand with you always, and we will work night and day to make sure that no parent, like Adam, ever has to say to his child again that they can’t play outside because of who they are. We will build a better country, and we will build it together.

John Carson is branch secretary for Glasgow and District CWU.