Fascism in 21st Century Britain

by Albert Semple, 27 April 2023

____
  1. When learning the facts about World War II,
  2. The names of the tyrants "our chaps overthrew".
  3. The sacrifice made by brave women and men.
  4. The promise it never would happen again.

  5. Naively I thought if the fascists came back
  6. We'd spot them returning in uniforms black,
  7. Their faces adorned with malicious moustaches,
  8. Their followers wearing their armbands or sashes.

  9. But after the great referendum to leave
  10. It feels that we're slipping, or so I perceive.
  11. They may lack the leaders who give them their clout
  12. But still we're familiar with how it's played out.

  13. First they estranged those who didn't conform
  14. Or follow a gender identity norm.
  15. Then Roma and Travellers, both are fair game,
  16. Then boatloads of immigrants shouldered the blame.

  17. They demonise people — it's part of their stealth,
  18. Distracting us from their great transfer of wealth.
  19. The law doesn't help us — the rules are abused -
  20. Selective enforcement is frequently used:

  21. The ruthless harassment of claimants of aid -
  22. Attempting to stifle the benefits paid;
  23. While bigger transgressors they choose to forget -
  24. Forgiving their cronies of dubious debt.

  25. They're building the camps and its all a distraction.
  26. They're planning to outlaw industrial action.
  27. Our leaders are Tories — some blue and some red.
  28. We cannot pretend that all fascists are dead.
    ____

by Albert Semple
28 lines over 7 stanzas.