It was an early start for the Glasgow delegation to the Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) march against the fascist Tommy Robinson. We gathered outside Central Station at 4am with other EIS FELA members, fellow trade unionists from Unison and Unite, university students and anti-racist activists.

The fact that we are having to organise counter demonstrations to far-right fascist rallies highlights the serious challenge that we face.

The train would carry us to London to deliver a message of unity, resistance and hope to counter the far-right message of racism, division and hate.

Years of anti-immigrant scapegoating by mainstream politicians keen to distract from their failure to manage the economy, to deliver on housing, social care and the NHS have given confidence to the far-right, the Tory Rwanda Plan and their ‘Stop the Boats’ slogan, which was taken up and acted out in the far-right riots following the murders in Southport over the summer.

The fact that we are having to organise counter demonstrations to far-right fascist rallies highlights the serious challenge that we face

This atmosphere of scapegoating and division was played upon by the odious Nigel Farage and his Reform (not all reforms are progressive) to grab a foothold in parliament at the election. Trump did exactly the same in the USA.

Trump, Farage and Robinson may masquerade as friends and allies of ordinary working class people but they are false friends. And that’s why it’s important that the trade union movement sends out a different message, even if it means a long day out in London.

When the far-right organised a rally in Glasgow the EIS joined other trade unionists in George Square to make sure that we were bigger, louder and prepared to counter their attempt to occupy our streets with their hatred. It was reassuring to see so many colleagues from the EIS there that day along with many other trade unionists and activists.

The racists were outnumbered even after being bolstered by supporters from the north of England. Their leaders also failed to materialise; it was, however, the far-right’s biggest show of strength in Scotland in a generation.

Steeled by this it felt only right to mobilise for London where the far-right mobilisation threatened to be more significant.

Arriving in London we rendezvoused with others from Scotland who had made their way down the East Coast Line and headed for the assembly point in Piccadilly Circus. We were early but the streets soon started to fill up and banners from across the trade union spectrum appeared.

I was moved to see a banner being carried by NEU members commemorating the life of Blair Peach, a teacher who died after being hit with a police truncheon during a protest against the National Front in the 1970s.

It seemed like an age before we finally started to move along the route heading for Trafalgar Square and Whitehall. The police had engineered the different demos to keep us apart but it was encouraging to see the march snaking along a parallel street as we headed off.

It was also good, in a bad way, that we didn’t manage to meet up with the General Secretary and the delegation from HQ until the rally in Whitehall. After some stirring speeches and a chance to rest our weary feet there was just time for a refreshment before we headed back to the station for the train that would get in just before closing time.

The core values of trade unionism, equality, unity and solidarity, have placed the movement at the heart of struggles for justice, peace and against the far-right throughout history. There is much to do. This does not stop at the school gate.

As teachers we believe in the power of education. We will challenge racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism in our classrooms. We will champion inclusion and equality. Every student needs an education that equips them with knowledge and skills to understand the world they live in, to question what they see online, to think for themselves, and to shape their own future.

Teachers need the training, time and resources to create this in every classroom, in every school. But first we need to recover from the train journey.

Andrew Fullwood, Glasgow Local Association