From Chelmsford to Walthamstow – Stop the EDL

A delegation of anti-fascists from We Are Waltham Forest joined campaigners in Chelmsford on Saturday 18 August to oppose the fascist EDL’s march in the town. The EDL demo, intended to build confidence among its supporters, was a miserable failure, mobilising less than 70 racists and fascists, while the counter-demonstration saw over 250 people march through the town in a vibrant celebration of multiculturalism.

Waltham Forest residents will be aware that 18 August was the original date planned for the fascists’ mobilisation in Walthamstow. But following pitiful turnouts and strong opposition in Bristol and Brighton in the preceding weeks, the racists decided against trying their look in Walthamstow.

Instead, the EDL will march in Walthamstow in just over a weeks’ time, on Saturday 1 September. We Are Waltham Forest, supported by the Waltham Forest Council of Mosques and Unite Against Fascism, is asking the whole community to come to the town centre from 11am, to show the fascist EDL that Waltham Forest is a multicultural borough where there is no place for its hatred and division.

EDL postpones Walthamstow demo

We Are Waltham Forest is pleased to confirm that the EDL’s planned demonstration in Walthamstow on 18 August has been postponed. The official reason given, that the EDL’s leaders are on holiday, is a poor mask for the reality of the situation; that following humiliations in Brighton and Bristol, the EDL is clearly not confident enough to set foot in Walthamstow. The EDL will now march in Chelmsford on 18 August, before coming to Walthamstow on 1 September.

The EDL, like all fascist organisations, relies on being able to scare people into not mobilising against its hateful demonstrations. This builds the confidence of the far right, and allows fascist organisations to grow. But the EDL has not scared the people of Walthamstow. Walthamstow is united in its rejection of the EDL and what it stands for, and Walthamstow residents have shown that they are determined to oppose the EDL, standing side by side with our neighbours of all races and religions to show the EDL that its racist hatred is not welcome here.

We are Waltham Forest will be holding a mass day of action in the town square on 18 August. We invite all supporters to join us and help spread the word that the EDL has changed the date of its march, and that our celebration of multicultural Walthamstow will now take place on 1 September in central Walthamstow. A delegation from We are Waltham Forest will also be attending the demonstration against the EDL in Chelmsford. Please bring your campaign stalls, your trade union banners and your friends, and join us in Walthamstow town square from 11am, on Saturday 18 August. Let’s show the EDL that whether in August or in September, they shall not pass in Walthamstow.

‘We Are United Against the EDL’ public meeting

On Tuesday 31 July the We Are Waltham Forest campaign is holding a public meeting to build support for the mobilisation against the racist and fascist English Defence League’s planned march in Walthamstow.

Join us to hear a range of speakers talk on why we should build a broad alliance across the community on 18 August, to celebrate our dversity and show the EDL that there is no audience for their hatred in Waltham Forest.

Speakers include:

Stella Creasy – Local Labour MP

Owen Jones – Author, Chavs (The Demonisation of the Working Class)

Weyman Bennett – Joint Chair of Unite Against Fascism

Rania Khan – Independent Socialist Councillor, Tower Hamlets

Aaron Kiely – NUS Black Students’ Officer and LGBT Activist

Speaker from Show Racism the Red Card

Harmony Hall, Truro Road, Walthamstow, Tuesday 31 July, 7:30pm.

All welcome.

Help out with the campaign

The campaign against the EDL in Waltham Forest has really taken off, with activists and residents coming up with a whole host of ideas for ways to raise support.

From organising gigs to selling plants and from passing motions in trade union branches to handing out leaflets, local people are pulling out all the stops to make it clear that we will oppose racists and fascists marching in our borough.

