YET again I must go 'against the stream.' This time I must take issue with the black and white, us and them atmosphere encouraged by certain manic sections of the N Lancs establishment.

Reading the letters of some correspondents in the 'Citizen', a stranger would think all immigrants and asylum seekers were/are 'bogus' rip-off artists.

The same with students, who are tarred with the drugs, vandalism and drunks label, particularly since the 'draconian' Warehouse raid last year.

And if you are homeless or a person living in Lancaster and Morecambe (from elsewhere) on social security you are 'too bad to burn'.

There must, with some persons, especially those represented by the MBI, always be a scapegoat; preferably young, with few or nobody to speak for them, or from outside the area and with a minority ethnic or religious position.

This attitude stinks.

It has not been helped by some who should know better especially some in the Labour party who have gone along with instead of challenging these vicious, ignorant, divisive prejudices.

We now face the prospect of total privatisation of basic services (care homes), compulsory ID cards (it is totally untrue to think or say we have nothing to fear if we haven't done anything wrong) and gross attacks on our basic rights (NHS 'cradle to grave' security, decent public transport, trial by jury) we once largely took for granted.

In the current violent, globalised, capitalist 'new world order' being engineered by monopoly business imperialism we are being assaulted from all angles currently.

Pushing reactionary royalist nonsense with the ' Golden Jubilee' plus racism and other 'divide and rule' tactics must not hide the reality today.

People must recognise injustice and resist.

Expose the agents of prejudice especially those who abuse patriotism and in particular the pro-MBI con artists who pretend to be 'non-political' and then proceed to exactly recite every key-political date over the past 30 years as one person did last year!

Vote with your feet on Saturday, May 9 by attending the annual May Day march rally; starts 10.45am at Thurnham Street car park, led by Lancaster/Morecambe Trades Council.

All welcome, except fascists!

Steve Metcalfe

Palatine Ave

Lancaster