Oppose the EDL in Colchester Thursday 22nd May

19 05 2014

10375037_808269232517004_7395633039516497677_n

Meet 11am, Colchester war memorial

Aim to arrive on time and try to travel in groups

IMPORTANT: If you are traveling from outside of Colchester, please email essexantifa@hush.com

This year the EDL once again plan to descend on Colchester town centre bringing scenes reminiscent of last May’s march which saw Nazi salutes on the war memorial and brutality from both police and the far-right. We call once again on locals, students and anti-fascists from far and wide to join us in Colchester on the 22nd of May to say no to the EDL.

Whether it be a march, gathering or meeting – fascists must be countered at every opportunity!

Essex Anti-Fascists: Facebook / Blog

Facebook event

 





Skankin’ & Skirmishin’ – A Report From Saturday Night!

19 05 2014

from Portsmouth Anti-Fascists:

We are pleased to say that our first ever benefit gig was a total success, we probably had between 70-100 people come out (although admittedly this was due to the awesome line up!). First up we need to thank all the acts, both local and those that traveled and only asked for petrol money, they all played fantastic sets! We also should thank everyone who came out, and everyone who made it possible, from the people who stood at the door all night, to those that took the money, those who helped get all the equipment, the sound man who gave us a knocked down rate, and the poor bar staff who served with ear plugs in! Also we are sorry to report to all the people that were asking, but we have now sold out of all our t-shirts.

Although it was at the back of our mind that the organised local fascists might try something on, we didn’t in all seriousness expect them to be that stupid, but then you should never underestimate the stupidity of a fascist mind! They were clearly riding high after it took 12 of them to bully 4 middle aged Hope Not Hate campaigners in Eastleigh a few weeks back (Hope not Hate are a very fluffy antifascist group supported by celebrities and other notable types). The fascists made a video of that shameful action, it’s pathetic, and can be viewed here: crap video.

Read the rest of this entry »





Report on Newcastle mobilisation against the EDL

19 05 2014

A brief reflection on yesterday from North East Anti-Fascists:

The English Defence League’s mobilisation in Newcastle yesterday was choreographed around the theme of their latest bogus non-campaign to tackle Asian grooming gangs. It goes without saying that we feel the exploitation of this issue and the use of emotive images of children, leading the observer to consider sexual abuse to be quite sickening. Sickening, given that the fascists use this issue to spread fear, hatred and division, sickening, given that (thankfully) this represents zero and nil campaign in reality, sickening in the lack of consideration for the survivors and victims, evident in the careless treatment of this issue. North East Anti-Fascists have already highlighted examples of sex offenders within the English Defence League/fascist spectrum and have speculated on the use of this issue as cover for abusive behaviours within its own ranks.

Read the rest of this entry »





We’ve always been united! Stand against the EDL in Newcastle Sat May 17th

12 05 2014

10150591_608301792586561_2054489045441878109_n

For Latest info: North East Anti-Fascists

This coming Saturday 17th May, North East EDL plan to hold a demonstration in the West End of Newcastle under the pretext of protesting about ‘Muslim grooming gangs’.

It’s a regional EDL demo, but in these days of declining numbers for the EDL, the difference between ‘regional’ and ‘national’ demonstrations has tended to become a bit irrelevant – the numbers they get on the day having more to do with whether they are stronger in one area than another.

Hence the recent EDL demo in Rotherham getting significantly more numbers than when they held ‘national’ demos in Exeter or Slough, places where they have little presence.

Read the rest of this entry »





Rotherham demo report

12 05 2014

dsc00846-small

by Sheffield Anti-Fascist Network

Last Saturday the English Defence League (EDL) held a national demonstration in Rotherham, ostensibly against “Muslim grooming gangs”, although this excuse was tacked on weeks after the demo was announced.

Child abuse needs to be tackled wherever it occurs but the EDL’s treatment of the issue is completely opportunistic and disingenuous. They blame all Muslims (or all Pakistanis or British Asians) for the actions of a small minority but they have nothing to say about child abuse perpetrated by Christians or white people (including their own supporters) and certainly don’t portray it as representative of those abusers’ ethnic or religious communities. They have nothing to say about the cuts to children and family services or about the chauvinistic attitudes that led the police to ignore the voices of vulnerable girls in Rotherham and allowed their abuse to continue.

