Despite police aggression against anti-racist counter-protestors, people in Bristol entirely stymied an attempted racist demonstration, reports Lauren Simmonds
Castle Park in Bristol was once again the chosen meeting point for an ‘anti-migrant’ protest this Bank Holiday Weekend. There has been a number of these so called ‘protests’ called in Bristol in recent weeks and months, by different factions on the right, the most recent of these being called by an organisation going by the name of the ‘Great British National Protest’ (they changed it from ‘Strike’ to ‘Protest’).
The target of these ‘protests’ has of course been hotels housing asylum seekers in the city. The last occasion was on 9 August when three coaches from Bristol went to London for the National Demo for Palestine, and those comrades who remained in Bristol mobilised against the anti-migrant racists and significantly outnumbered them, for which there is precedent here in Bristol.
It seems they were undeterred by previous humiliations and a small group of around thirty-five to forty protesters gathered in Castle Park on Saturday, again hugely outnumbered by anti-racists, but this time with the added bonus of Avon and Somerset Police (as well as help from Welsh Police) who were more determined than the protesters themselves to facilitate the march to the hotel.
Just as it seemed the small group of racists were losing face, completely surrounded by the counter-protest, and their numbers diminishing, the police decided to force us aggressively back, pushing people to the ground and then bringing in the mounted police to ride through us in an attempt to clear the way for the 25 or so remaining protesters to be able to make their way on to the road to march to the hotel.
What then ensued was, and can only be described as, a completely unnecessary escalation by the police as they used brutal force against counter-protesters, trying to break their line of defence and allow the march to the hotel. They used their horses, their fists and eventually drew their batons as they unsuccessfully tried to break the line.
After hours of stand-off, the police eventually made the extraordinary decision to force the racist contingent (who at this point were penned in a tight huddle, protected on all sides by police) through the middle of Broadmead shopping centre, straight past a Palestine rally outside of Barclays (which was attended by families) and also a children’s Lego event. This showed a total disregard for public safety and well-being.
The counter-protesters, through pure will and determination, held them up outside TK Maxx, (where shoppers were forced to remain inside) and they got no further, eventually dispersing and looking completely forlorn, racist protesters and police in unison. The physical bruises were worn by the counter-protesters but the bruises to egos were worn on the faces of the police and racists alike.
When questioned on their decision to allow this attempted march to happen, police responded by saying that it was their duty to uphold ‘human rights’ and ‘protect their right to protest’, quite unbelievably, when less than 24-hours earlier, I had stood outside the Israeli Embassy in London and was told by police that if I used a spoon and a saucepan to create sound then I was liable for arrest! I’m not sure a clearer example of ‘two-tier policing’ exists.
It yet again highlights the repression imposed upon our Palestine movement, where routes are scrutinised and liable to enforcement at a whim, and in stark contrast, here was a small group of anti-migrant racists/fascists, amongst them self-identifying Nazis, who were given permission to ‘be on the move’ with no planned route, declared location or finishing time and with full police protection.
Avon and Somerset Police also appear to have suffered short-term memory loss. This time last year, a group of hardened fascists got forced out of Castle Park by anti-racists, and ended up in combat with the police, who, in full riot gear, and with dogs, only just managed to see them off, but in doing so, sent them in the direction of the Mercure Hotel (which houses families seeking asylum). If it hadn’t been for the quick mobilisation of the counter-protesters that day, including those who had just returned from a national demo for Palestine, forming a line of defence in front of the hotel and physically battling to keep them away, the headline might have been a devastating one.
A lot has changed in a year.
Saturday was a win for anti-fascist Bristol, but it was a victory that comes with a cautious warning. The rumblings of a new wave of fascism, one which includes the involvement and support of the police, isn’t going away anytime soon. How we challenge and confront this threat, and the methods we use to do so, will be paramount.
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