hope not hate tower hamlets tabloid august 2011

8
BAN THE EDL DEMO: SIGN THE PETITION, BACK PAGE IN JUST A FEW WEEKS’ time the racist English Defence League is set to invade Tower Hamlets with a message of fear and hatred. We say that they are not welcome here. Where the EDL has marched before there has been trouble. They have attacked people and property and whipped up a climate of hatred that lasts long after they have boarded their buses home. This is the last thing that Tower Hamlets needs. The HOPE not hate campaign has been set up to oppose racism and hatred. We oppose all extremism from whatever quarter it comes from. We are calling for the authorities to ban the EDL march and for the people of the East End to once again stand together against extremism. TOWER HAMLETS STANDS STRONG AGAINST EXTREMISM TOWER HAMLETS STANDS STRONG AGAINST EXTREMISM TOWER HAMLETS STANDS STRONG AGAINST EXTREMISM TOWER HAMLETS STANDS STRONG AGAINST EXTREMISM TOWER HAMLETS STANDS STRONG AGAINST EXTREMISM TOWER HAMLETS STANDS STRONG AGAINST EXTREMISM Photo from flickr: A-Pillow-of-Winds page 3 The Norway killer BREIVIK'S LINKS TO THE ENGLISH DEFENCE LEAGUE We’ve stopped them before CELEBRATING THE PROUD HISTORY OF LONDON’S EAST END , CENTRE PAGES Photo: David Hoffman www.hoffmanphotos.com

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On eve of 75th anniversary of the battle of Cable Street when Mosley's thugs were sent packing, the EDL seek to march through Tower Hamlets, London. This excellent Hope Not Hate tabloid is distributed to 500000 homes in the borough to highlight the danger to democracy if the EDL are allowed to march again.

TRANSCRIPT

The Norway killer

● BAN THE EDL DEMO: SIGN THE PETITION, BACK PAGE

IN JUST A FEW WEEKS’ time the racist EnglishDefence League is set to invade Tower Hamletswith a message of fear and hatred. We say thatthey are not welcome here.

Where the EDL has marched before there has beentrouble. They have attacked people and property andwhipped up a climate of hatred that lasts long afterthey have boarded their buses home.

This is the last thing that Tower Hamlets needs. The HOPE not hate campaign has been set up to

oppose racism and hatred. We oppose all extremismfrom whatever quarter it comes from.

We are calling for the authorities to ban the EDLmarch and for the people of the East End to onceagain stand together against extremism.

TOWER HAMLETSSTANDS STRONG

AGAINST EXTREMISM

TOWER HAMLETSSTANDS STRONG

AGAINST EXTREMISM

TOWER HAMLETSSTANDS STRONG

AGAINST EXTREMISM

TOWER HAMLETSSTANDS STRONG

AGAINST EXTREMISM

TOWER HAMLETSSTANDS STRONG

AGAINST EXTREMISM

TOWER HAMLETSSTANDS STRONG

AGAINST EXTREMISM

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page 3

The Norway killer BREIVIK'S LINKS TO THE

ENGLISH DEFENCE LEAGUE

We’ve stoppedthem beforeCELEBRATING THE PROUD HISTORY OFLONDON’S EAST END , CENTRE PAGES

Photo: David Hoffmanwww.hoffmanphotos.com

page 2 HOPE not hate

CMYK

HOPEnot hate

THE ENGLISH DEFENCE LEAGUEwants to come to Tower Hamletsto stir up trouble. They plan todivide communities, whip up fear,and provoke violence. They willeither bring the troublethemselves or incite locals tocarry it out. Either way, they andtheir politics of hatred are notwelcome here.

Worse still, they want us to pay forit. The policing of an EDL demo islikely to be £2m and we, as localtaxpayers, will have to foot the bill.

The EDL’s links to the Norwegiankiller shows where this politics ofhate can lead. It is a hatred thatthe people of Tower Hamlets donot need.

Extremism helps no-one; it canonly bring more trouble.

The HOPE not hate campaign isclear. We oppose all extremism –from whichever quarter it comes. We oppose Islamist extremism just aswe oppose the EDL. That is why wesay “a plague on both their houses”.

