By William White, News Editor and Mihai Roşca, Sports Subeditor
There were clashes around the Cenotaph yesterday afternoon, as Bristol antifascist groups organised to counter UKIP protestors who were rallying for the 'mass deportation' of 'communists, far left, and Islamists.'
Around 250 antifascist counter-protestors from Bristol Against Hate, Antifascist Action, and Stand Up to Racism showed up to demonstrate against the roughly 100 UKIP supporters, among them current UKIP leader, Nick Tenconi. The protestors clashed with police officers, resulting in at least five arrests including a 37-year-old man on suspicion of assault, and a 25-year old man on suspicion of theft.
Yesterday's unrest coincided with similar demonstrations in Birmingham where around 200 members of neo-fascist party, Britain First, came up against 100 counterprotestors from Stand Up to Racism. This comes almost a year on from nationwide violence from far-right and anti-immigrant groups following a misinformation campaign around the identity of the Southport attacker, who murdered three children in July last year.
Despite pockets of unrest in Bristol City Centre, however, Silver Commander Chief Inspector Jason Sims said that 'overall, both groups were calm and engaged with officers.'
Speaking to Epigram, Tenconi said that the counterprotestors 'live in degeneracy and debauchery' and are 'like rats [with] no values, no ethics [and] no morality'. By contrast, local Green Party councillor, Sibusiso Tshabalala, who made a speech addressing the counterprotestors, said to Epigram that the day was 'a discussion between left behind communities, and how left behind they are and the pains that they feel.'
According to Councillor Tshabalala, it is the job of the counterprotestors to find meaningful ways of addressing each group's unique concerns.
'I've never spoken to [UKIP]; I would like to,' said Tshabalala. 'I think this is not the right space to speak. We need to have intentional spaces where we can have those dialogues between left-behind communities.'
Tshabalala's words starkly contrast Tenconi's, who alleged that the counterprotestors 'delight in the blood of our youth being spilt' and that 'the left have created no-go zones in Britain.' Tshabalala said that the biggest challenge the country faced was overcoming ignorance, allowing constructive discourse between the ideologically opposed groups.
'How do you work with [people] to constructively create positive narratives?' he said. 'Narratives that are more realistic [with regards to] the past contributions of the UK [and] of its diverse communities. We don’t even see this in the curriculum, so clearly there is a fundamental lack of representation of other people’s contributions to society. This is where our strongest issues lie.'
Reflecting on the day, Tshabalala said that while counterprotests were a victory, they were only a necessary continuation of antifascist resistance.
'We had an emotional beginning with violence. But I think we had an end where people saw that they could be the change that would like to see. I think that’s a powerful end to today,' he explained. 'But today is not the end, there is another one tomorrow, and another one next week in Castle Park, and there could be another one, too. It’s about making sure we have the momentum and the community behind us.'
'It is the community that won today; it is the public that won today. Those are the people that you never want to disappoint: that, when you turn back, they aren’t there.’
According to one steward who is a member of Stand Up to Racism, momentum was crucial to their victory.
'[UKIP] are more confident and we have to keep outnumbering them,' he said. 'This is a defensive mobilisation but I think it’s crucial, given the huge pool of despair which these people feed off - growing inequality, austerity, tax and jobs - that we have to also go on the offensive and struggle against those things.’
One protestor said that antifascism was a key part of the Bristol identity.
‘The whole of Bristol is built on antifascism, immigrants, and refugees,' they said. '[UKIP] are so obviously out of step with what Bristol is and I think everyone who came here today proved that they’re not welcome.’
