EDL sent packing by militant anti-fascism!
Edinburgh Anti-Fascist Alliance | 22.02.2010 11:45 | Anti-racism
The racist thugs of the "Scottish" Defence League were prevented from having any demonstration at all on Saturday, because of the successful counter demonstration of the Edinburgh Anti-Fascist Alliance. Hundreds of us turned out on the day in a vibrant and exciting protest, to show the racist thugs that their bigotry and divisive hatred is not welcome in Edinburgh.
After congregating at the Princes Mall, we marched to the bottom of the mound. Once our scouts gave us reliable information about where the main meeting point for the SDL was, we marched toward that location. We went down the royal mile, dodging police kettles, and avoiding the attempts by the UAF to take us to the Scotland United Demonstration. We rallied at the Jenny Ha pub which was the main meet up point for the SDL, and the police quickly surrounded the pub as we arrived.
Our presence there ensured that they were not able to leave the pub to have their planned demonstration at the Scottish Parliament. Our actions made sure they were not even able to have a rally, as they were allowed to do in Glasgow.
The police were forced to put around 80 EDL/SDL trapped in the pub on buses, and they were sent out of town, many of them back to Glasgow, most of them back to England.
In other areas of town, seventy EDL at Waverly Station, who had travelled up from England were kettled in the train station by police. And anti-fascists chased a group of EDL who were attempting to get to the Jenny Or back to the train station, only to join their friends in a police kettle. After a few hours standing on a cold platform in a police kettle the EDL were all sent back to England.
Their efforts to have a racist protest in Edinburgh were completely disrupted, and we have left them demoralised. It is unlikely that there will be another SDL demonstration in Scotland, after our success in Edinburgh yesterday, and the success of the Glasgow Anti-Fascist Alliance in November.
Well done to everyone who turned out on the day, it is a great success that we should all be proud of!
Our presence there ensured that they were not able to leave the pub to have their planned demonstration at the Scottish Parliament. Our actions made sure they were not even able to have a rally, as they were allowed to do in Glasgow.
The police were forced to put around 80 EDL/SDL trapped in the pub on buses, and they were sent out of town, many of them back to Glasgow, most of them back to England.
In other areas of town, seventy EDL at Waverly Station, who had travelled up from England were kettled in the train station by police. And anti-fascists chased a group of EDL who were attempting to get to the Jenny Or back to the train station, only to join their friends in a police kettle. After a few hours standing on a cold platform in a police kettle the EDL were all sent back to England.
Their efforts to have a racist protest in Edinburgh were completely disrupted, and we have left them demoralised. It is unlikely that there will be another SDL demonstration in Scotland, after our success in Edinburgh yesterday, and the success of the Glasgow Anti-Fascist Alliance in November.
Well done to everyone who turned out on the day, it is a great success that we should all be proud of!
Edinburgh Anti-Fascist Alliance
Homepage:
http://www.edinburghantifascist.org.uk
Comments
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victory
22.02.2010 13:03
We should stop violent hate filled thugs from taking our streets, sure... but the cops are not our friends just because they happen to kettle the EDL this time.
?
Ghosts of Cable Street
22.02.2010 15:05
The grip of the Sabbath day
In London town the only sound
Is a whisper in an alleyway
Men put on their gloves and boots
Have a smoke before they go
From the west there is a warning of
A wind about to blow
Like Caesar marching to the East
Marches Mosley with his men
Dressed in their clothes of deepest black
Like a gathering hurricane
This is the British Union
With its flag of black and red
A flag that casts a shadow in
Berlin and in Madrid
So listen to the sound of marching feet
And the voices of the ghosts of Cable Street
Fists and stones and batons and the gun
With courage we shall beat those blackshirts down
So mile by mile they come on down
To a place called Cable Street
And other men are waiting there
Preparations are complete
Mosley comes so close
They now can see his outstretched arm
A hand raised up that way
Never took the future in its palm
Listen to the sound of marching feet
And the voices of the ghosts of Cable Street
Fists and stones and batons and the gun
With courage we shall beat those blackshirts down
The battle broke as the fists and the batons fell
Through the barricades came the sound of the wounded yells
Jack Spot burst through with a chair leg made of lead
Brought down a crashing blow on Mosley’s head
And so we learn from history generations have to fight
And those who crave for mastery
Must be faced down on sight
And if that means by words, by fists, by stones or by the gun
Remember those who stood up for
Their daughters and their sons
Listen to the sound of marching feet
And the voices of the ghosts of Cable Street
Fists and stones and batons and the gun
With courage we shall beat those blackshirts down
Listen to the sound of marching feet
And the voices of the ghosts of Cable Street
Fists and stones and batons and the gun
With courage we shall beat those blackshirts down
The men they couldn't hang
underclassrising.net
yes, a victory
22.02.2010 16:03
We know from their forums that the SDL were told by lothian borders police that they could have a static assembly, at 1pm. However, they were unable to have an assembly because of the anti-fascists that had surrounded the pub which was their main meeting point.
If we hadn't been on the streets, where the SDL were gathering, things would have been very different!
jon
is a struggle against the state
22.02.2010 17:59
We defeated the cops on Saturday just as we did historically. It's true that the police didn't use batons against us on Saturday but they did try to arrest some of us. They were prevented from this by our solidarity and by their fear of popular anger against police violence.
Anti-fascism
The EDL / SDL are NOT fascist!
23.02.2010 12:07
Realist
Change the record Realist!
23.02.2010 13:02
Aston Villa anti-fascist