We believe that everyone has theright to live in peace and without the fear of abuse or violence.Whether you are white or Asian,male or female, straight or gay.

The authorities need to ban theEDL march and the localcommunity needs to stand togetherin the face of hatred and extremism.The East End has a proud history ofopposing extremism. We have doneit before – and we can do it again.

www.hopenothate.org.uk

Join the movement for HOPE p8

BY NICK LOWLES

EDL: VIOLENT,EXTREME ANDDANGEROUS

THE ENGLISH DEFENCE LEAGUE(EDL) is a racist organisation thatseeks to whip up fear and tensionsbetween communities. Many of itsdemonstrations end in violence.

They want to come to TowerHamlets to cause trouble.

VIOLENT THUGSThe EDL are a group of thugs who useviolence and intimidation. They havetheir roots in violent football hooligangangs. They have regularly raciallyabused innocent bystanders. They havesmashed up shops, attacked localpeople and burnt cars.

At dozens of EDL demonstrationsthere have been hundreds of arrests.

RACIAL VIOLENCEThe EDL claim to oppose “Islamicextremism”, but in reality they target all Muslims, as well as other non-

white groups. After an EDL protest inLeicester, hundreds of EDL thugs wenton the rampage, trying to intimidatethe local community.

EDL supporters have attacked andvandalised religious buildings and beenimplicated in arson attacks. Manymembers of the EDL have beenarrested for inciting racial hatred.

RACISTS, FASCISTS, EXTREMISTSAs well as hardcore football

hooligans, EDL demos are attended byhardline fascists and racists.

These include members of theBritish National Party and the NationalFront as well more extreme Nazigroups who support terrorism, such asCombat 18.

EDL fight police in Leicester

Q: Why are we calling for a ban?The English Defence League are coming to Tower Hamlets to stir up trouble and inciteviolence. The potential for trouble is too great for us to allow this to happen.

The last thing Tower Hamlets people need is agroup of violent racists marching through theneighbourhoods.

Q: What about freedom of speech?We do not call for a ban lightly. We should cherishour right to freedom of speech and our right todemonstrate and protest against the things we don’tlike. These are fundamental rights of living in ademocracy. However, with rights comeresponsibilities, and it is not right for a small group ofpeople to be allowed to deliberately whip up fear andviolence against others. It is the right of a communityto live in peace and not be scared and intimidated.

Q: How do you achieve a ban?Only the Home Secretary can ban a march, andonly then when she is convinced that there is areal threat to public order. The normal process isfor the police to ask the local authority formally torequest a ban.

It is our job to demonstrate the threat to publicorder of an EDL march and through our petitionshow the strength of feeling of local people.

Why we are calling for a ban

To sign our petition for a ban see the back page✎✎ ✎✎

COMRADES IN ARMSCOMRADES IN ARMSThe Norwegian killer and his friendship with the EDL

HOPE not hate page 3

THE MAN WHO committed theappalling massacres in Norway wasa supporter of the English DefenceLeague. Anders Behring Breivikshared their hatred of Muslims, wasin contact with leading members ofthe EDL shortly before his killingspree, and was involved in theirNorwegian sister organisation.

Breivik appalled the world when heignited a car bomb outside Governmentbuildings killing eight people beforeexecuting 69 young people who wereattending a Norwegian Labour Partyyouth camp.

Only months before Breivik went onhis murderous killing spree heexchanged several messages withleading EDL supporters. In onemessage he wrote: “Hello. To you allgood English men and women, justwanted to say that you’re a blessing toall in Europe, in these dark times all ofEurope are looking to you in search

of inspiration, courage and even hopethat we might turn this evil trend withIslamisation all across our continent.Well, just wanted to say keepup the good work it’s goodto see others that careabout their country andheritage. All the best toyou all.”

In another messageBreivik admitted tobeing involved inthe NorwegianDefence League.

EDLsupporters werekeen to have hissupport. Onereplied to him:‘Bravo ...admire yourviews andcourage. No surrenderand welcome.”