Read the rest of this entry »





List of fascist candidates in euro/council elections

12 05 2014

This is a list of far-right candidates standing in the upcoming local council and euro elections. This list is divided up roughly into the regions for the European Parliament for the BNP.

BNP

East Midlands

Amber Valley

Codnor & Waingroves – Alan Edwards
Ripley – Ken Cooper

Derby
Chaddesden – Paul Hilliard
Derwent – Carol Tucker

Read the rest of this entry »





Far-right council candidates in this month’s elections

12 05 2014
fight fascism

The annual council elections lets us take a snapshot of the far right groups futilely chasing electoral success (in the same way that counting 100 sorry looking blokes standing behind a wall of police outside a Wetherspoons gives a good indication of the dismal state of the EDL).

Council elections have a particular significance for the BNP. For many years, the party’s strategy has focused on steadily building up support in local council wards as a way of legitimising the party in the eyes of voters and as a stepping stone to winning seats at a regional or national level, such as in the London Assembly, European Parliament or the House of Commons. The relatively low number of far right candidates this year indicates that, for the time being, this strategy is a non-starter for the fascists.

It’s a numbers game

Hope not Hate has produced a list of most far right candidates, but have unhelpfully grouped the couple of hundred fascist candidates with the 2,000+ UKIP candidates which makes it difficult to use. The list is also missing some BNP council candidates. We will post a full list of far right candidates on our website shortly.

Read the rest of this entry »





Stop the EDL national demo in Rotherham Sat 10th May

6 05 2014

rotherham

 

Meet in Rotherham at 11am, Saturday 10th May.

Location to be announced nearer to the time.

Facebook event

This Saturday 10th May, the EDL have called a national demo in Rotherham. We all know EDL national demos are not what they once were, but unfortunately the climate of racist hysteria, Islamophobia and immigrant-scapegoating is greater than ever. This means although the EDL may only pull 200 people to Rotherham, the need to stand up against them is also as great as ever. Five years ago there were NO far-right mobs marching through British towns – we should not rest on our laurels that now there are ‘only’ 200 or 300 of them.

Although with the upcoming elections, anti-racists’ and anti-fascists’ attention is on UKIP,  the nasty wannabe “foot-soldiers” of the EDL exist in a reciprocal relationship with the more mainstream racism of UKIP. Every time the EDL manage to march through a town centre chanting their nonsensical racist slogans other racists feel emboldened to express their views openly. It is all part of the mainstreaming of racism.

Read the rest of this entry »





Oppose the BNP in Hemel Hempstead Sat 10th May

6 05 2014

hemel2

If you can’t make Rotherham to counter the national EDL demo there on Saturday, never fear… another useless bunch of boneheads will be out and about in the South this weekend.

The BNP are very worried about imaginary mosques being built in Hemel Hempstead and Griffin’s dwindling fascist loyalists have decided to hold a demo in the town this Saturday 10th.

Given that the last time they held a demo anywhere they were comprehensively blocked by anti-fascists from marching anywhere despite being backed up by the Met, this doesn’t bode too well for their chances in Hemel.

Local people in Hemel have organised an opposition to the BNP’s attempt to cynically exploit local issues in an attempt to save themselves from their impending electoral oblivion.

Facebook event

 

 





Barricades of Brighton: March for England run out of town

28 04 2014

barricades5

It rained on their parade, in more ways than one… A successful day for anti-fascists on Sunday saw the far-right March for England harassed, heckled and hounded out of Brighton during their annual humiliation by the sea.

The mystery is why they keep coming back…

Since 2008 the nationalist March for England have been coming annually to Brighton to parade their narrow-minded vision of Englishness through the streets of the town in ‘celebration’ of St George’s day. For the last four years they have been opposed by an ever-growing coalition of local anti-fascists and anti-racists who have recognised their ‘innocent patriotism’ as a not very good disguise covering their real agenda of extreme right nationalist politics, racism and xenophobia.

The March for England come to Brighton because for them it represents everything they despise – a tolerant, cosmopolitan, liberal town in which they have no foothold. Thus in their mind it has become transformed into a centre of “anti-English activities”. Read the rest of this entry »