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Who is the average EDL supporter? An little investigation.

Exposing Dangerous Liars | 19.10.2009 05:07 | Anti-racism

We have been looking at the EDL pages on facebook, and EDL members statements and images. Doing so we stumbled across a local EDL member whose facebook page was public! Looking at it is very revealing. This guy is just an average EDL supporter, not a leader, and as far as we know, is not an active fascist or a threatening person. But he is a racist and displays symbols that support the BNP and the Ku Klux Klan on his face book page.

You will note from these screenshots below that this lad has loads of EDL contacts (they all usually append 'EDL' to their facebook names). This one is friends with 'Tommy Robinson', a key EDL leader, along with many other prominent EDL names.

You will have noticed the EDL spokespeople are eager to insist that the EDL is 'not racist' and not against all Muslims, "only the extremists". This has become their mantra, some would say their ill fitting disguise. Ironically, a prominent EDL image on facebook that includes anti-fascist symbols to make this point has had this individuals name tagged onto the image for distribution! As you will also see, this individual is calling on all his friends and associates to come to the Leeds EDL demo on the 31st Oct. Will the EDL distance themselves from this guy and others like him - or would that see most of their supporters ditched?

This expose would not work if we scrubbed out the individuals name from the screenshots. However, can we make clear that we do not wish any harm to this individual, and would be against any attempt to witchunt or otherwise hurt him. This is merely to show what the facebook page of your average EDL footsoldier looks like - and its not pleasant. It is also to alert people to what may happen were the EDL to be unleashed unopposed. Many of their members have extremist, fascist and racist leanings. This is not just a force against Islamic extremists, but against all Muslims, and often against other racial, religious and ethnic minorities.

Exposing Dangerous Liars

Comments

Hide the following 7 comments

Hey

19.10.2009 07:41

Screenshots? Links?

bbc

CLASS WARFARE

19.10.2009 08:30

An interesting point. There seems to be a distinct class difference between your average EDL supporter who comes from a working class background and does a blue collar job to those who oppose them from groups such as UAF which seem to be middle class students, civil servant types and school teachers.

It is important to realise these differences when planning propaganda etc.

Sammo

Class War

19.10.2009 09:42

Think that is being a bit very Stero-typical there Sammo although you are not very far off the mark. The UAF I think have changed slightly over the last couple of years and lets face facts they are the only group who seem to be organising themselves against the Fascists (Sad to say).....

You could investigate the EDL further by matching any names to the leaked BNP list that happened in Nov 2008..maybe there would be a few surprices!

Wheres the Link Gone?

leon

It's not about the UAF

19.10.2009 09:53

The leadseship of the UAF may be largely middle class and reactionary but the people who came out to oppose the EDL on the streets of Birmingham and Manchester are drawn mostly from working class communities in those areas. I think advising the UAF on how to word their propaganda in order to "speak" to a target audience is a bit of a lost cause, they're the kings of condescension, however don't tarr all anti-fascists with the same brush the UAF don't have a monopoly on anti-fascism.

Bruisedshins

Leon: Good idea

19.10.2009 12:55

"You could investigate the EDL further by matching any names to the leaked BNP list that happened in Nov 2008..maybe there would be a few surprices!"

If somebody could do this and work out how many BNP members support the EDL then it'd be a damn good idea! Might get some media attention and they 'might' get them 'revoked' as BNP members as Griffin claims he will dismiss anyone associated...yeh right though!

If Griffin doesn't dismiss the exposed members then this is more evidence of the BNP and EDL's alignment...given that he blatantly hasn't used the lists already to do so!

veg@n

Here is the evidence

19.10.2009 14:10

The evidence is here on an alternative page on indymedia

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/10/440097.html

Exposing Dangerous Liars

Changed?

19.10.2009 17:31

bruisedshins is right, this isn't about the UAF, but changed?! Plenty of people saw them grassing antifascists up to the police the other week in Manchester, exactly the same as the SWP (in the guise of the ANL) did in the 1970's. They don't seem to have changed that much.

Old Salt

UK Indymedia