FRIENDSBreivik was friends with dozens of EDLsupporters on Facebook and sent his

1,500 page hate manifesto, wherehe excused his murderousbehaviour, to 250 people in Britainonly an hour before he ignited hiscar bomb. Dozens of these were to

EDL supporters. Another leading EDL activisthas even admitted meetingBreivik on a demonstration.

More importantly than hisfriendships, Breivik shared thesame ideology as the EDL. It is clear he read, digestedand disseminatedinformation from a widerange of neo-nazi, nationalistand anti-Muslim internetsites before embarking on histerrorist plot. Many of thewebsites that inspired

Breivik are today activelysupporting the EDL.

EDL AND VIOLENCETHE EDL CLAIM to be apeaceful organisation butits actions and the views ofits supporters proveotherwise. Here is aselection of commentsmade by leading EDLsupporters in recent weeks:

● DAVE DAVIS: “RatkoaMladic is our friend.

He killed 8,000 Muslims.”

● BILL BAKER: “know [sic] weneed to kill or be killed and

no mercy for anyone once itkicks off. Die or leave is the onlychoice they should have.”

● BILL BAKER: “If ourGovernment won’t act

against Islam and terrorism then we must arm and protectourselves.”

● NORTH WEST INFIDELS:“East Belfast is up in flames,

our loyalist brothers certainlyknow how to riot. Imagine [if] we could [do] that againstmilitant Islam.”

● ROGER FIRTH: “Somethinghas to happen mate (and I

don’t give a shit if the old bill areclocking this). For too long wehave let ourselves be penned,while this scum do as theyplease, patriots being arrested,well today was the final straw,time to get violent.”

And on the Norwegian massacres

● JONATHON SIMON: “I wascondemning them at first

but that was before I found out it was a commie socialist jewhating youth camp, fuck em, I hope they rot in pieces.”

● ALAN LAKE on theNorwegian massacre: “It was

chickens coming home to roost.”

● BILL BAKER: “If he hadattacked an extremist

Mosque he would have been a hero.”

SICK COMMENTS: Bill Baker

Anders Behring Breivik had links to the EDL

(inset) ELD supporters on a demonstration

page 4 HOPE not hate

CELEBRATING A PROUD HISTORY OF

WE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINWE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINWE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINWE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINWE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINWE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINWE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINWE’VE STOPPED THEM BAND WE’LL DO IT AGAINTHE EAST END has a proud and

long history of opposing racialhatred. This year that traditionwill be celebrated as we mark

the 75th anniversary of the Battle ofCable Street.

On October 4 1936, Sir OswaldMosley’s fascist Blackshirts planned tomarch through the then largely Jewishdistricts of the area. In spite ofmassive local opposition – whichimplored the government to ban themarch – the powers that beshamefully refused to act.

It was left to local people to defendtheir community. Hundreds ofthousands of people turned out atGardiner’s Corner (opposite whereAldgate East tube stands now) and thesurrounding area to prevent thefascist march.

Six thousand police includingLondon’s entire mounted policedivision tried to clear the area,striking local people with batons withextreme brutality. But the peoplestood their ground, and when itbecame clear that Mosley wasn’tgoing to be able to march throughCommercial Road, Cable Streetbecame the chosen route.

Barricades were hastily erected inCable Street. The street’s Jewish andnon-Jewish residents, alongside Irishdockers from Wapping, put up fierceresistance to police attempts to cleara path. With no route left throughEast London the Metropolitan PoliceCommissioner told Mosley to take hisfascists west and out of the area.

A great victory had been won by thepeople of East End, one which is stilltalked about today.

BRICK LANEWith the new influx of Bangladeshiimmigrants came a new wave ofprejudice and hostility. In the 1970sand early 1980s racists goaded localBengalis with taunts of “Paki” beforeattacking them.

Film maker Ruhul Amin,remembers the period well. “Everytime I walked under a council block Ihad to be alert. Someone could jumpme or throw something down on me.Bangladeshis were concentratedwithin about 1 square mile of BrickLane back then and venturing out ofthat area was very dangerous.