If you’d like to get involved in the campaign, time and money are both gratefully received and there are a whole host of things you can do to help:

• Come on a We Are Waltham Forest day of action, every Saturday leading up to the demonstration. Meet in the town square at 1pm to help distribute flyers and posters in the square, market and shops (note: this coming Saturday, 21 July, we will be meeting at 4pm instead, at the top of the market, to leaflet the Olympic torch event)
• Pass the following motion in your local campaign or trade union branch
• Invite a speaker from the campaign into your workplace/trade union branch/local campaign group
• Take the donation sheet  around your workplace
• Make a donation to the campaign
• Organise a fundraising activity. This could be a cultural event, a stall selling anything from cakes to plants, a picnic, the possibilities are endless.
• Organise a flyering session at your local tube/rail station/community event/on your estate – the more people who know what’s happening the better and we want to get the word out far and wide
• Come to our next public meeting – 31 July 7:30pm, Harmony Hall, Truro Road, Walthamstow. Speakers include local MP Stella Creasy, ‘Chavs’ author Owen Jones, Unite Against Fascism Joint Secretary Weyman Bennett, Show Racism the Red Card, Tower Hamlets Councillor Rania Khan

For flyers/posters/speakers/details of where to send donations email waltuaf@gmail.com and don’t forget to let us know about what you’ve been doing to build the campaign.

EDL COMING TO WALTHAMSTOW?! NAH BLUD!! by 4i2i

On FRIDAY 29 JUNE, Love Music Hate Racism is bringing together a diverse selection of some of Waltham Forest’s most exciting up and coming muscial acts in a celebration of the eclectic spirit of multicultural life in our London borough! As well as being ill talents and from the endz…

WE STAND UNITED AGAINST THE EDL AND ALL FASCISTS!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

ACTS ON THE NIGHT:

>> 4i2i COLLECTIVE –

“Forward thinking underground outfit the 4i2i Collective provide a brilliant live hip hop spectacle. The London based group have been causing a stir in knowledgeable hip hop circles around the UK and are known for their abstract beats, poignant singing and sharp lyrics all brought together to create a magnificent live performance which is refreshingly devoid of all the egotistical narcissism associated with hip hop these days” – www.4i2i.org – EXCLUSIVE NEW MATERIAL!!

>> DJ FLUXMAN –

From foundation rootikal classics to modern roots, lovers and UK dub, Fluxman can be counted on for a wide selection of conscious reggae anthems. Previously part of the Sunday slot at ReelRebelsRadio in Hackney, he now regularly DJ’s with the Spredluv Collective at the Lockside Lounge in Camden, and is also part of the Kent-based Jah Elements crew. –http://soundcloud.com/fluxman

>> T.B – 

East London rapper also known as TBear or Tuberculosis says he got his name coz of spittin sick lyrics. Check him out on twitter twitter.com/tbistbear

>> WILL O’DONOGHUE –

23 year old singer/songwriter from east London, who draws a lot from the folk tradition but whose influences range from Dick Gaughan to Ed Sheeran. Will is a very personal songwriter who records his life experiences in songs resulting in a raw and often emotional
performance.

>> WIRELESS, MACHINE, RELENTLESS and SIR MANOR MAN –

A beatbox session of solo performance pieces and combined improvised mash-ups, from two seasoned veterans and two up and coming prospects! BOOM!!

DOORS OPEN: 7:30pm
BAR OPEN TIL MIDNIGHT!
TICKETS: £10 / £5 concessions

Tickets available on the door, or to avoid disappointment, email us at: waltuaf@gmail.com

Please show your solidarity by supporting this event. Celebrate our fantastic, multicultural community in Waltham Forest. Show the EDL that we will not tolerate their politics of hate on our streets. No pasaran!

29 June gig flyer

http://www.facebook.com/events/329720350437220/

We Are Waltham Forest public meeting is a big success

Tuesday’s We Are Waltham Forest meeting was a resounding success, with 130 members of the local community, black, white, and Asian, young and old, religious and non-religious, crowding into Harmony Hall.

Waltham Forest dean Steven Saxby was the first to address the meeting, emphasising the tradition of people from all parts of the Waltham Forest community working together to make the borough the kind of place in which we all want to live.

