Kingston upon Dull

On Saturday 19th July, SCARF sent an expeditionary force to support Hull Against Hate's callout to oppose the Hull Patriotic Protesters (HPP) demonstration in Queen Victoria Square. HPP is the vanity vehicle for ex-EDL activist John Gelling (AKA John Francis), whose main claim to fame is grovelling and blaming bigger boys following last summer's race riots.

The demo was called for midday, but by 10am John and his entourage were already setting up camp, appropriately enough, atop the public toilets in the centre of the square. The full range of terrible far right graphic design was on display, with even the more legible placard requiring a furrowed brow and multiple readings to divine what it was they were so angry about. Common themes included attempting to draw a distinction between ‘fake’ and ‘real’ refugees, and calling the left paedophiles. It’s unlikely this fascist jazz approach to signmaking – where you have to listen to the notes they’re not playing – had much cut-through with the casual passer-by.

Hi-vis vs High Jinks

Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) counter protesters had turned up early too and were busy setting up a PA, giving out cake, and (as is their custom) assigning stewards for the day. Opening exchanges primarily consisted of small numbers from either side crossing the floor to film, antagonise, talk to, or subvert the other. John was particularly feisty early doors – threatening antifascists and walking into/jostling a few people. This mainly seemed to be an attempt to impress his most craven footsoldiers and he switched to his concerned citizen shtick as more attendees arrived.

An informal non-aggression pact held for most of the event, with people on both sides appealing to the police to intervene any time something interesting threatened to break out. One of SUTR’s plastic policemen somewhat exceeded their authority, laying hands on an antifascist in what is becoming something of a pattern. This paternalistic urge to control demonstrations seems to be motivated by an urge to avoid escalation, but it risks dividing anti-racists, who aren’t operating from a position of strength as it is.

Turnout was less than impressive, but a number of fascist Z list celebrities were in attendance – including streamers Brian Stovell and Lee Scheres (of Antifa Watch ‘fame’), and the organisers of last year’s Unite the Kingdom flop in Rotherham.

'Brexit' Brian and Lee Scheres

At its peak there were probably less than 80 HPP supporters and about half as many counter protesters, though the far right crowd noticeably thinned as they rambled through their incoherent speeches. As soon as the final speaker wrapped up to some half-hearted applause, the bulk of the remaining demo quickly fled to the nearest pub, leaving John and his loyalists to dismantle their gazebo and gather up their sagging placards in the rain.

SCARF Statement – In Response to UKIP's March on 8th November

On Saturday 8th November a small band of fascists marched through Sheffield with the support and protection of a massive policing operation. Despite being billed as a national mobilisation, Nick Tenconi’s UKIP barely managed to draw 100 attendees from across the country, dwarfed by around 800 antifascists, the overwhelming majority from Sheffield. With less than two weeks’ notice, people across the city spread the word and turned out, making it clear that fascists are not welcome in our city. Despite outnumbering them 8:1, a feat widely celebrated this week, we were ultimately unable to stop the march. We need to learn from this so that the next time we ask “whose streets?”, the answer rings loud, clear and true. UKIP only marched because the police enabled them. South Yorkshire Police’s last-minute Section 14 order criminalised almost all opposition while granting UKIP a protected route through our city. Hundreds of officers, many drafted in from other forces and armed with bato...

False Flag

HOW TO START A CULTURE WAR? Surely every true-born Englishman has by now downed a pint of Coronation ale, got the ladder out of the shed, and using British-made cable ties, tethered a flag to a lamp post in their street. Or is the whole thing a hoax, a GBeebies fever dream? There are far fewer flags per square mile than even during a lesser football tournament, those that are out seem pretty localised and nothing compared to the spontaneous display of Ukrainian flags at the outset of war. None of this has stopped the entire billionaire funded pundit class (Wootton, Goodwin, Oakeshott, GB News...) stepping up and declaring that the English lion has finally roared. Astroturfing is the art of creating “grassroots” movements from the top, and this flagshagging exercise is such a plastic lawn that it comes with its own set of garden furniture. The main Facebook group has only got 3.7k members! The few photos on it show a max of three flags each. KERB YOUR ENTHUSIASM As an action desig...

UKIP If You Want To – Sheffield Says No To Hate

Contribute to the fundraiser to support arrested anti-racist activists Antifascists gathering near the cathedral – credit @racheloleary_ Saturday saw 800 Sheffielders turn out onto the streets and attempt to block UKIP's hate march. Billed as a “Mass Deportations” march, UKIP mustered under a hundred “patriots”, around a quarter of whom were livestreamers. The day began jubilantly enough at the Cathedral, the original start point for the far right, but now occupied by hundreds of antifascists. However, in the event, facilitated by police violence, the far-right were able to march. The majority of the counter demonstration went down to Waingate, where antifascists attempted to hold the road. There they were kettled by police and herded into Castlegate by a combination of police violence & ushering from (non-SCARF) stewards. This crowd then remained contained by police on Castlegate. A group of forty antifascists managed to break away from the kettle and sto...

SCARF - Sheffield Communities Against Racism & Fascism

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