We met at 10 o'clock at St Enoch's Underground - the word was the fash were meeting in a pub close by.
We were about 100 + with a wide banner and a megaphone, and walked towards the pub we learned the EDL were in. On the way chants of Fuck Fascism etc echoed round the busy shopping area. A cop Inspector I spoke to was a bit pissed off at some of the chanting, but policing wasn't particularly heavy till we got closer to the pub, which was surrounded by a double or treble line of cops close in, then a further square of cops further out from the pub, and at least 3 camera teams, probably local, and a helicopter.
Then about 50+ (UAF?) certainly SWP types who had been doing the chanting took their banner and megaphone and defiantly marched off to a Scotland United anti-racism rally about a mile away on Glasgow Green! to be speeched at about how we must keep the racists off our streets! This left around 50 of us to confront the EDL, who were there right in front of us.
Eventually the cops let the 60odd, ugly skinhead EDL out to walk in a kettle about 200 meters where they stood and sang Rule Brittania and God save the queen, at which some of our lot started to sing Oh Flower of Scotland, which they refused to join. So much for the 'Scottish' bit of the Scottish Defence League.
Prominant among the 'SDL' ranks was a big 'Red Hand of Ulster' flag bearing the words 'No Surrender'. They were well living on the past like the boneheads they are.
There was a Section 60 in force all day, and many anti-fash were told to show their faces, while many EDL were masked up the whole time.
Then after about 20 minutes, the fash were walked back the way they had come to get on their 2 buses and away out of Glasgow.
Later an anti-fash was arrested outside the Army Recruitment shop, though I know no more details.
I heard there had been some arrests of fash doing Nazi salutes near Central Station, and as I got there an Asian guy was roughly arrested for refusing to give a cop his details. He was charged with the usual catch-all Breach of the Peace, and was surrounded by a crowd chanting 'Let him go' as he was marched off by a squad of cops.
All this happened a minutes walk away from the large Scotland United, 'Racism, Time to say No' rally where the MSP-led 'anti-racists' were listening to speeches on George Square.
The EDL had been refused permission to march (on the mosque) and if half the 'anti-racists' had been outside the pub instead of listening to speeches about how good they were opposing racism, the EDL would''t have even been able to walk the small distance they did.
Comments
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By One of the confused mass
So far everyone here seem to be people who stayed to confront the SDL and were (rightly) disappointed and angry that the rest of us marched on. I'll give you my version of the day.
I came to the St Enoch assembly, as a member of a group that had been meeting for over a month at Glasgow Uni to mobilise and organise for yesterday's event. When the march started, heading up Buchanan Street, as far as I knew we didn't know where the SDL had decided to assemble, and actually thought we were just starting to march for the sake of having our march (possible the SDL weren't gonna turn up at all). I asked people around me and they, like me, didn't know the SDL had been spotted. As the march turned up Cambridge Street, a number of us stayed on Sauchiehall Street, for fear of being kettled (I saw police and their vans heading the same way as the march, but didn't realise why, partly because of the police's attempt to control our direction earlier in the march). I asked a group of people who told me the SDL were in a pub "two minutes up the road". Unfortunately, I didn't take this literally as 'a pub two minutes up this road' and I didn't ask(!) which pub it was either. SO, as the march again went up Cambridge Street and turned right towards Cineworld, I never even noticed that we were going away from something, or the hundred-odd police lined up on Cambridge Street. Concerned only by not poking out anyone's eye with my umbrella and not walking in puddles (...or something like that) I walked on until those 'two minutes' seemed awfully long. As we turned down Renfield Street(?) someone asked me where we were going, and I told her we were going to a pub where the SDL were. Fooled! I never thought all these people would be giving up the chance to actually confront the SDL.