Zita Holbourne of the PCS union and the Black Activists Rising Against Cuts campaign talked about the link between the rise of fascism and the cuts, explaining that black people and poor people are disproportionately affected.

Martin Smith, the final platform speaker and assistant secretary of Unite Against Fascism talked about the growth of fascism in Europe. He described how the racism and fascism seen on the streets of Europe comes from the top, with European political leaders like Cameron, Merkel and Sarkozy attempting to make racism acceptable in the mainstream in a way that it has not been for a very long time.

Speakers from the floor included local anti-fascists, Waltham Forest councillors and members of the various religious communities, with all emphasising the importance of standing side by side against the fascists, regardless of any other differences of opinion we may have on politics or religion.

Older residents reminded those newer to the borough what happened the last time fascists tried to march in Waltham Forest, in 1978, when the National Front attempted to attack the Lea Bridge Road mosque. Local residents joined the muslim community and blocked the path of the NF, and fascists have not marched in this borough since that day.

Now, 34 years after the fascists were smashed in Waltham Forest, they are attempting to return. As residents of this borough, we all stand to lose if our rich history of opposing fascism is allowed to be reversed. That is why we will be on the streets on 18 August to show the EDL that Waltham Forest remains a no-go area for the far fight.

“A place where strangers are welcome”

The We are Waltham Forest campaign was set up by Waltham Forest residents and activists as a response to the announcement by the English Defence League that they are planning a march in Walthamstow on 18 August this year. The campaign was launched to defend multicultural Walthamstow from this attack by racist and fascist thugs.

Those involved in the campaign know, as does anyone who lives in the borough, that Waltham Forest is a thriving example of a multicultural community where people of all races and religions live side by side. But until a recent trip to Vestry House museum, in Walthamstow Village, we did not know that the welcome that newcomers receive is part of the foundations upon which our little corner of London was built.

Visitors to the museum are greeted by a short history of Walthamstow and its residents, and the very first part of the story makes clear what Walthamstow is all about. By the 1100s, the plaque explains, the small communities in the area had been grouped together to form ‘Wilcomstowe’ meaning ‘a place where strangers are welcome’.

Those of us who live in Walthamstow today know that over 900 years later, although the word has changed, Walthamstow holds that same meaning. Walthamstow is a welcoming place for all people, regardless of their race or religion. That is why we will be on the streets on 18 August, to show those who seek to drive divisions in our community that they are not welcome.

They shall not pass!

Day of action this Thursday

We are Waltham Forest is holding a day of action this Thursday 7 June. We will be meeting in the town square, Walthamstow, beside Natwest at 2pm and distributing leaflets in the market, along Hoe Street and in Lloyd Park.

It is important that we raise awareness among local people that the racists and fascists of the EDL are coming to our borough, and that we must stand united to stop them.

Here is what happens when the EDL are left to their own devices. We will not let this happen in Walthamstow:

 

Stop the EDL in Walthamstow

The racist and fascist English Defence League intend to march in Walthamstow on 18 August 2012.

“We are Waltham Forest” is a campaign launched by Waltham Forest residents to show the EDL that they are not welcome in our multicultural borough.

Waltham Forest is a thriving example of a community that embraces people from all backgrounds, regardless of their religious beliefs or the colour of their skin. That is how we want it to stay.

We are Waltham Forest will be organising meetings and events to celebrate multiculturalism in the run up to 18 August, and will be on the streets on the day to keep the fascists out of our borough.

How you can help

• Sign the We Are Waltham Forest unity statement by emailing waltuaf@gmail.com
• Follow us on facebook
• Help on our days of action
• Support our meetings and events
• Join us on 18 August

We are Waltham Forest is supported by:

Unite Against Fascism
Waltham Forest Trades Council
Waltham Forest Race Equalities Council
Waltham Forest Amnesty Internatiol
Jewish Socialists
Leyton Community Trust Mosque
Waltham Forest Palestine Solidarity Campaign