living in Britain could suffer a serious erosion of their democratic rights. They could, for example, be denied the right to vote or hold office in the Civil Service.
DIVISIVE The attempts by the Tories to introduce such measures is not, of course, accidental. They are clearly seeking to set up a suitable scapegoat for their policies of increased unemployment and social service cuts.
They clearly hope that the anger and frustration building up will be turned away from them and onto a scapegoat easily identifiable by its colour.
Such a thrust has already led to a growing number of assaults on murder of thirteen young West Indian youth.
FIGHTBACK Black people have no intention, however, of becoming easy victims of Tory "divide and rule" tactics. The thousands who turned out on April 5 - particularly the young Black youth - show that they are determined to fight back.
What is urgent is that, in that fight, they should receive the support of the labour movement which was only marginally represented on the demonstration. Only a few trade union and Labour Party banners were to be seen on the mileslong march.
Such support is vital because the Tories' racist campaign is aimed not ction On April 5 CARL demonstration. only at Black people who will bear the brunt of it. It is equally designed to weaken and divide the overall icised those who sought to tie the cam"There is a tendency on the left to said. He called on Labour Party branches to take the lead in pioneering the fight on, would draw people into the Labour labour movement and prevent it from offering a united response to their anti-working class policies. ahead, building growing support in union and Labour Party branches so that they can add their massive weight to the opposition that is now growing up.
The labour leaders have to be forced not only to oppose the Bill in words but to help mobilise the labour movement in mass action against it. They also have to be forced to pledge to repeal it when returned to office.
BEGINNING As Tony Huq (Bangladesh Work ers Association) put it at the rally at the end of the march: "This demonstration is only the beginning. We intend to go on fighting until these racist laws are defeated." These words must become the rallying cry of the whole labour movement.
party policy and not according to their "conscience"
Speakers Terry Marsland, assistant secretary of the Tobacco Work. ers Union, and Jo Richardson MP backed the call for a woman's right to choose.
Here is an opportunity to test out the newly-won rights in the Labour Party. Now that we can reselect our MPs, we must ensure that the! are all committed to voting in line with party policy on this issue.
That is, that they support this I?. bour Party policy to "provide by statute for all women to have choice in termination of pregnancy"
PREREQUISITE Abortion rights are a prerequisite to a woman's right to work. As it is working-class women who suffer most from the lack of abortion facilities, because they can least afford to pay, trade unionists must Conference agreed to support any national rally in support of positive legislation and to take the issue back to trade union and Labour Party branches.
It was agreed that these aims would be furthered by setting up regional conferences in order to get local activities off the ground.