Drew Sutton:

This summer bank holiday weekend thousands of people will be descending on Bradford.  It’s not for a mass barbeque unfortunately; it’s for a set of demonstrations instigated by the English Defence League.

The EDL will be having a static demonstration in Bradford Urban Gardens and this will be countered by Unite Against Fascism and We Are Bradford’s Static demonstration at Crown Court Plaza. There is also a community celebration event by Be Bradford – Peaceful Together at Infirmary Fields. I believe the last one is backed by Hope Not Hate who are also having a peace vigil the night before.

The EDL claim they are going there to demonstrate against radical extremists in Britain but why Bradford then? I believe the real reason is to directly provoke ordinary Muslims into fighting back. The EDL have demonised them for over a year now. If the EDL were truly against extremists and not all Muslims then they wouldn’t be campaigning against Halal food and any more Mosques being built. Their admins should be banning their members when they make racist posts on their Facebook groups and forums. Instead of this they don’t even try and challenge the racism, they even join in some times. The EDL use semantics like ‘Islam’s not a Race it’s a religion so I can’t be Racist’ to justify their actions and virtually every demo they have had has resulted in violence and arrests.

So I say again why Bradford? Bradford suffered some of the worse riots in modern history in 2001 when the National Front was banned from protesting there but went anyway. Just like how Wootton Bassett was the wrong place for an ISLAM4UK protest Bradford is the wrong place for an EDL protest. The EDL know this but they need an enemy. They want local youths to fight back against them both to keep their football hooligan members happy and to provide the enemy that justifies their existence.

Hope Not Hate ran a fantastic campaign to try and prevent the EDL from marching through Bradford which the Home Secretary agreed to when the police requested that all marches be banned for the weekend however you can’t legally stop a static protest.

The UAF plan to hold a counter protest against the EDL. However how successful have UAF counter protests been so far? There have been many activists arrested for going too far at their demos and knowing that in 2001 the ANL were blamed as much as the National front for their counter demo whipping up tension in Bradford it will only take one spark to create the same dynamics that could cause a repeat. Luckily the police have positioned them well apart from each other, but since the EDL have been known to tear through barriers and barricades elsewhere is this going to be enough?

Bradford has made it clear that the majority of its residents don’t want the EDL there. Many have also said they don’t want the UAF there either. This is why I and the rest of the USoB admins can’t support any demoing in Bradford over the weekend. The potential problems it could cause outweigh any benefits.

I hope the community celebration is a success and people look at this as a far more effective way of showing their distaste towards the EDL. A group of people giving them no attention and enjoying themselves somewhere else in a show of community and multiculturalism is far more positive than any demonstration.

We understand why people want to counter protest this weekend but I ask you to consider the result and the reaction you hope to gain by doing so. Please weigh up the risks involved; we hope that no one comes to any kind of harm including people not protesting as well as protesters and of course the police themselves who will be trying to keep the peace.