Members of the English Defence League (EDL) are believed to be organising a gathering in Newcastle town centre via social networking website Facebook.The full article can be read here.
The event will be held on April 24 and 25, the weekend after St George's Day.
It is understood the gathering would not be an official demonstration, like the rally held in Hanley on January 23, but a social event.
Police say they are aware of the plans and have been speaking to landlords about the event.
The EDL might like to pretend this is an unofficial gathering, but everyone knows it will be the same thugs out causing trouble as last time. Clearly their previous outing in The Potteries has given them the confidence to launch another provocation more or less at the site of their last disgrace.
You can bet your bottom dollar it will be as heavily policed as last time, if not more so. But it is imperative we - the labour movement and anti-fascist movement - pull out all the stops to make sure the counter-demonstration is as big as possible.
When I turned up to protest against the EDL in Nottingham in December the ranks of Unite Against Fascism were not particularly endeering - Soviet and Pakistani flags mixed up with anti-American propaganda and Socialist Workers Party literature.
ReplyDeleteDoes it really need to be left to the hard left to oppose the EDL? Or indeed, had it ought to be left to the EDL to protest against Islamic extremism (Even if this is only a front)?
It's obvious that there's a problem when you need to ask if you could see Unite Against Fascism protesting against Islamic fascism. That the answer is probably no is quite worrying.
I feel for you that your neck of the woods is such a hotbed for these kind of daft racists.
ReplyDeleteGood luck.
I didn't know there was a Weatherspoons in Newcastle.
ReplyDeleteJota
Yes, there is a Wetherspoon's in Newcastle. It's been open a few years now.
ReplyDeleteRe: Islamic extremism, the left do not take to the streets against it because:
a) It's used as a battering ram by the right to demonise *all* Muslims.
and
b) In the grand scheme of things, Muslim radicals in Britain tend not to attack British leftists.
That doesn't mean the left should apologise for or alibi reactionaries who claim Islamic inspiration.
Very belated I know, but in case anyone reads this thread word has it the 'EDL social' has been called off.
ReplyDelete