EDL Riots?

Every couple of weeks, I read a bit of Little Green Footballs, and I find that Charles Johnson does, indeed, bring up some good points. Today, for instance, I find that, on his front page, he has been criticizing Rich Iott (whom we have also criticized here), and that he is posting examples of violent rightist extremism (Byron Williams was motivated by Glenn Beck in plotting the murder of various individuals, perhaps, at the ACLU and the Tides Foundation).

Charles Johnson is right to bring up such problems on the right, though I don't think one can blame Glenn Beck for a plot to murder, because violent insurrection is not Glenn Beck's message.

I also believe it is reasonable to express real concern about the English Defence League. Their leadership is made up of people who are former members of the racist BNP (all-white until last year when a new law forced them to change). They have attempted to distance themselves from the BNP, by welcoming members of all races, and expressing support for Israel.

However, stuff like this makes me wonder if they will ever rehabilitate themselves.

That being said, it is often claimed the EDL are violent. Now, I can remember images of EDL members fighting, their faces bloodied and smashed in by violent Muslim street thugs and members of the "anti-fascist" UAF, but I can not remember any actual incidents of EDL members participating in coordinated violence. In fact, it seems to me that, for a group which is involved in protests involving such actively violent people as the UAF and Islamists like the ones pictured below, the EDL manages to keep it's nose very clean.




Imagine being beaten by people like these and not fighting back.

From the evidence I have seen, EDL members have managed to avoid violence when physically assaulted by such people.

Anyway, I bring all this up because one of the posts currently on Charles Johnson's front page is a Sky News report on an EDL "riot" from two days ago in the city of Leicester.





Charles Johnson calls that a riot. It may fit the definition of a riot. And certainly, the Sky News reporters were legitimately frightened:

Ten English Defence League protesters have been charged with offences after violence broke out at a city centre demonstration.
A total of 17 people were arrested, five from Leicestershire, after the protest in Leicester City Centre.
The English Defence League (EDL) and Unite Against Fascism (UAF) demonstration prompted the force's biggest operation for 25 years.
The opposing groups were allowed to hold static protests in Leicester's Humberstone Gate East after a ban on marches in the city.
Four members of the Sky News team were forced to lock themselves inside a satelite truck as demostrators banged their fists on the windscreen during the disorder.
"It was very, very frightening," said reporter Robin Powell, who was in the truck.

EDL protesters have clashed with police at previous demos

A smoke bomb and missiles were thrown from the EDL protesters into police and crowds of press.
There were also clashes between EDL supporters and members of the local black and Asian community away from the city centre.
Despite the arrests, police said there were no serious outbreaks of violence.
Police said that in all 1,000 EDL protesters and 700 supporters of the UAF had turned up to the event.

Police made 17 arrests during the demonstrations

Powell said around 200 EDL protesters broke through a police cordon at the end of the demonstration and attacked the Sky News truck and a police car.
"Protesters started to charge against the cordon and it was clear the police were not going to be able to hold them back," Powell said.
"Around 200 youths were running amok in the centre of Leicester, smashing a police car."
He added: "For 15 minutes it is no exaggeration to say police had lost control of the situation."

You will notice that, while LGF calls this a riot, the Sky News report does not refer to it in such terms. Instead, they explain that the police lost control of a large crowd, and that the crowd ran amok, and even "smashed" a police car.

In the Sky News report, we are told the crazed crowd of EDL members smashed news equipment. But, we are not shown any smashed news equipment, nor are we shown the smashed police car.

What does it mean to smash a police car or news equipment? Is the car left a flattened pancake, surrounded by pieces of glass and metal shrapnel? Has it been rendered unrecognizable? Or, does it simply mean that some asshole from the EDL threw a bottle at the car, or knocked a camera out of the hands of a reporter?

Frankly, the news report reminds me a bit of Southern California "Storm Watch 2010" reports, wherein we are informed by panicked reporters that 2 inches of rain has led to flooding, and we are shown gutters flowing almost to the top, and cars slowing down at dips in the intersections.

Sheesh, thank god the "anti-Fascists" were there to keep everything under control, huh?

Believe me, if the media had real violence to report, if the EDL did beat a guy to the ground and stomp on him, if they destroyed law enforcement property, if a member of the media were bloodied, these things would be committed to digital video, and we would see the scene replayed ad infinitum.

I suspect the reason we don't see such images, or footage, is because they don't exist.

Hence, I suspect the EDL has not been the instigators of violence in these "riots".