At the time the defence of thecommunity was crucial, in 1978 Altab Ali, returning from work, wasmurdered in Adler Street.

“The only way to be safe was tomove around in groups. We formed theProgressive Youth Organisation in themid 1970s and eventually I becamechairman. We organised to defendourselves because we had to, but alsoparticipated in cultural activities.

As the new generation learned Englishand went to school together thingsslowly improved,” he says.

ISLE OF DOGSIt may have seemed like much of theold bigotry was slowly dying out untilthe East End suffered a major setbackin the 1993, when Derek Beackon gotelected to the council for the racistBritish National Party, when he stoodin a Millwall by-election.

Jean Geldart was a local official forthe public sector union Unison at thetime. She remembers how thecampaign was built to ensure thatBeackon did not retain his seat thefollowing year.

“He was elected partly because ofcomplacency. We had to get a bigcampaign together, to expose whatthe BNP stood for. At the time tensionin the area increased massively andracist attacks went up 100%.

“There was a lot of mobilising ofthe local community but there is onething that sticks in my mind inparticular. There was a threat ofclosure to a GP’s surgery on the Isle ofDogs. That would be bad anywherebut the Isle of Dogs is quite isolatedand it would have been a disaster forlocal people. There was a bigcampaign which united many localpeople, regardless of the colour oftheir skin. That, plus the massivecanvassing and leafleting of localpeople made all the difference.Beackon failed to get re-elected.”Jean says.

TODAYAnd now today, a new organisationplans to come along to whip up moretrouble. This time it is the EnglishDefence League, which portrays allMuslims as dangerous extremists.

Amin says that that the EDLextremists have to be opposed – justas racists before them were opposed – but the existence of an extremistMuslim minority cannot be sweptunder the carpet either.

His many years of film making has led him to do much research onthe history and traditions of theBengali people.

“The Bengali culture is a beautifulculture with a rich folk tradition goingback thousands of years. Ourtraditions and religion embracesother peoples and cultures. It is atradition that is very tolerant and onethat is not compatible with anextremist version of Islam.

“All peoples have their extremistsbut integration breaks that down onboth sides. It is a credit to the EastEnd and the British people that eachnew community eventually becomespart of it.” Amin says.

(above) The black and Asian communities fought racism in the 1970sPhoto: David Hoffman www.hoffmanphotos.com

(below) FACE OF HATE: Derek Beackon

HOPE not hate page 5

F THE EAST END OF LONDON

BEFOREBEFOREBEFOREBEFOREBEFOREBEFOREBEFOREBEFOREA Trip DownMemory LaneABDUL SUBHAN (“Gadu” to hisfriends), is a legendary squatter,restaurateur, & antifascist fromBrick Lane. He owns Cafe Banglaone of the oldest and most popularrestaurants now on the lane.

My father came to Britain afterthe war. He worked inBirmingham in the steel industrybefore returning to what was thenEast Pakistan. I moved to Londonin about 1968. I first startedworking in Brick Lane when it wasdominated by the rag trade.

Everyone around this part of theEast London was from somewhereelse. I remember the Jewishcommunity, black people, theIrish. It was a real mix of accentsand smells and noises, there wassomething quite frantic about theLane too.

In the mid-70s the NationalFront appeared on the Lane on analmost daily basis, shoutinghatred, attacking people, trying todrive us out.

We had friends who came to helpand there began a sort of defence ofthe community. I got involved in1978 when Altab Ali wasmurdered. He was a Bengali likeme, murdered by racists cominghome from work because they didnot like the colour of his skin.

There were lots of large emptybuildings left over from the days ofthe rag trade. The NF wasattacking homes where Bengalislived and it was impossible to rentor get on the council waiting list.There were almost daily racistattacks and so we “opened up”some of the buildings.

It’s when we said “we’re here tostay. You will not drive us away”.That’s when the first Bengalieateries opened.

The NF and the BNP kept sellingtheir papers at the top of the Lane.There were clashes all the timethrough the eighties and nineties.They’d make the occasional tripdown the lane on a Sunday whenthe market was on. I opened myfirst restaurant in September 1993.It was at the same time the QuddusAli was almost kicked to death byracists and then the BNP got theirfirst councillor in Millwall.

