Far right con-man Tommy Robinson and his gullible victims have continually gathered in Telford for the past year and a half – their latest unwelcome incursion in the town was yesterday (29 January). Marching from the local train station car park surrounded by bemused locals trying to drive home, to a different car park outside Malinsgate Police Station, Tommy showcased his latest grab for cash, a documentary on the local rape gang scandal called “The Rape of Britain”.
After a few speeches from probable financial backers for the video and audio equipment used for the day such as Anne Marie Waters of ‘For Britain’, Tommy took to the stage alongside his sidekick Danny Tommo (imitation is the highest form of flattery!) to proclaim that the documentary “wasn’t made for money” and that they weren’t there for any sort of racist agenda, but for “justice for young girls” – this thin veneer quickly subsided as the title card for their amateur-looking, cheaply produced film came up including the crescent moon of Islam in the logo. Multiple times throughout the documentary Tommy told viewers that they should be ready for seasons 2, 3, 4, and 5. Tt appears that his latest attempt to separate people from their cash is that he is sitting on mountains of evidence of sex crimes that will confirm the racial biases of his followers, but only he and his cronies are principled enough to be looking into it, and they need their supporters’ money to release it.
Are we meant to believe that he’s had a true change of heart and that he’s finally standing up for the marginalised in society? Or is this just another cynical career move of a lifelong racist and ex BNP member whose massive public profile has assured he will never get another job again, and he needs some more easy cash after his fraud schemes got him jailed and his constant lies got him sued for six figures?
Stand Up to Racism stood alongside local Trade Union branches, other left wing groups and local residents to make their opinion on the matter be known – that Robinson’s presence in the town is yet another case of the far right’s exploitation of people’s anger for their own political and financial gain, increasing tensions between communities, monetising a very real problem of child sexual exploitation – yet Tommy and his entourage have repeatedly jumped at the chance to spin the news of horrific historical sex crimes for cash. A leopard never changes its spots – neither does a cheater, it seems.
Andrea Simon, director of the End Violence Against Women coalition, has said: “Tommy Robinson’s relentless exploitation of women and girls’ pain is an insult to those who have experienced abuse and to those who work tirelessly to demand justice and build support services for survivors.
“Child sexual exploitation is an unimaginably harmful form of violence that is disproportionately perpetrated by men and experienced by girls.
“This violence incites so much understandable anger and distress within our communities.
“Too often, those who have suffered sexual and physical abuse have been blamed, mistreated and failed by those who should have protected them. It is essential that survivors are heard, and that they are believed.
“All of us working to end violence against women will continue to demand justice for survivors, and in doing so we reject Robinson’s efforts to stir up tension in our communities.”
Before accusations of sympathy for the perpetrators of such crimes are levelled at Challenge, it is important to note that Tommy has a history of using people as pawns in ploys to reassert anti-Islamic sentiment for his followers. The Young Communist League stands against child sexual exploitation and all of its perpetrators – not just those that serve our agenda. It’s in our political resolutions document. You don’t have to look far at all to see case after case of white, far right men in Britain convicted of the sex crimes that Tommy claims to stand against. How many of them have been vocal supporters of his years long agenda?
As well as revitalising age-old discourse surrounding the sexual excesses and degeneracy of other ethnicities, the grooming gang framework has allowed far right talking points, posited by Robinson, to enter mainstream discussions. Robinson argues that brown men are more likely to commit sexual violence whilst also claiming that brown men are aided by the apparent softness of successive governments on immigration and minorities. That ‘softness’ of government is now put against anyone mildly progressive as a sign that all this anti-racism business has gone too far and has stopped the police and government officials from being “too harsh” on minorities and immigrants, for fear of being accused of racism. How does this stack up with Tommy’s own claims in his documentary, of financial corruption and police officers being paid off in collusion with local gangs? Is it political correctness or fear of being called racist by “the left” keeping them silent, or are police officers involved in sex crimes themselves?
He is just saying what his crowd of paying customers want to hear – just as he was when he arrested for his presence at anti-lockdown rallies back in 2020.
Tommy closed his rally (which get smaller year upon year, until a major news event happens he can spin a successful narrative on) by claiming he will be in prison for its contents within 12 months. Well, prison is certainly a good way to get your bed and board when the grifters charm wears off and you’ve run out of designer clothes to flog on Depop.
Sarah Roberts
