Join the Jewish Bloc on the Refugees Welcome demonstration – Weds 20th Oct 2021 at 4pm

Join the Jewish Bloc on the Refugees Welcome demonstration and rally this coming Wednesday 20th October from 4.30-6.30pm.

Meet the Millicent Fawcett Statue at Parliament Square from 4pm,
then join the rally at 4.30pm

Here is the call put out by the Jewish Socialists’ Group:

Several campaigns – Solidarity with Refugees, Refugee Action and others – are uniting on October 20th for a Refugees Welcome rally and protest in Parliament Square to support people young and old fleeing persecution, conflict and war and seeking safety in Britain.

As Jews, our families suffered during Britain’s first Hostile Environment, which culminated in the Aliens Act of 1905, and during the “aliens scare” instigated by the right-wing press against those fleeing Nazism in the 1930s. Today we stand in total solidarity with all who are seeking a place of safety where they can live in dignity.

Join us in a visible united Jewish bloc at this protest rally.

The official call for the demonstration says:

Right now, women, children and men fleeing war, persecution and conflict need our support. Yet just when the UK needs to uphold its commitments to refugees, in October the new Nationality and Borders Bill moves closer to becoming law. This bill will make it harder than ever for people who come here to seek safety.

The government has committed to take 20,000 Afghan refugees over the next five years. But that isn’t enough, and lacks the necessary urgency. While we are hearing accounts of mothers throwing their babies over razor wire in desperation in the face of the horrors facing them under the Taliban, the UK government plans to make people wait years for resettlement, and to imprison any who manage to flee to the UK by other means.
We can and must do more to welcome refugees, and not just Afghans. Everyone who crosses borders for safety should be given a fair hearing and a chance to rebuild their lives.

We know that our communities can be generous and welcoming and that many people want to do more for those who come here for safety. Through this rally, we want to show the Government that we oppose this Bill, and that we want to live in a humane and welcoming society.

If you agree, join us on 20th October 4.30 to 6.30pm outside Parliament. Hear from refugees and add your voice to the movement to welcome them. The event is for everyone who cares about the rights of people to seek asylum, and we ask you to bring your own banners with your own message! Every one of us has a part to play now. Every one of us can make this country a more welcoming place.

The rally is being organised by people with experience of the asylum system with support from Solidarity With Refugees, Women for Refugee Women and IMIX, but we want it to belong to us all.

(for more details on the Nationality and Borders Bill, this from the JCWI is excellent.)

Organisations supporting this rally include

After Exploitation
Amnesty UK
Another Europe is Possible
Asylum Matters
Choose Love
City of Sanctuary
Freedom From Torture
Hope and Aid Direct
JCWI
Jesuit Refugee Service
Kanlungan Filipino Consortium
Migrants Organise
NACCOM
One Strong Voice
Our Second Home
Praxis
Refugee Action
Refugee Charity Network
Refugee Council
Rene Cassin
Routes
Safe Passage
Sisters Not Strangers
STAR Network
Status Now 4 All
The Dirty Girls
Together with Refugees
West London Welcome