PROUDWe are very proud of what we haveachieved here in Brick Lane.I pay my taxes, watch the Englandfootball team, and I go to thechippy on Commercial Road forfish and chips whenever I can.We are a very different people fromthose timid Bengalis the NF foundhere in the 1970’s.

There has been too much bloodspilt here by racists. The history ofthis Lane is one of resistance toracism and poverty. It is a place forold friends and new friends.

MAX LEVITAS can recall events from long ago in East End history. Which is not surprising for a man who is 96 years old.

Sitting in the café on the top floor of the Idea Store inWhitechapel, the borough’s modern flagship library, hepoints out various sites of struggle of yesteryear as helooks out the window onto the streets below.

“You know we were so proud of the residents of CableStreet for what they did,” he says, playing down his ownrole as a runner on the day.

“It was a great victory but it did not stop the fascists. Itwas the work that was done in the local communityafterwards that stopped them,” he adds.

Pointing down at Brady Street, Levitas recalls how whenhe lived there he led two rent strikes in 1936. Later, manymore were organised under the umbrella of the StepneyTenants’ Defence League (STDL).

Levitas was one of a number of communists who playedan important role in the STDL and was elected to thecouncil – along with eleven others – as a result of theirstanding in the local community.

But the STDL was much broader than the smallCommunist Party. Its president was Father John Groser,vicar of Christ Church, Watney Street. By 1940 the STDLboasted 11,000 members.

These strikes united Jewish and non-Jewish residents.The STDL campaigned for lower rents and against

evictions by slum landlords. When fascist tenants found that all that their

leader Mosley could provide was hot air, while localJews and non-Jews in the STDL prevented theirevictions, they famously tore up their fascist partymembership cards in protest.

Levitas has seen Tower Hamlets change manytimes over the years he has lived there. “I have to

stop myself from calling it Stepney”, he claims.However, even after all these years and the gains

that have been made Levitas believes that the basicissues remain the same.

“Over the years we won many good things byuniting local people in struggle. Recently the

economic position of ordinary workingpeople has got worse. Thousands of

people in Tower Hamlets need newhomes that they can afford. This isthe kind of issue that has to be

fought for today,” he says.

HOW WE WON

(main picture) STOPPING THE

FASCISTS: 4 October 1936,

barricades erectedin the Battle of

Cable Street

page 6 HOPE not hate

We stand unitedPETER FLATTERSTHE ENGLISH DEFENCE LEAGUE (EDL) areextremists who should not be allowed to marchthrough Tower Hamlets. They pretend to be theguardians of democracy, but they only spread hatred.

They claim Islam is a threat to British values, butthe real threat is the kind of intolerance theythemselves preach.

During the Second World War the people of the EastEnd sacrificed much in the fight against fascism,against the type of ideals that the EDL stand for. Their planned march would be an insult to that greatBritish generation who fought to protect our countryfrom bigotry and hatred like theirs.

The EDL talk about English culture, but knownothing about the culture of our area.

Tower Hamlets has a long, proud history ofmulticulturalism and diversity, from the Huguenotsand the Jews and the Irish, over the centuries, to theBangladeshis more recently.

It has changed much over the years, with peoplefrom all backgrounds drawn here because of its uniquecharacter and vibrancy. And there have always beenpeople who have tried to exploit these differences; totry to divide us along racial and religious lines. But wehave always stood up to these extremists.

We have always rejected the politics of division. We will not be divided and our cohesive communityspirit will always win out.

The EDL are a threat to the unity of the East End and they are not welcome.

A broad coalitionJACK GILBERT (Co-Chair of Rainbow Hamlets)THIS YEAR we have faced both the Islamist gay-free zone stickercampaign, and the far right infiltrated attempt to create a culture warunder the guise of a gay rights’ march. Throughout we have stood ourground against prejudice and intolerance in all its forms and from allsources equally, and worked hard to find mechanisms for constructivedialogue and building awareness between communities. Now, disgustingly, the EDL proper are trying to appropriate the sameanti-gay sticker campaign in their propaganda.

