What the Fight Against Racism in the 1970s Can Teach us About Defeating Fascists in 2024

A young girl repeatedly shouted “P***s out”, as she held her mother’s hand walking down a street in Belfast. Rioters chanted “get them out” and “we want our country back” as they attacked a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham. “Scum” was graffitied on the wall of a hotel in Tamworth.

For many, the riots engulfing the UK this past week in the wake of the murders of three girls in Southport are reminiscent of the 1970s, when the far-right National Front would stalk the streets P***-bashing and attacking businesses and homes occupied by brown and black people.

There were at least 22 racist murders in the UK in the 1970s, according to The Monitoring Group. Political parties like the National Front were emboldened by the actions, or inaction, of the Government and police.

Just as we see today, far-right, fascist and racist ideology wasn’t left unchallenged in the 1970s, but a presence on the street was only one part of the anti-racist work. These are the lessons the public can learn from that time as the fight against fascism continues.

No Success Without Solidarity

Activists of the 1970s were driven by solidarity to a greater extent than many of our communities today. The first national organisation in the UK for black and brown women was called the Organisation of Women of Asian and African Descent, recognising in a statement accompanying the constitution that “unity between all black women is of the utmost importance” (where ‘black’ was used as a term for all people of colour). At a demonstration the British Black Panthers carried a banner saying “black oppressed people all over the world are one”.

Islamophobia and anti-immigration are large driving forces of the current attacks but the overarching and indiscriminate racism that accompanies this affects all brown and black people, regardless of religion or migration status. Instead of this incentivising all people of colour to rally around our commonalities, we often see non-Muslim brown communities in particular distancing themselves from Muslims and migrants of colour.

This is especially apparent among the British Indian population, 61% of whom say that immigration is too high, compared to 36% of Pakistani and Bangladeshi Brits and 32% of black Brits, according to YouGov statistics published in June.

These divisions undermine the anti-fascist cause. The Asian Youth Movements of the 1970s were organisations which united people of all faiths based on their shared marginalisation. Failing to acknowledge similarities in struggles regardless of religion or social status will not protect any brown or black person from the effects of racism. Recapturing the solidarity of the 1970s within and between communities can only help the fight against fascism.

Daily Work is Crucial

Although it is tempting to focus on what happens at the street level as the epitome of community organisation given its very visual nature, the second take away from the 1970s is that the daily work is even more vital. 

The 1970s and 1980s saw substantial street defence, and many groups even encouraged members to learn martial arts to defend themselves. One such successful self-defence campaign was the Battle of Brick Lane in the summer of 1978, which saw regular clashes between the Bengali community of Tower Hamlets in London and the National Front, who eventually left the area.

Most of the anti-racist work, however, took place off the streets, around dining room tables, in black and brown owned bookshops, and makeshift office spaces. This was the work of forming organisations, circulating petitions, and editing newsletters about what life was like for black and brown people.

This was the work of providing support for victims of racism and their families, publishing books no traditional publisher would touch, and writing to MPs, the press and union officials about injustices. Without these vital actions, the impact of street defence would have been hollow and short lived.

This is the work that is today being carried out by numerous individuals and organisations. From campaigns against the Bibby Stockholm asylum centre, to monitoring planned deportations to stop them, and actions against the Rwanda deportation plans. Organisations like the Runnymede Trust, Hope not Hate and the Migrants’ Rights Network, do research and advocacy on these issues all year round and their work needs support and amplifying.

Another key task behind the scenes was, and still is, legal monitoring and support. Careful monitoring of who was charged with what crimes and the sentences handed out was a substantial part of anti-racist work in the 1970s, as the justice system was skewed against black and brown people.

Supporting those who became embroiled in legal battles was vital not only for the defendants but for the wider community who would be affected by the outcome of trials where race played a part. 

The culmination of this was the Bradford 12 trial in 1982, where 12 young brown men were charged with serious conspiracy crimes after making petrol bombs to use in self-defence against the National Front in a riot that did not take place. Defence campaigns were mounted across the country, and the men were found innocent as it was declared that self-defence was no offence.

It is not only possible that brown and black counter-protesters will end up among those arrested during the riots, but it is vital to monitor the sentences that are given to the rioters to demand proportionate sentencing.

Keir Starmer has said that the rioters will “face the full force of the law”. His track record as Director of Public Prosecutions during the 2011 protests certainly shows that he is able to follow through on that promise, as participants received harsh sentences, such as six months in jail for stealing a £3.50 case of water. 

James Nelson was the first to be sentenced for the riots, on 6 August, and was imprisoned for two months for smashing a police car.

Given the years-long sentences that were handed out to peaceful Just Stop Oil climate protestors in July, it would not be unreasonable to expect some of the violent rioters to have sentences of longer than a few months. Police have indicated they are considering terror charges.

Don’t Rely on the Government

The third lesson from the 1970s: do not rely on the Government to fix the problem. 

Politicians, charities and community organisations alike have pointed the finger at the Government for creating the conditions that have allowed the far-right to flourish, with rhetoric of “stop the boats” and “invasions” of asylum seekers that demonise migrants.

This is not an issue limited to the Conservative Party. Starmer’s first statement following the escalation at the weekend did not include the words “racism” or “Islamophobia“. He has so far refused to recall parliament.

Similar demonisation was at work in the 1970s, even before Margaret Thatcher came to power, with the Labour Government introducing policies such as bussing of brown and black children away from their towns to attend school miles away where many faced racism. The Government argued that having immigrants make up more than 30% of a student body was detrimental to integration. 

A Labour Government also allowed virginity testing of brown women entering the country and introduced some of the most restrictive immigration legislation of the era. Holding the Government to account through protests and vocal opposition was important, but even more crucial was a focus on questioning the structures which allowed racism to flourish, including capitalism, and reimagining society as a mutually cooperative space.

Once the race riots are over, those who participated will still be colleagues and employers, neighbours, people we shop alongside at the supermarket, and parents of the children your children go to school with.

We must not conflate defeating fascism on the streets with eradicating it. The Government and media will still fan the flames of hate. When this wave is over we must breathe and rest, gather our strength, then unite as communities and keep working.

Preeti Dhillon is a researcher, writer and historian, and the author of The Shoulders We Stand On: How Black and Brown people fought for change in the UK (Dialogue Books).