Anti-Fascist/Anti-Racist demo - Cardiff Saturday 5th June

[Udo Erasmus]

Jeff Marsh's account is worth a laugh at:
http://casualsunited.webs.com/cardiffdemo.htm

re. the final leg of the march, i got to the pub and texted a mate of mine and he said 'i'm still at the demo!'. i was a bit surprised and asked him where he was & he said the police were escorting the fash up some backstreets to the station but he said 'we've gotta a group of the lads following close behind and jeering and abusing them roundly'. he said it got a bit comical and shouty, the police kept on stopping the anti-fash, then they'd try and escort the fash, then we'd follow & be stopped again & then we stuck around at the station until they were on the train.

 

[Brockway]

Followed them as far as the prison where the police more or less blocked us all off. Maciej Dakowicz, the Polish photographer managed to tag along with them all the way to the station, so will be interesting to see if he came up with any good shots.

 

[Clint Iguana]

these guys? He was wearing a SHARP badge on his arm. fair play !!!

I think this is them when they were a little bit younger and ..erm.. well, younger

 

[PAD1OH]

 

[ddraig]

good shot
what were those cyclists up to?

 

[Clint Iguana]

good shot
what were those cyclists up to?

Someone told them Custom House Street was where all the cycle paths were - but when they got there all they found was psychopaths

 

[ddraig]

ai i was down there on the bike today and it is weird
come off there before too

 

[Clint Iguana]

For anyone interested

of the three/four (depending which paper you read) arrests on the day -

The lady carried away by five coppers was done for swearing in front of a constable

Another was arrested under section 14 before the fash arrived for refusing to leave the EDL meeting point on the museum steps

Both are now at large

I dont know about the other one (two?)

(*I see no point in naming them here - many of you will know them anyway)

 

[Clint Iguana]

ai i was down there on the bike today and it is weird
come off there before too

too much information - we do not wish to know what you get up to behind unison house

 

[Ranbay]

that soul crew page it gone now...

 

[Clint Iguana]

that soul crew page it gone now...

just before disappearing it read..

soul crew the shame of Wales and the UK Due to a error made on false information recived saturday coming from Cardiff that it was the soul crew that attacked EDL & WDL we can now confirm it was in fact local cardiff lads and NOT the SOUL CREW so this group will will now go ASAP and all posts removed . I am sorry to the other admin members on here I have no...t had time to speak to you as I have only just got the text message.

I can only assume that there are EDL sympathisers within city ranks that are a bit embarrassed by it all and have gone in for a bit of 'revisionism'. Having seen it with my own eyes and being a regular down the City, i would suggest the EDL dont get too complacent at the football.

Clealry there are a lot of EDL supporters that are also city fans using the internet that have 'lobbied' to get the site taken down, but they cant be that interested, otherwise there would have been a bigger turn out for the fash. When push came to shove, the city fans that turned out for the 'anti' side out numbered the entire EDL demo on their own.

Clearly we cannot be complacent either, some of the stuff that has been posted on Father Abraham's little boy's site about it have been stomach churning. Fortunately other message board are a little more progressive.

 

[Ranbay]

they deleted anything posted anti EDL, they it was all just football hard talk anyway... lol

cheers for the info.

 

[Clint Iguana]

they deleted anything posted anti EDL, they it was all just football hard talk anyway... lol

cheers for the info.

so much for being champions of free speech

 

[Proper Tidy]

Good to see that football lads turning out for the antis is becoming a regular thing in Wales - shame it isn't turning out like this in England.

But still, soul crew lads turning out in Cardiff and front line lads turning out in Wrexham shows that the far right aren't making the same inroads in Wales.

Also, Jeff Marsh's account - lol.

 

[teqniq]

I wan't able to come to this (due to being on hols) but well done to all the people who turned up to protest at the presence of the EDL and their ilk.

Jeff Marsh's account is worth a laugh at:
http://casualsunited.webs.com/cardiffdemo.htm

This guy, Jeff Marsh. What planet is he on???

It seems pretty much like a mate of mine said of the EDL etc that they're footbal hooligans who can no longer attend matches due to plenty of previous form. No need to be complacent though.

 

[lewislewis]

It's entirely likely he has mental health problems.

 

[beat23]

Does anyone know what happened with the alleged attack by the eld in the minibus?

