Secret BNP meeting stopped by Anti-Fascists in Bath
(A) Sab x | 15.05.2007 10:55 | Anti-racism | Oxford
After having his talk at Bath University cancelled, it looked like Griffin would be giving the city a miss. However, a report on BBC 'points west' stated that he would be holding a secret meeting arranged by nazi Bath student Danny Lake.
Upon hearing that the meeting was still taking place at a secret location, we rang BNP national office who obligingly provided us with BNP youth organiser Danny Lake's mobile number.
We rang him, posing as a student who was pissed of that the uni talk had been cancelled, and he was happy enough to tell us the pub the BNP were meeting in before the speech.
We rang the pub, who seemed worried at the prospect of having Nazis in their bar.
We only had a short time to organise the demo, but got 20 anti-fascists outside the pub within 2 hours notice. The nazis turned up, looked confused and tried to reorganise a meeting place. Our spotters followed the ringleader into a nearby pub, which we entered, chanting and confronting the facists. Despite big talk, they seemed to be unwilling to enter into confrontation.
After being ejected from the pub by the cops, we had a demo outside. When the BNP left the pub (in much smaller numbers than they entered!), we were prevented from following, although a team of spotters managed to get around the police and follow them. They ended up having a tiny gathering in a park, well outnumbered by anti-fascists, who drowned out their speeches with chanting and anti-nazi punks played down a megaphone!
we heard later that Griffin was intending to record his speech and use it as propaganda, but could not do so because of the background noise!
All in all, a good day for anti-fascism - we managed to crash a secret meeting, doubling fash numbers, push them out of three venues, then reduced them to 10 skinheads standing in a park!
Nazis are not welcome in Bath - wherever they go, we will stop them!
NO PASARAN!
We rang him, posing as a student who was pissed of that the uni talk had been cancelled, and he was happy enough to tell us the pub the BNP were meeting in before the speech.
We rang the pub, who seemed worried at the prospect of having Nazis in their bar.
We only had a short time to organise the demo, but got 20 anti-fascists outside the pub within 2 hours notice. The nazis turned up, looked confused and tried to reorganise a meeting place. Our spotters followed the ringleader into a nearby pub, which we entered, chanting and confronting the facists. Despite big talk, they seemed to be unwilling to enter into confrontation.
After being ejected from the pub by the cops, we had a demo outside. When the BNP left the pub (in much smaller numbers than they entered!), we were prevented from following, although a team of spotters managed to get around the police and follow them. They ended up having a tiny gathering in a park, well outnumbered by anti-fascists, who drowned out their speeches with chanting and anti-nazi punks played down a megaphone!
we heard later that Griffin was intending to record his speech and use it as propaganda, but could not do so because of the background noise!
All in all, a good day for anti-fascism - we managed to crash a secret meeting, doubling fash numbers, push them out of three venues, then reduced them to 10 skinheads standing in a park!
Nazis are not welcome in Bath - wherever they go, we will stop them!
NO PASARAN!
(A) Sab x
Additions
my two cents...
16.05.2007 12:46
Well, been reading this thread with some interest, but not liking the flaming. how well we slag each other off is neither here nor there, whilst it may make some of us look clever and eloquent, and make us feel righteous, it serves little use. post theories on here, yeah, post news, and calls to action - all that makes sense. and solidarity and construction criticism, too...
i dunno
i was one of the ones on the demo, and i would modify some of the facts to fit with my observations. we only found out about the demo about 2/3 hours beforehand, and it did involve some creative thinking to get to find where the meeting was at, it wasn't public knowledge. local press broadcasted that the meeting would be going ahead within the city somewhere monday evening, but it was difficult to find more than that.
so, yeah, the demo wasn't huge because we didn't have much time to get a huge gathering together [the Trade Unions, i believe, were still holding their 'festival of diversity' at Bath Uni, which they had originally planned - i won't comment on that idea] , but managed to field 17, plus 1 or 2 that flittered in and out. some of the day was less than organised, but we found them, we effectively chased them from 2 pubs [revolution and litten tree], just by presence alone, we had the local media in on it, support from passersby, some death-threats from drunk BNP supporters, then followed them, with a little police obstruction, to the royal crescent, where about 10-12 or so of them, plus 5 Bath Uni politics students heard Griffin give his talk to a vieo camera instead of a town hall, with anti-fascist music roaring in the background - humiliating. the students from Bath uni were mostly self-proclaimed anti-BNP, but were in attendance to logically defeat them in discussion. we ourselves adopted more the belief that far better to kick them and their filth from our town, instead.
not amazing heroics, but did the job.
i dunno
i was one of the ones on the demo, and i would modify some of the facts to fit with my observations. we only found out about the demo about 2/3 hours beforehand, and it did involve some creative thinking to get to find where the meeting was at, it wasn't public knowledge. local press broadcasted that the meeting would be going ahead within the city somewhere monday evening, but it was difficult to find more than that.
so, yeah, the demo wasn't huge because we didn't have much time to get a huge gathering together [the Trade Unions, i believe, were still holding their 'festival of diversity' at Bath Uni, which they had originally planned - i won't comment on that idea] , but managed to field 17, plus 1 or 2 that flittered in and out. some of the day was less than organised, but we found them, we effectively chased them from 2 pubs [revolution and litten tree], just by presence alone, we had the local media in on it, support from passersby, some death-threats from drunk BNP supporters, then followed them, with a little police obstruction, to the royal crescent, where about 10-12 or so of them, plus 5 Bath Uni politics students heard Griffin give his talk to a vieo camera instead of a town hall, with anti-fascist music roaring in the background - humiliating. the students from Bath uni were mostly self-proclaimed anti-BNP, but were in attendance to logically defeat them in discussion. we ourselves adopted more the belief that far better to kick them and their filth from our town, instead.
not amazing heroics, but did the job.
