48 people were arrested in Manchester
48 people were arrested over the weekend in Manchester, says the Guardian.
According to some estimates, 2,000 people attended the protests, by the English Defence League (EDL) and members of Unite Against Fascism (UAF) on Saturday afternoon.
Most of those who were arrested were for public order offences, but there were a few detentions for racially-aggravated offences, possession of weapons and drugs.
UAF protesters are believed to have outnumbered the EDL by nearly two to one.
Before the protests kicked off, the BNP released a strategically worded statement distancing itself from the “anti-Islamism” group. The BNP conspiratorially claims that the EDL is a Zionist front organisation, or is some other form of conspiracy run by “some dark hand” , quite possibly the State. But new evidence has emerged from UAF which claims that many of the EDL’s members have close associations with the BNP.
What isinteresting about the tactics of the EDL are its similarities to those of the National Front during the 1970s, who would attract supporters through their immediate concerns, in this case it the rise of Islamism in the UK, and then introduce them to a wider ideology of nationalism and race. Many lower level members of the NF would then pursue a course of violence and whipping up tension within fragile communities. So it comes as no surprise that Saturday’s protest saw some protestors sporting NF flags.
