Tommy Robinson was arrested on Friday outside Leeds Crown Court; he was charged and sentenced within five hours.
Following his incarceration, on Saturday, in Whitehall, far right supporters of Robinson reacted furiously. Several hundred from various far right splinter groups, and UKIP, held an intimidating demonstration at Whitehall. Journalists were threatened by drunken, Robinson supporters. One speaker even said Robinson was the modern, Nelson Mandela!
In Wales, swastikas appeared on a university campus in Newport, sprayed next to ‘Free Tommy’.
Robinson, as leader of the racist EDL, led gangs of thugs around the UK on violent attempts to intimidate Muslims, particularly e.g. in East London, the Midlands and Bradford. Long term campaigns by the likes of Unite Against Fascism (UAF) eventually resulted in Robinson quitting the EDL in 2013.
Anti-fascists the length and breadth of the country mobilised countless times in opposition to Robinson and the EDL’s far right agenda. Key victories were made against the EDL in Tower Hamlets, Walthamstow and South Yorkshire in 2010, 2011 and 2013.
(Read the full UAF press release here).
Recently Robinson has been whipping up tension around the topic of ‘free speech’, claiming the platform as an opportunity to spew racist bile on national TV. He uses his platform to attack Muslims and stir racial hatred – calling for ‘militias’ to ‘sort out’ Islam in Britain.
Darren Osbourne was radicalised in this ideology. He was the man who murdered one and injured many others in a racist, terror attack on Finsbury Park Mosque. During his court case Osbourne’s partner said:
“Darren has been watching a lot of Tommy Robinson stuff on the internet…I have pleaded with Darren to stop watching this sort of thing, but he just wouldn’t stop.”
Robinson has been a key speaker at DFLA events recently, attracting large applause from an audience of UKIP members, Nazi’s and Islamophobes. They want to imitate the success of far right movements across Europe by claiming their anti-Islam ideology isn’t racist and that they themselves are the victims. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Robinson’s ideology lies in social/ ethnic cleansing, white supremacy and the destruction of democracy.
Weyman Bennett – Joint Secretary of SUTR said, “Robinson is a racist criminal. Anti-fascists will be glad to see such a thug behind bars. He has long incited hatred and violence against Muslims, trades unionists, Jews and others on the left.”
We must use his absence from the streets to build coalitions which reject the racism of Tommy Robinson and his friends in the DFLA.
Join the demonstration in Manchester against the DFLA this Saturday, Facebook event here.
The coach going from London is here.
Join the demonstration against the supporters of Tommy Robinson in London on 9 June, Facebook event here.