Pink
Comments
Hide the following 19 comments
Oh dear this is lame
15.05.2007 11:19
Auntie Christ
re: Oh dear this is lame
15.05.2007 11:50
Well done Bath
lamer n lamer
To Auntie Christ
15.05.2007 12:03
The infomation we had about the meeting was that it was secret, and we went to lengths to find out the location, using contacts that we set up for just such an occasion. Im not saying it was majorly difficult getting the location, but had we have not used subtle means, we would have been told to fuck off.
The whole point of this BNP meeting was just so they could say that they had a meeting in Bath after being banned from Bath Uni. They drafted in memebrs from far and wide, with only about 2 of the gathered people being know as local fash.
Had they have had their meeting, they would of hailed it a success, and the media were present, so they would also have reported that the meeting went ahead.
Instead, the media has reported that we moved them from pub to pub, then finally into a field, where they stayed for 10 minutes before pissing off.
Would you rather we stayed at home, and give the BNP the message that they can do what they want when they want in Bath? Can you tell me what part of this action was not a success?
You're obviously a dick, so im not even going to make the 'solidarity' argument - just fuck off!
(A) Sab
auntie christ
15.05.2007 12:22
northern anti-fascist
ooh. Indy Media is above being questioned
15.05.2007 12:46
Indymedia - question it and get called a wifebeater ( this did happen)
Indymedia should be a place where the truth can be shown; and as its the truth it can handle questions. When people attack others for asking questions they are turning into the poodles Bush and Blair ( and soon Brown) want them to be.
YoY
To Truth seeker
15.05.2007 14:25
The BNPs website showed a small number of the counter demonstrators. Yes there was only 20 of us, but we had 2 hours notice after finding the location of the meeting. However, the pictures on the BNP site do show the tiny number of people who attended the talk. And also, just because Nick Griffin stood infront of a sign for Bath Uni for a photo op, it didnt mean he went inside. Infact, the overwhelming majority of sudents made it abundantley clear that he would be chased back out if he did try and set foot in Bath University.
It was fully cynical to slag of the numbers at the counter demo, which everyone knows would have involved hundreds if not thousands, were it not for the original speech being cancelled and reduced to a 'secret' meeting.
Face it fash, no-one likes you!
(A) Sab
Nice job
15.05.2007 14:34
Lancaster UAF
e-mail:
lancaster.uaf@zen.co.uk
Homepage:
http://lancasteruaf.blogspot.com/
WELL DONE ALL yous IN BATH
15.05.2007 14:41
WELL DONE
Last comment from me (hopefully)
15.05.2007 16:46
Indymedia is a brilliant rescource, but is ruined by wankers and armchair activists who sit on their fat fucking asses all day and do nothing but criticise people who can be bothered to get active. Thank you to those of you who have suppotred our action on this post, and even those who have offered constructive criticism. But those of you who are basing your posts on assumption, or even worse, the BNP website (which showed a picture of a small group of us, claiming it was the entire demo) then fuck off and leave us alone - and i'm not just talking about Baths anti fascists, but all activists that inconvienences themselves in order to do the right thing, but gets rewarded with derogatary posts from dickheads
(A) Sab
w00t
15.05.2007 16:57
rasputin
Even lamer
15.05.2007 18:35
Pathetic
Auntie Christ
Why?
15.05.2007 19:12
Can you also tell us what it is that you are doing that is so effective that it makes our demo seem crap and laughable, because it seems that what you are doing is so much better that what the rest of us are doing, it needs to be shared. The fate of the revolution is in your ingenious hands, and without your pearls of wisdom, our movement is nothing.
Unless of course you're just some sad wanker who spends his life criticising other people without contributing anything positive yourself, but, like I say, if you want us to do better, tell us how... were listening.
(A) Sab
I love you all
15.05.2007 19:35
Federica
auntie christ reminds me of.....
15.05.2007 20:16
northern anti-fascist
I'm with A Sab on this one...
15.05.2007 20:41
F
Disinformation and Information Warfare
15.05.2007 20:43
So, what to do? Don't get too wound up, I know this is hard but your anger is because you think that the crap comment is from another activist who is having a go -- it probably isn't.
Two options to do in cases like this:
1. Ignore them and get a IMC admin to hide the trolling comments.
2. Reply and engage in a debate -- if you do this don't expect to win, you don't win arguments with psycopaths, post to demolish their arguments for the others that will come after you.
Personally I find it hard to summon the energy for option 2. and tend to go with option 1....
Once people have started to go with option 2. then option 1. becomes harder -- hiding all the "Auntie Christ" comments would now make the rest of the thread make no sense...
Remember that this is wartime, right now and for the foreseable future.
scanner
If...
15.05.2007 23:16
...then all I have to say is...
WELL DONE FOLKS!
Fascist scum should not be welcome ANYWHERE, at ANY TIME.
Tom A
don't censor them???
16.05.2007 09:00
But the suggestion that Indymedia shouldn't censor them is so absurd: you are clearly not serious -- if you were the you would be proposing to the working groups of indymedia that they need to abandon this editorial clause:
Discrimination : posts using language, imagery, or other forms of communication promoting racism, fascism, xenophobia, sexism, homophobia or any other form of discrimination.
Want try try to put a coherent argument why the Indymedia collectives should host a site that allows racism on it?
scanner
just as bad
05.08.2008 23:01
matt