A wake-up call for all of us to resist the far right | Letters

Last Saturday’s Tommy Robinson march should focus our minds on the dangerous urgency of the situation, writes John McDonnell MP. Plus letters from Redbridge councillor Shanelle Johnson and other readers

Peter Kyle, the business and trade secretary, has said that he was not disturbed by the Tommy Robinson march on Saturday (Trump has fanned the flames of divisive politics around the world, says Sadiq Khan, 16 September). Well I certainly was. The levels of threatening hate and violence should be a wake-up call, not just for government ministers but for all of us. Stand Up to Racism has done its best to mobilise people to tackle this threat, but it’s clear that we have to find a new way forward to reinforce this work. I am urging people in all civil society organisations to start talking about the situation and in each sector to start talking to each other.

I believe there is a fairly widespread understanding of the causes of the views and activities that the far right are exploiting. After Saturday, perhaps there is now a greater understanding of the urgency of the situation. Leading bodies and individuals in each sector of our society should take the initiative in convening urgent discussions of the role they can play in bringing our community together.