BNP active on Countryside March


More than 400,000 Countrysiders from all over the UK marched through London on Sunday 22nd September. Two marches – Liberty and Livelihood converged in Whitehall to demonstrate to Prime Minister Tony Blair that all is not well in the countryside.

In a carefully co-ordinated activity, the British National Party was at the Countryside March in force to show Countrysiders that there is a party which cares about the countryside – about the loss of village shops, bus services, rural poverty, declining farm incomes, 2nd home ownership forcing rural youngsters away from home, the destruction of village life and the imposition of urban ‘political correctness’ on country folk.

The hunting fraternity were there too, concerned at the loss of freedom to pursue country pursuits, as were anglers worried that if foxhunting is banned they will be next. These people are not just paranoid – ‘animal rights’ thugs have already assaulted some anglers.

At five points, including Hyde Park, more than seventy BNP activists distributed more than 46,000 copies of a specially produced paper – The Countrysider. The reception from country folk was uniformly friendly and BNP teams struggled to keep up with the demand from the marchers. The sun shone, the mood of the BNP teams and marchers was cheerful and the colourful array of flags and banners stood out against the green of Barbour jackets and hats.

The day was described by party members as “excellent” and “fantastic” with The Countrysider going like hot cakes. While the ordinary marchers were receptive to the party’s message, the same cannot be said for the leadership of the Countryside Alliance – a collection of country Tories and city toffs. In an article in the previous day’s Daily Mail, one intolerant ‘leader’ was quoted as saying that he’d asked police to “move on” any party activists that they found! Not on the basis of any offence being committed, but purely because this Stalinist Tory doesn’t like the BNP!

In the event, only one team were approached by the police who were then informed by party activists as to the law of the land. Two activists at the Embankment were hassled by CA stewards with one shouting at the marchers: “They’re the BNP, they’re the BNP!” The reply from one lady pocketing her Countrysider: “Good to see them” so thoroughly deflated this Tory pinko that he slunk off not to be seen again. Another made a complete spectacle of himself by standing in front of one of our activists jumping up and down and flapping his arms like a bird trying to take off! The marchers taking papers from the party’s other activists looked on, clearly bemused.

Elsewhere, a Channel 4 camera man filming the Hyde Park team giving out papers asked another lady taking a paper: “Do you know the people behind this paper are the BNP?” Her filmed reply was “So what?” If that is shown and doesn’t end up on the cutting room floor, it will accurately sum up the attitude of the marchers towards the party. Country folk are not the exclusive electoral preserve of the Tory party – which has actually let them down. The BNP too is more than ready to represent the concerns of country folk as it does city and town folk.

Altogether, with 46,000 Countrysiders going out – reaching more than 1-in-9 of the marchers – and to a fantastic reception, the party can be well pleased. The impact of this activity will continue to be felt for months as the party continues to widen its constituency to appeal to more and more people.