A protest by the English Defence League and a counter-demonstration passed off largely peacefully in Blackburn today after a huge police operation.
Lancashire Police prepared for its biggest ever policing operation around the protests, taking place either end of Northgate separated by steel barriers.
The EDL protest started at 12.45pm around King George's Hall, Northgate, and finished at around 1.45pm. Blackburn with Darwen Against Racism's counter-demonstration in Sudell Cross began at 1pm and finished at 3pm.
Numbers were limited to 3,000 for each protest. However, police estimate 2,000 supporters of the EDL gathered and around 500 people at the Blackburn with Darwen United Against Racism counter-protest.
12 arrests were made for offences such as breach of peace, police assault, assault, drunk and disorderly, threatening behaviour, affray and obstruction.
Roads were closed and shops and pubs shut, with a large area of the town centre a no-go area for much of today. Other areas of central Blackburn were largely deserted. A heavy police presence remains in town in case there are any outbreaks of trouble.
Pubs re-opened at 4pm, ahead of the Arsenal and Blackburn Rovers match which is live on television.
The Lancashire Telegraph provided live updates from the protests.
Lancashire Telegraph
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
18 comments:
So, what did the Densleys achieve other than harming an already struggling local economy?
Well done chaps!
Gather there was some in-fighting within the EDL this afternoon, of the violent variety.
EDL stewards stopping the violence are really working then. Well done, Guramit.
Just sitting watching these yobbos on BBC News website run amok really scared me, and made me realise that we HAVE to stop these dirty chavs from taking our country and dragging it through the shit. So, they are saying that to be English in 2011, you have to be a drunken racist brainless lout who cannot think for yourself??
The Welsh and the Scottish do not have this burden of shame associated with its national identity, so why should we English have it on our backs?
A national identity is what Englishness is, not racial religious or otherwise
Yes there was in-fighting.
From Lancs Telegraph Twitter : http://twitter.com/lancstelegraph
Edl protest breaking up. More punches thrown among edl supporters. People filing away to mincing ln. #blackburnprotests(dw)
about 3 hours ago via Twitter for Android
Fighting resumes between edl supporters, even spilling over the crowd control barriers #blackburnprotests (dw)
about 3 hours ago via Twitter for Android
Fighting among edl supporters now under control #blackburnprotests (dw) http://t.co/UBpS2JM
about 4 hours ago via Twitter for Android
We look weak, say organisers. There's a disabled man in there, he says. Fighting continues #blackburnprotests (dw)
about 4 hours ago via Twitter for Android
Fighting breaks out #blackburnprotests (dw) http://t.co/CtjWfyJ
about 4 hours ago via Twitter for Android
Edl leader urging crowd to calm down http://t.co/XpuXfRW
about 4 hours ago via Twitter for Android
EDL do not, and never will represent England or Britain, rather their pathetic little selves.
Its about time we turned up at their demos with St Georges crosses with the words EDL DO NOT REPRESENT ENGLAND along the red bit, and see how they like that.
I see nearly all media is reporting it as a peaceful non-event, apart from the BBC who are saying there was a riot! Wankers.
Rumour has it that three mosques came under attack of one kind or another in Blackburn last night.
They couldnt even fill in the 3,000 quota. The EDL muppets were just itching for a fight - so much so that they started to turn on themselves.
The police did a grand job in bottling them in. They have them sussed and know their game.
Eventually these fools wont bother going to such events because they'll realise they cant really do what their inner self really desire (be violent and run riot) - travelling 100s of miles, spending their dole money to listen to 1hr of moronic repetitive clap trap will just become too much..... especially as they dont serve the purpose for which they dream about (like footy matches did in the past) - a means to display their drunken violent streak.
The irony of calling another group in the EDL 'extreme' is lost on Curtis.
Skirmishes broke out among supporters during the EDL rally, despite an appeal for a peaceful event from the organisers.
One man was punched to the floor, while coins and a pint glass were thrown.
EDL spokesman Tony Curtis blamed the fracas on a more extreme splinter group.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-12945734
Here are some ideas for the EDL (I know they love reading LU):-
1. English Defence League I'm Not Racist But...division
2. English Defence League Average IQ division
3. English Defence League Friends of Gadaffi
and (here comes the stonka...)
4. English Defence League Moderate British Muslim division
EDL spokesman Tony Curtis blamed the fracas on a more extreme splinter group.
His career really has gone to the dogs since he dressed up in drag alongside Jack Lemmon in Some Like It Hot...
"His career really has gone to the dogs since he dressed up in drag alongside Jack Lemmon in Some Like It Hot..."
LOL Fucking funny!
How about:
English Defence League Polish economic migrant don't worry they're all Catholics so that's okay then division
or
English Defence League We Want Tommy Robinson's Job division!
The father of the late Olivia Whiteside specifically requested the EDL NOT to use his late daughter's name or make it one of the theme's of the march. EDL seem to have completely ignored his request. Not only they held placards showing pictures of his daughter but one speaker covered it in his speech. Quite contemptuous to ignore the father's simple request.
A national identity is what Englishness is, not racial religious or otherwise
Humanity supersedes nationhood.
Wow, so it was actually plod that said 2,000 and the "journalists" just parroted that figure.
Guess it was more like 500 then.
They couldnt even fill in the 3,000 quota. The EDL muppets were just itching for a fight - so much so that they started to turn on themselves.
How long before the EDL form small squads and start commiting hit-and-run attacks on Muslims and their property?
As the EDL decline and get more desperate I think they could become much more violent and more dangerous. The much trumpeted "Militant" turn of the BNP never happened because, in part, they are mostly middle-aged, elderly and incapable of any kind of street presence and secondly, Griffin's heart isn't in it. Griffin's happy in Brussels and doesn't want to threaten that cushy number. The same can't be said of the EDL, a lot of whose supporters are straining at the leash.
Why do EDL braindead criminals with football banning orders insist in using fake names, usually the same name as dead actors?
Post a Comment