St George’s Day may have passed in Brighton without incident – but a nationalist group which has formed part of previous March for England demos in the city is planning on returning here next month.
Brighton Police were out in force on Saturday, April 23 this year as a precautionary measure in case the same marchers who had caused trouble in previous years decided to come back again.
A Stop MFE demo saw scores of anti-fascists celebrating “seeing off” the nationalist marchers this year on the Level. But now South Coast Resistance has announced a “No More Refugees” demo for Saturday, June 4.
Chief Superintendent Nev Kemp said: “We are aware of this event being advertised but no group has notified us of the event or engaged with us to date.
“Should we become aware that any group wants to exercise their right to protest, we will of course be happy to liaise with them and the local community to try and facilitate a peaceful protest.”
Stop MFE said they are disappointed to learn of the march, but vowed to show the marchers the same opposition as in previous years.
The organisation’s Polly Bentham said: “Once again, the people of Brighton will come out to oppose them, showing there’s no place for hatred or division in our city.”
There was no march in the city last year, but in 2014 violence which broke out between members of the March for England and anti-fascist counter-demonstrators led to several arrests and shut down large parts of the city for the afternoon.
Sussex Police said the policing costs for the day were about half a million pounds, and businesses estimated that the march could have cost them millions more.
There have been calls to ban far-right marches in Brighton and Hove, but the police says it does not have the power to do this.
Earlier this year, seven people were given suspended sentences for their part in the 2014 march violence, with another six acquitted. Those convicted included both nationalists and anti-fascists.
So much for this thing called austerity, we can afford to spend billions on bombing Syria, upholding a scrounging royal family, and a bunch of thieving tory mps, and now countless thousands, on protecting a bunch of brain dead ignorant racists, who don’t give a damn about the violence, that the west has caused in the middle east, all in the name of oil.
Nice rant, but what has that got to do with March for England and/or the Stop MFE/UAF protesting in the city?
Not that I support either of these extreme imbecilic groups – especially the anti-fascist ones that are also anti-free speech – I’d just like to understand your reasoning.
Gerald,I think Christos is considering the 500,000 quid spent on policing the march and the cost to the local economy. although it is not clear if its council tax/direct tax that is paying for the police it is nonetheless a huge cost to be burdened with because a bunch of racist thugs want to have their day. It is an economic burden. If that money was available for the community instead it would foster a lot of good, but, we are being ‘conditioned’ to accept austerity budgets and cuts across the city, yet this hate parade will be policed and paid for by council/state funds. That is, you and me.
I do have a tendency to rant, my point is that this money could be better spent, on the local community, rather than waste it on protecting a bunch of worthless football hooligan rejects, with their racist agenda, for that is what the Pie and Mash squad are. Incidentally, these thugs, who have infamously assaulted a woman on the London Underground at Westminster, have threatened to throw me into the sea. Pictures of me are on their facebook page, with such a threat attached. Those pictures were downloaded from the neo-nazi hate website Redwatch, which of course, shows Pie and Mash up in their true colours as neo-nazis. I will, of course, be in Brighton, to oppose the Pie and Mash squad.
Gethard Willy = Nazi apologist!
Hey stop using my pen name!
Wearing masks the cowards, how can you truly stand up for a belief if your ashamed to show your face? Hiding bloodlust behond false ideology claims perhaps?? Sorry I might be a bit sheltered but do they really want pie and mash???(Re flag ) I’d be happy to cook if that would chill them out?? Or better than that the nations number one favourite, a nice curry. Should we make them a big pie and mash so we can all just get on with having a nice day together under one sun?
Everyone has the right to protest, but its pathetic to do it in Brighton, where there is a very relaxed open community. i dont understand why they want to target Brighton. Is it because its a safe area? i wonder how they would get on in Bradford, Tottenham or Southall. These people need to be named and shamed, and maybe the people of Brighton go to Bristol or Harlow and protest outside their houses.