Afterwards, I have learned from others about the SDL presence and the split on Cambridge Street, and having seen video footage of the police presence I honestly can't believe I missed what was going on. But I did, and many with me, I'm sure. There was a lot of confusion for sure, but to those who saw me and others walk by, obediently following after the UAF lead, I can only say I'm sorry and I really hope we won't have a situation like this next time. I don't know what the solution is, better communication? No UAF lead of the march, for sure.
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By Martin O'Neill
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By Civillianslave
Link to footage of the day: http://www.youtube.com/user/civillianslave#p/u
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By a Greek
I guess I am one of the people "Martin O' Neill" refers to, and I'd like to say something. I don't doubt anarchists exist in Glasgow. I've seen a couple of websites from some groups. I do believe that meetings are important, but showing up at the streets is what makes the difference. That's what I know at least.
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By Anonymous
So who were the 50 odd getting marched through King St car park at around 10.30-11.00
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By Anonymous
I have no idea who these 50 were as we were all at St. Enochs or heading up to Cambridge st. at that time. I'm sorry for "one of the confused mass" not being aware of what was going on. All Ican say is next time go with your mates, keep mobile within the crowd and go and see for yourself. There was, possibly, a chance of us getting kettled when we first arrived which is why my group were calling for people to swing around the block to get to the other end of Cambridge St. This would also have blocked in the fasc from both ends if everyone had stayed. What is with this UAF? Are they anotherr SWP front or, as some have suggested to me, Labour Party. The old Anti-nazi League was an SWP front but at least they knew to face down the nazis on the streets.
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By a Greek
Yes...50 people -no matter who they were- in the largest city of Scotland. And that's a good thing?
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By Anonymous
I was staying in the Holiday Inn I didn't know anything about anything that was going on this weekend in the city, I was just checking out after a few days work. I was parked in King St car park and all of a sudden saw 50 or so lads coming from the direction on the Saltmarket and heading toward Stockwell street / St Enochs and then the plod arriving from Clyde Street. I knew there was no major football matches on this weekend due to the internationals, it's sad that the first thing I thought of in light of this was the far right. I got got curious and found this site.
As someone who was really into the casual scene in my youth I know that far right politics had no place in the origins of 80s terrace culture. There was a lot of black faces amongst the dressers at the match especially in the casual hotbed here in the North West, they were often at the forefront of what was going on back then. The maggots that would turn up to hand out their NF lit were often sent on their toes the minute they arrived. I hate the way the SDL/EDL carry out their campaigns in the name of the football casual, It reminds me of the NF skins of the late 70s. As far away removed from the original movement as you can get.
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By Anonymous
Well, the demo from Buchanan Street was not led by the UAF but by people who I would say, were anarchists. And the same people marched off to Glasgow Green, along with the UAF, SSP and other organisations. Everyone was free to make up their own minds if they were to go that direction. In hindsight we might have been better to be in Cambridge Street as that turned out to be the place where the SDL were concentrated, but that wasn't known at the time. It didn't even become apparent that they were going to protest there until they actually left the pub . In fact there wasn't any certainty that they would turn up in Glasgow at all. So this nonsense it was the UAF/SWP who were to 'blame' is just that, nonsense. It was only when it became apparent that the nazis were attempting to march that people marched from the Green, and they started to arrive minutes after the scum had been bussed away. So if people had known that the SDL were there and were going to march there, then they could have got a similar response from the demonstrators before the SDL moved. If people were so convinced that marching away was wrong then why didn't they argue that at the time or even just not go with the rest? Nobody knew for certain what was going on and anybody now who says they did know, is being wise after the event, to put it kindly..
I think it was right to be part of the demo and when or if the nazis protested, to move out from there and confront them. This is what happened on the day. There was always a danger of being kettled for the duration. We could have been stuck outside the Cambridge while the nazis marched in a different part of the city. That didn't happen either.
So be happy that because of mass opposition a tiny number of nazis turned up, were quarantined in a pub and we saw the biggest ever anti racist, anti fascist demo in Scotland.
A success.
Re: Brief report from the anti 'SDL' in Glasgow
By Martin O'Neill