ELECTORAL POLITICS | GOVERNMENT POLICY 23 July: Germany’s governing coalition puts forward reforms to protect its Federal Constitutional Court from political influence from the rising far-right AfD by enshrining its procedures in the constitution. (Deutsche Welle, 23 July 2024) 24 July: To combat ‘Islamic extremism’, Germany’s interior minister closes down the Islamic Centre in
These far-right riots and the ensuing racist and Islamophobic violence are unparalleled. Yet the government’s response is to focus on ‘violent disorder across the ideological spectrum’. This dissimulation cannot go unchallenged. You can’t solve a problem unless you name it. How is it possible to deny, after far-right rioters exploit the horrific killing of
9 – 23 July 2024 In this week’s Calendar of Racism and Resistance, the disturbances in Harehills, east Leeds, which started after children from a Roma family were forcibly taken by social services, loom large. We chart the fight-back of the community, particularly the Roma and BME young people, to the multiple harms experienced, including the spread
ELECTORAL POLITICS| GOVERNMENT POLICY As anti-migrant, anti-equalities, anti-abortion, misogynistic and anti-LGBTQI rhetoric in electoral campaigning are increasingly interlinked, we reflect this in the coverage below which also includes information on the influence of the Christian Right as well as the religious Right generally. 9 July: In his first Commons speech as prime minister, Starmer hails the
Image header: On 23 March 2012, a painted mural composed of the drawings, ideas and messages of disabled asylum seekers was installed in Bristol. Credit: Disability Murals Sophia Siddiqui analyses the outgoing government’s attack on disability social security, showing how it drew on stigmatising moral panics and followed a similar approach to the attack on
25 June – 9 July In his victory speech, the new prime minister spoke of a ‘mission of national renewal’, promising to reward those who ‘work hard’ and play by the rules’. Although early days, it was disappointing that Sir Keir Starmer did not outline how his ‘Country First’ programme for ‘working people’ would benefit
ELECTORAL POLITICS| GOVERNMENT POLICY 26 June: The German government approves legislation to simplify deportations to Afghanistan, Syria and other countries for those who express support for terrorism, including through ‘liking’ social media posts, with no conviction necessary for an individual to be deported. (Deutsche Welle, 26 June 2024) 26 June: Labour is accused of ‘not
The withdrawal of children from education is a consequence of neoliberalism Will Labour offer a new approach to issues of school attendance, or will it continue, like the Conservatives, to feign ignorance on the real issues why school absence is increasing, and further punish parents? Now could be the time to re-set the agenda
ELECTORAL POLITICS | GOVERNMENT POLICY 12 June: More European parliamentary (EP) election results show a breakthrough for S.O.S. Romania, which wins two seats. In Spain and Portugal, the far-right vote declines from previously national elections, though more EP seats are secured by Vox (+2, 6 total) and Chega (+2, 2 total). In Greece, the far-right
ELECTORAL POLITICS | GOVERNMENT POLICY 28 May: La France Insoumise MP Sébastien Delogu is suspended from parliament for two weeks for waving a Palestinian flag during a debate about whether France should recognise a Palestinian state. (Le Monde, 28 May 2024) 30 May: After being barred from standing in the general election as the Labour