That’s why we are proud to be part of United East End. Our recentForum meeting voted unanimously to support the HOPE not hate callon the Home Secretary to ban the EDL March.

Speaking personally, my grandparents were on the streets on andaround Cable Street to stop Mosley and his fascists. Eighty years on,their successors are not welcome either.

And we are calling on LGBT people and groups nationwide to joinus in celebrating diversity in opposition to the EDL at the United EastEnd event on 3 September.

If you live, work or have a close association with the borough getinvolved in Rainbow Hamlets by emailing [email protected] are developing all sorts of social, cultural and sporting activities tobuild community life locally alongside this kind of essential work.

For more information about 3 September specifically please [email protected]

* The Rainbow Hamlets forum is the independent voice of LGBTpeople in Tower Hamlets. We champion and celebrate the diverselives, needs and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual andtransgender people, community groups and businesses who live,work or are otherwise associated with the borough.

Photo: Flickr bixentro

Local voices

“ I dont think its right for them [the EDL] to come here, to come here andmarch. To bring division between peopleliving and doing business here – we dontneed them. Thats why as Londoners we

should all sign the Hope not Hate petitionto get the EDl banned from

Tower Hamlets.”SHOEI, Local fashion businessman and Fireman

“Keep themaway!

Keep them atarms length!Keep them

as far away aspossible!

”ESTHER,Local Resident

and LGBT Activist:

HOPE not hate page 7

“ Our community encapsulates allcolours, all faiths, a real mixing pot of

cultures and thats exactly why we don’t wantthe hatred of the EDL on our streets. You can’tsay that their tactics haven’t been used in the

past, and that they won’t again, but wecannot allow our young people to take the

bait! The EDL coming into an area like this isunacceptable – and if the authorities let it

happen, they should be made culpable.”NAZ, Local youth worker and Resident:

PLAGUE ON BOTHTHEIR HOUSES

SUSPICION breeds fear. Fear breedsdivision. Division breeds violence.Violence breeds extremism. Extremism breeds extremism.LET’S BREAK THE CYCLE.The English Defence League are a bunch ofviolent thugs who dislike all Muslims. They attack their mosques, their houses andordinary Muslims in the street.

They claim to be defending Britain againstIslamic extremism but all they are doing isstoking up the extremism they say they oppose.

Islamist extremism is also wrong – in termsof both the terrorism it celebrates and theintolerant society it wants to create. But wemust remember that the numbers in theseextremist groups are tiny, and their views arerejected by almost all Muslims in this country.

The vast majority of people in TowerHamlets – regardless of ethnicity or religiousbelief – want to live together in peace.

There have been some violent attacksattributed to Islamist extremists in TowerHamlets and we condemn them as we do theEDL. They are part of the cycle of violence thatdivides communities, whips up fear andincreases violence.

You do not fight one form of extremism with another. This only leads to moreextremism, division and violence. TowerHamlets has a proud history in opposingextremism – now is the time for us to show theworld we can do it again.

We are an example tothe worldLEON SILVER

I AM THE SENIOR warden andhonorary officer of the East LondonCentral Synagogue, the onlypurpose-built synagogue remainingin the Stepney/Whitechapel area. I am also on the steering group ofthe Tower Hamlets Interfaith Forum& am the Jewish representative onTower Hamlets SACRE.

As the third generation on bothsides of my family to be involved involuntary activities in ourcommunity, I feel honoured to befollowing in their footsteps.

Born and bred in the East End, I have lived here all my life apartfrom three years away as a student.

The Stepney I knew as a youngchild in the 1950’s was stilldevastated by the Blitz. Many of thebuildings were war-damaged &there were bomb-sites everywhere.There was still a substantial Jewishcommunity, but the great exodus toNorth-West London and later Ilford& Gants Hill was well under way.

Home-grown extremists were afact of life and the Jews were theirprimary targets. Mosley and hisBritish Union of Fascists triedmarching through the East End inthe 1930s but were prevented fromdoing this in the famous Battle ofCable Street.

