Far-Right Hooligans Plan Clashes Against Black Lives Matter Protests

Hundreds of football hooligans and far-right thugs are expected to arrive in London next Saturday to disrupt Black Lives Matter protests taking place in the city the same day. This warning came from activist group Hope Not Hate who say that the hooligans claim that their goal is to “protect the war memorials”.

“I expect you are going to be in London next Saturday”

According to Hope Not Hate, the counter-protest to the Black Lives Matter protest due to take place in London has been organised by the so-called Democratic Football Lads Alliance. They emerged after the 2017 terrorist attacks and their plan is to surrounding war memorials and other statues in central London so that they cannot be taken down like that of 17^th century slaver, Edward Colston, whose statue in Bristol was taken down by protesters.

The Alliance has been endorsed by the former leader of the far-right EDL, Tommy Robinson, who posted a video complaining about the defacing of the statue of Winston Churchill in Westminster last weekend.

“If you’re a lad or you call yourself a lad, and you’re a football lad and you go to football and you give a shit at all about our country, our history, our culture, our identity. I expect you are going to be in London next Saturday,” Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, said. He promises to attend the event, which is attracting protesters from as far as Sunderland, Yorkshire, West Midlands and East Anglia. Other smaller groups, such as the ex-serviceman group Veterans Against Terrorism and some chapters of Hells Angels have also announced that they will partake in the event.

Violence and abuse by far-right thugs threaten community cohesion

The far-right football mobs arriving in London is expected to lead to one of the largest confrontations with the Black Lives Matter protesters since the demonstrations began some three weeks ago. There are fears that these confrontations can get violent, as even smaller counter-protests and hooligan marches do, such as in Coventry recently.

Black Lives Matter protesters at Hoddesdon in Hertfordshire were met with obscene shouting from mobs, including sexist and racist calls. At least one unidentified man was seen shouting the protesters to “go back to Africa” while others were reported to have made Nazi salutes.

In Leeds, a man was arrested for racially-aggravated public order offence after shouting racist remarks at Black Lives Matter demonstrators at a bus. In Plymouth, a group of men wearing masks were sighted near the Plymouth Naval Memorial. The group said that they have no issues with the protesters but threatened violence if they chose to “attack war memorials”.