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Concern over possible far-right presence at Keele University

Thomas J | 14.03.2003 20:20

There has been a number of worring incidents in Keele University that may be due to a far-right group causing trouble, and attempting to undermine the left-wing groups campaigns against the war.

There have been numerous events in Keele over the past year I have been studying at the university that could point to a far-right presence at Keele.

Last year, "VOTE BNP" was scrawled over one of the residental blocks in a Halls of Residence in Keele. Over the months, other Nazi, racist and pro-war graffti has also appeared on the Keele campus.
Even more worring, a Garage music night at the Keele student's union, "Bling!" has been blighted by violence, usually between Hindu and Muslim groups on campus. Addtionally, a particular area within the halls is known to house most of the suspect people. Security gaurds and crowd saftey have been threatened at Bling!, and trouble makers have also been going into Keele from the nearby city of Stoke-on-Trent.
Posters on campus, and within the union building itself, advertising anti-war events, by the Amnesty International group and other left-wing groups on campus. Posters calling on students to leave lectures and attend a vigil in Stoke city centre if war on Iraq starts have also been torn down.
These indicents have escalated with the recent Stoke-on-Trent mayoral elections, where BNP candidate Steven Batkin got thrid place. The BNP are on the rise in Stoke-on-Trent, and have been called on to help with resident's concerns with asylum seekers in the deprived Tunstall area of Stoke, and are also targeting residents in Kuntton, a deprived part of the nearby town of Newcastle-under-Lyme.
It is then very likely that the BNP or another far-right group have been targeting Keele University, with its large number of Asian, black, and foreign students. It is also possible that Hindus on campus have been approached by the BNP to stir up conflict with the Muslims, a well-known BNP tactic, and that the BNP are unofficially organising a group on Keele in order to stir up racial tension, and to undermine the campaigns of anti-war groups on campus.

Thomas J

Comments

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Don't confuse different things

14.03.2003 20:52

You may have active right wingers and you may have conflict between Moslems and Hindus but there is no reason at all to think that these are related! Do you imagine that your BNP has been running around stirring things up on the Asian subcontinent and that's why Hindus and Moslems have been killing each other there? Or that if these same people come to England to study they will leave behind their animosities?

Also, I would be cautious about attributing the tearing down of antiwar posters to the BNP without more evidence. Somebody could certainly think the war a good idea, OR a bad one but Britain "owes" to stand by the US no matter what, or a good many other things without being a fascist.

Mike
mail e-mail: stepbystepfarm@shaysnet.com


Re: Mike

14.03.2003 22:13

The BNP probably are not directy responsible for the Hindu-Muslim conflict on the subcontient, but that doesn't mean they are not exploiting it. As for the tearing down of posters, far-right groups have been a big thorn in the side of left wing groups, and have actively targetted them, for example, the National Front's infamous "Redwatch" website.

This is not confirming anything, but the BNP have a major presence in nearby Stoke-on-Trent, and it would be foolish to dismiss the possiblity that they are gathering up support in Keele University as well.

Thomas J


busted

15.03.2003 20:16

well tom, looks like your the one with the conspiracy theories now...

bullshit buster


what are you on about?

22.11.2006 17:16

LOTS of magic mushrooms at Keele eh?! They grow everywhere! Excuse me, but recently i've heard reports of strangeness at my uni.......What is all this far right nonsense?! Keele used to be a new university that examined it's own radical degrees in a seperate and new way that managed to get away from the accreditation of other "i'm the authority on academic knowledge" institutions. (see pre 1900 academia London, Cambridge, Oxford) - believe me - I'm from Cambridge yo! When i was at Keele, 1997-2001 this held fast, big issues were the abolition of the magical "foundation year" , etc, etc, but really, this university FORCES students to study academic subjects like science, mathematics, art and literature in conjunction with their subject of choice.....it produces well rounded human beings.......what a great strategy.....whether or not a young person should be studying this subject or that subject for the part they may play in the structure of global commerce and academia is irrelevant....Plato would be proud! This is a university! FUCK YOU COMBAT 18 and friends, we are all one universal conciousness, everything is one, is love, is peace, is happiness, wrong university to pick yo!!!! Keele = harmony, pick on conspiracy theory Harvard, skull and bones at Yale, whatever, but sorry, Keele is the wrong choice, fuck off!! Have you been down to a woods party at this university? Do you know who the lecturers are? Do you really think a right wing movement will have any common ground here.....think again boys......wrong area yo?! If you have just finished your A levels, come to Keele, It's tradition continues......

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