Next came the loathsome andunlamented Colin Jordan and hisWorld Union of National Socialists,succeeded by the National Frontwhich morphed into the BNP andnow the EDL.

Before us had been the Huguenotsand then the Irish, after us came theWest Indians and then the Asians,predominantly Bengali, and most

recently, the East Europeans. Our borough has always known

poverty but has been inordinatelywealthy in its splendid diversity ofreligion, culture, ethnicity, creed and colour.

Herein lies our strength. We are united in our diversity, we

are enriched & ennobled by it. It isto be embraced & celebrated, and inthis we should be an example to theWorld.

How dare the extremist EDL seekto come into our borough, ourhome, and seek to sow the seeds ofhatred and division amongst us.How little they understand the EastEnd spirit. Cockney, Jewish,Christian, Muslim, whatever, youname it.

We are better than that. We havenothing to learn from them andwant nothing to do with them Letthem keep away.

Islam4UKextremist

EDLextremist

Photo: Flickr bignoseduglyguy

Photo: Mike Tsang

CMYK

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This newspaper was produced by the HOPE not hate campaign. We believe that racism is fundamentally wrong and that Britain’s diverse society should be celebrated. To find out more about us and to add your support, write to: HOPE not hate, PO Box 67476, London NW3 9RF.

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SUPPORTED BY THEReturn to: HOPE not hate, PO Box 67476, London NW3 9RF.Or fill in the form online at

www.hopenothate.org.uk

Join the movementfor HOPE The HOPE not hate campaign

mobilises everyone opposed to thepolitics of hate. It has the supportof the Daily Mirror, trade unions,celebrities and community groupsacross the country.

If you reject the politics of hatethen please get involved.

Whatever the time you can give,there is something for you to do. Together we can makesure that HOPE triumphs over hate.

To get involved please visit ourwebsite or email us [email protected]

Searchlight is the magazine ofthe HOPE not hate campaignEvery month, for 36 years, Searchlight has beenexposing the far right in Britain and abroad. Itcarries out investigations, reports on fascistactivity and highlights our own campaign. It isthe first port of call for activists, academics andjournalists. The EDL hates it.If you want subscribe to Searchlight please visitwww.searchlightmagazine.com.

We will be handing in the petition to the police in TowerHamlets in early August.

“We, the undersigned, call on the authorities to ban the proposed marchby the English Defence League (EDL) in Tower Hamlets on Saturday

3 September. The EDL is a violent racist organisation that seeks tovilify Muslim communities and damage community relations.

Its planned march is designed to whip up fear and incite violence.We reject entirely the EDL and its anti-Muslim racism and we don’tsee why the people of Tower Hamlets should pay for its march of hate.

We are proud of Tower Hamlets, a vibrant multiracial area, which hasa long and proud history of immigration and resistance to racism.

From Cable Street in the 1930s, to Brick Lane in the 1970s and toMillwall in the 1990s, the people of Tower Hamlets have come togetherto see off racism and fascism before. We will now stand united against

the racist and anti-Muslim EDL.We believe that everyone has the right to live in peace and without the

fear of abuse or violence. We stand against all prejudice, whether it’sracism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, sexism or homophobia.

We oppose all extremism – from whatever quarter – and we recognisethat extremism breeds extremism. We condemn the extremist EDL just

as we condemn Islamist extremism. We say a plague on both their houses.We believe that the people of Tower Hamlets should be allowed to livewithout the threat of violence and fear. This is why we are standingtogether with the Muslim community against the hatred of the EDL

and Islamophobia more generally.We believe in HOPE not hate. That is why we are calling on the

authorities to ban the EDL march of hate.”

STOPTHEMARCHOFHATE STOPTHEMARCHOFHATE STOPTHEMARCHOFHATE

STOPTHEMARCHOFHATE STOPTHEMARCHOFHATE

STOPTHEMARCHOFHATE

Please sign the petition and return to:HOPE not hate, PO Box 67476, London NW3 9RF.

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Or sign the petition online athttp://action.hopenothate.org.uk/ban-eld-march-of-hate