Insults but no violence at opposing demonstrations
PRESENCE: Police monitor opposing demonstrations in Queen Victoria Square
By Simon Bristow, Co-Editor
Two opposing demonstrations took place in Queen Victoria Square today without a repeat of the violence that followed an anti-immigration rally in the same location weeks earlier.
A large police presence ensured both events passed off relatively peacefully, although insults were traded, there was a brief scuffle, and one man was arrested as he left the anti-immigration protest this afternoon.
A man at the counter-demonstration reported being racially abused, although it was not clear if this related to the arrest, which took place in King Edward Street when a man was handcuffed before being led to a police van.
Unprecedented scenes of rioting in the city centre and Spring Bank area took place on August 3 after a demonstration held in the wake of a mass stabbing attack in Southport which claimed the lives of three young girls.
MESSAGE: A banner at the counter-demonstration
Today, a further rally held under a “Stop The Boats” banner was met by a larger, counter-demonstration organised and attended by trades unions and anti-fascists.
The counter-demonstration was also louder, aided by a sound system playing an eclectic mix of music from ska and reggae to Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline and The Housemartins’ version of Caravan of Love.
Those on that side occasionally chanted “Say it loud say it clear, refugees are welcome here”, and “Racist scum, off our streets” . A man with a megaphone facing them replied to the latter chant: “You’re all terrorists, every one of you.”
Both sides had their own flags, placards and banners, with those in the counter-demonstration including “Jobs & Homes, Not Racism” and “Refugees Welcome”, while on the other side were ones saying “Rise of the Footsoldier, Stop The Boats” and “UnitetheNorth”. One man wore a T-shirt bearing the message: “Pensioners before migrants.”
The noise made it hard to hear the various speeches given through a PA system by people on the “Stop The Boats” demonstration, the chief of whom was John Francis, who had organised the protest on August 3.
Before he began speaking, Francis used the microphone to reply to one heckler: “I agree with you mate, can’t stand Tommy Robinson. D******d.”
He started by suggesting a meeting between representatives of both sides and others, saying: “We need to talk to each other, we don’t need to agree with each other.”
In a long and rambling speech, Francis made his central message clear, saying: “I don’t want people entering this country illegally. Stop the boats.”
SPEAKER: John Francis
But he directed most of his ire at the Prime Minister, saying: “Keir Starmer and Labour are saying they have got a mandate to govern this country. They haven’t. The only reason they’re in power is because of apathy. People don’t turn up to vote because the system doesn’t work anymore. What we need on that ballot paper is ‘none of the above’.”
He also claimed “the Tories didn’t even try to win that election”.
Francis said he had been called a Nazi, a racist and a homophobe since speaking in the same place on August 3. He said he was none of those things, also telling his audience his grandfather was a Jewish refugee from Germany, and he “did a best man’s speech at a lesbian wedding”.
He also said: “I challenge anyone to get a video of me throwing a Nazi salute. I’ve never done it. I hate Nazis.”
Despite the conciliatory tone he began with, Francis said: “The left wing in this country are fascists.”
ANGER: A man at the ‘Stop The Boats’ rally points at a counter-demonstrator
But he soon returned to attacking Starmer, about hospitality gifts he has received and over a mistake in a speech on the Middle East when he said “sausages” instead of hostages.
Francis said: “He’s saying ‘I need a box at Arsenal for my security’. He earns a lot of money. Why does Keir Starmer think he’s so special?
“The way he reacted to saying sausages told me a lot about the man. He didn’t apologise, he didn’t smile, he tried to hide it. What else is he hiding?”
Referring to the PM’s former role as Director of Public Prosecutions, Francis also bizarrely said: “Anyone who’s been convicted should have their convictions overturned because Keir Starmer doesn’t know the truth.”
He also urged any trade unionists to cancel their memberships because they’ve “got employment rights” and he represented himself when he was sacked.
GATHERING: Police standing between both demonstrations
Another speaker said he was a grandfather who had lived in Hull most of his life and the “influx” over that time was “ridiculous”. He didn’t elaborate on what the influx was.
He also gestured to a woman in the audience with a baby and said it nearly made him cry, although he did not say why.
He ended his speech: “This is our country and they’re taking it. I don’t want to live under that rule. Sorry for swearing.”
Francis later returned to the microphone and said: “Please go home safely. Don’t cause any trouble.”
The demonstrations took place on a busy day in the city centre, with some shoppers pausing to watch and others walking through the crowds. Passing one man in the counter-demonstration, a woman said: “That’s what I don’t agree with. Him having his face covered.”
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