I have come across some evidence on line (a comment by someone who said they were in the minibus) which may be useful to the police if it has been reported.

b23

 

[Ranbay]

I saw it go past and get stopped but don't know what happend...

what did they say happend?

there where very lucky if you ask me.

 

[PAD1OH]

 

[ddraig]

I saw it go past and get stopped but don't know what happend...

what did they say happend?

there where very lucky if you ask me.

what happened when it got stopped mate?

 

[Ranbay]

didnt see mate, was up the top, saw every peg it down, but the cops got there first...few docks boys where coming back and then heading off to the station to try get them there...

 

[Clint Iguana]

Went to a union meeting today and had a sly dig at the fact that not many from the branch turned up.

Got told that the TUC had only decided a few days earlier that unions could support it.

 

[lewislewis]

Yet their President still got to speak at the demo along with no less than 5 full-time Labour politicians, 2 Labour candidates and 1 ex-Labour MP...

They had pro-war Labour MPs speaking and that to me is an error, when their policies have contributed to the growth of fascism.

The only other parties represented were 1 Plaid speaker and 1 Green speaker.

 

[Col_Buendia]

I just heard that the "family fun day" that had been organised in Butetown by the Muslim community drew about 400. What a shame that these people were bullied out of joining the city centre demo by the police. Another 400 people would have packed our side out.

 

[Clint Iguana]

UAF video of the day

 

[Udo Erasmus]

I just heard that the "family fun day" that had been organised in Butetown by the Muslim community drew about 400. What a shame that these people were bullied out of joining the city centre demo by the police. Another 400 people would have packed our side out.

was a bit disappointed that some black activists i know from the docks didn't seem up for it, they were kinda 'welsh defence league' that sounds like a bit of a joke, mate!

i wasn't on the march down from butetown, but i heard that butetown was atypically completely dead with nobody around on the streets.

when i was leafleting in the run-up i commented to a muslim woman in butetown: the police say that muslims should stay out of the city centre, is it really acceptable in the 21st century that there should be set days up and down Britain where all the muslims are told to stay at home so that a bunch of fascist hooligans from outside of town can have a rampage?

the police, from what i hear, were intimidating and harrassing community and youth organisations and hyping up that there would be extreme violence (the stick), while big grants were being handed out to organise trips to alton towers for the asian youth and so on. (carrots)

not sure what happened, at one point in advance of the demo it was being announced at several mosques at friday prayers and i thought that their would be a serious mobilisation from there, people are going back though to report back on the demo and hopefully next time we will win the argument.

i also heard rumour, but don't know if this is true - as i thought they were very vaguely supposed to be in support of the demo, that the Student Union might have sent out a handy message advising students that they might get arrested and this could effect their career prospects

 

[PAD1OH]

was a bit disappointed that some black activists i know from the docks didn't seem up for it, they were kinda 'welsh defence league' that sounds like a bit of a joke, mate!

I'm thinking they're right. what are the WDL really??

one balaclava wearing muppet on youtube and a bunch of pissed-up hooligan troglodytes??

 

[Proper Tidy]

i also heard rumour, but don't know if this is true - as i thought they were very vaguely supposed to be in support of the demo, that the Student Union might have sent out a handy message advising students that they might get arrested and this could effect their career prospects

Same happened in the north mate, local uni send round a memo to all students saying crap about two groups of extremists and likely to be violent, and even had the home office writing to refugees to tell them to stay at home. Coppers visited all shops in town centre warning them off, lots of police statements in local papers warning people to stay away...

It's all on police advice, and the way the police see it is short term - they just want it to be easy to control on the day, they're not arsed about future implications ie massive antis turnout means EDL unlikely to want to return. Nothing you can do about it unfortunately.

 

[Proper Tidy]

I'm thinking they're right. what are the WDL really??

one balaclava wearing muppet on youtube and a bunch of pissed-up hooligan troglodytes??

Whilst there is a lot to laugh at with the defence leagues, that they have the numbers to hold demos ranging from 50 to 3000 practically every week means ignoring them isn't viable. They're very wrong when they claim to be the 'largest street organisation in British history' but they are the largest by some distance at present.

 

[Ranbay]

http://www.youtube.com/user/ARRYEDL

ARRYEDL (1 day ago)

We will be back in Cardiff sooner than you think.

LOL