After the demonstration...?

Last night, for the first time in many years - and for me, the first time in London - I took part in a demonstration. Thousands of people made their way to Whitehall to protest the Executive Action of the US President - and to call for Theresa May to rescind her invitation to President Trump to make a State Visit to the UK last year.

Similar demonstrations took place around the UK - & Trump's actions have led to worldwide condemnation and demonstrations - particularly in the USA itself.

It was great to be a part of the demonstration - and I left with my faith in humanity considerably strengthened. People are prepared to call out wrongful behaviour. Across the generations, people took to the streets to show their unity of opposition and their rejection of values that, certainly the older ones amongst us had hoped, seemed to have been consigned to the dustbin of history. I was particularly impressed how young people were (often with great humour) were prepared to make serious points about the need to reject the politics of division, hate and scapegoating.

But where now? Some have argued that Trump (& his increasingly powerful aide - Steve Bannon) had planned a series of "shock events" - designed to stir up opposition, and create a sense of crisis - which - heyhoe - they need to resolve - thereby both cutting down the opposition, and boosting their own supporters.

We live in dangerous times - Trump is not the first in history to use this tactic of doing outrageous things, causing chaos, and then "resolving" it in a way which diminishes liberty. So my first answer to the question in this post is -

1 Learn from history - expose the tactics of those who would be tyrants. Become sensitive to the way they act. Tyranny can be defeated. Also keep in mind the principles that we are seeking to maintain. Free Speech; the Rule of Law; Equality of all mankind. We can learn much, and take great encouragement from the fight for liberty which runs through British and American history (and that of other countries)

2 Clearly expose the challenges that Trump and others are mounting on the traditional values behind our nations. Today Theresa May is seeking to force Parliament to abdicate its traditional responsibility to hold the government of the day to account - and to make reasoned legislative choices. The debate kicks off in a few hours - less than a week after the bill was published (the convention is that at least two weekends should separate the 1st and 2nd Readings - to allow MPs to consider and prepare their response to proposed legislation) - and without the promised White Paper. Before Britain joined the EEC - there was a substantial white paper - and a thorough series of debates. A programme motion will be introduced today which will severely curtail the time available for debate. The provisional timetable for debate in the Lords has also ben published. The whole thing makes a mockery of "Parliamentary Sovereignty". A brief 'Enabling Bill' has been prepared - which cedes all power - with no oversight - to the Prime Minister.

Similarly Trump is displaying already, 10 days into his Presidency, an arrogance towards the use of power that would have embarrassed Richard Nixon. Overnight the acting attorney general has been fired (remember when Nixon did that - and some believe that was the point at which his downfall became inevitable). Court orders have been ignored.

3 Don't be cowed by the aggressive response to legitimate opposition. Trump is a bully - he has been all his life. But bullies can be stood up to. As I noted yesterday, the day of the demonstration in Whitehall was also the anniversary of the execution in that place of Charles I. He bullied - he even declared war on his own people - but he was defeated. Hitler overreached himself. Britain pushed and punished its colonists in America - until they threw off the yoke - and set up the United States.

4 Remember that we have a heritage of liberty. I walked to the demonstration past the statue of John Hampden - through the old chamber of the House of Commons (St Stephen's Hall) - where the Speaker refused to be bullied by the presence of the King (and his army stationed outside the chamber) into revealing where the dissident MPs had gone. Through Westminster Hall, where the impeachment of high office holders had taken place - and where Charles was tried. Through New Palace Yard - where the elected MP for Northampton was dragged by the Sergeant at Arms and his assistants. Across the areas where previous generations had demonstrated against the abuse of powers by authorities who had been tempted by the idea that they were above the law.

5 Most of all - don't keep silent when wrong is being done.