Jack Boot City - Demo report, Weds 27th September & Important Action Alert
As we become ever more savvy to the extreme behaviour of the police in their attempts to break the animal rights movement we were once again treated to a show of bullying more akin to gang culture than policing a legal protest. Forty supporters of the SPEAK campaign gathered in central London to once again legally protest against those who fund external research grants at Oxford University.

It was clear from the start of the day that policing would be different: the usual police officers who normally watch over the peaceful demonstrations had been replaced by what looked like extras from a futuristic film, none wearing any shoulder numbers that could identify who they were. As soon as we arrived at our first port of call, ‘Vodafone’, it was clear that the testosterone fuelled 'action men' of the Met police were determined to cause trouble - protestors were told they were blocking the highway even though they were lined up opposite the Vodafone shop giving members of the public unobstructed passage.

The police then began to push protesters, threatening to arrest anyone who did not comply with their orders to move. The protestors had only wanted to demonstrate as is their legal right. However, now they were forced to move, whilst on either side of them police officers pushed and cajoled them into a forced march. It was at this point that the senior police officer then decided to impose a section 12 because he now deemed the demonstration had become a march. However, it was the police that had forced the protestors to march in the first place.

This whole situation was obviously concocted by the police in order to allow them to issue a section 12, which meant they could impose strict conditions on the demonstrators, which entailed surrounding them and forcing them to march wherever they deemed suitable.

Campaigners quickly turned the tables on the police and put their placards and banners away and then turned back to walk to the next demo. Demonstrators arrived at the Esmee Fairbairn charitable trust and again lined up along the railings opposite this Oxford Funders office, as had been done on numerous occasions before with no problems from the police. This time it was obvious that the police were acting on different orders from usual as they stormed the 40 strong crowd, which was made up of various age groups from the very young to those in their 70’s. Irrespective of age or gender the police waded into the peaceful crowd, who had only wanted to legally demonstrate against something they objected to – namely animal abuse.

Before the protestors even had a chance to get their placards out the police were trying to forcefully move people away, threatening to arrest anyone who didn't move immediately. One young woman was hurled to the ground and as she lay on the ground a police officer kicked her. Other protesters were punched and roughly handled, including pensioners who were part of the protest. Eventually, the protestors were forced away from Esmee Fairbairns' offices and surrounded by what can only be described as police officers acting more like hooligans than a public body meant to uphold the law rather than blatantly break it as these officers were doing.

It was at this point the protestors beat a tactical retreat in order to regroup – it was decided after a brief period of consultation that the group would not give into bullying – after all this is what the animal rights movement is all about, stopping the abuse of non human animals who cannot defend themselves – we are the Voice for the Animals and no amount of state repression will silence those fighting for a more compassionate society.

So, the group set off to the offices of the next Oxford University Funder. It must have looked completely ridiculous to members of the public to see 30 police officers surrounding a group of people who were doing nothing more than exercising their right to protest, especially since many of them can’t get the police to protect them from crime in their own neighbourhoods. Yesterday Sir Iain Blair, head of the Met police, made a statement asking for more resources to police London as so much manpower was being used to fight Al Qaeda, yet here we have 30 police officers doing nothing more than bully a peaceful group of people.

Of course, it would be naïve to think that this is about law and order. The truth is that this is about protecting the interests of Oxford University and a government who are willing to trample on anyone who dares to challenge the financial backers of animal abuse, whoever they may be.

The next stop for the protestors was one of the offices of the deputy prime minister. Of course we all know what John Prescott thinks about vivisection – let’s not forget this is the man who dismissed a report by an independent inspector (appointed by himself) which clearly stated that Cambridge University should not be given permission to build what would have been the largest primate lab in Europe.

Once outside the office protestors again lined up with placards and banners and began to inform the passing members of the public about animal suffering at Oxford University. Despite the large pedestrian area in front of the office building and there being no problem with obstruction, the police had come up with a plan B. They had claimed to have spoken to a person in the office and it was decided our presence was causing 'alarm and distress' (funny that, at the last protest people actually came out of the office to talk to us and clearly felt no sense of alarm or distress).

Running out of options to silence the protestors, police issued a section 14 which allowed protestors to demonstrate for ten minutes across the road on a pavement only half the width they were already on. This offer was declined by the activists, who once again set off to a new destination.

This scenario was to be repeated at the next Oxford University Funder, the offices of the Education Trust. This body claims to foster the highest standards in education and research, except of course when it comes to questioning animal abuse dressed up as academic or medical research.

The next part of the day’s events saw the protesters take control of their protest again, after a brief break for a much earned drink the campaigners left, first one group, and then another and another until four groups had gone their separate ways. These groups then subdivided again, each group now with their own somewhat bemused and reduced police escort.

Despite all their efforts to try and bully and intimidate, the officers were now engaged in a pointless and truly appalling waste of public funds. Whilst communities live in fear of crime these public servants were prepared to leave the vulnerable at the mercy of criminals whilst they busied themselves protecting the financial and career interests of animal abusers at Oxford University. But the end of the day belonged to the dogged determination of the protestors who, on regrouping, managed to stage the best demo of the day outside the Sainsbury Family Trust.

It is clear to us all that this day was staged to try and deter peaceful protestors from their goal of exercising their democratic rights. There is one simple truth however: no amount of bullying is going to work. Our resolve is stronger than ever: our commitment to end animal suffering has no limitations. For all the voiceless victims of Oxford University, we will never turn our backs or be silenced.


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Want to play your part in stopping animal abuse? Then read on….

The worst violence committed by the police occurred outside the offices of the:

Esmee Fairbairn Charitable Trust
11 Park Place
London SW1A 1LP
Tel. 020 7297 4700
Email:  info@esmeefairbairn.org.uk
Amount Paid to Oxford University: £166,579.50

The following is an email sent by a 63 year old woman, who lives in Hampstead in London and who was on the demo:

We were not allowed to demonstrate today. As we started we were moved on, actually pushed on. When they got us on a small empty street they didn't allow us to demonstrate again and said we were obstructing the pavement, although we were side by side with our back against railings.

Again made to move with violent unnecessary pushing and two girls were pushed to the ground. One of them was also kicked. I tried to pull the policeman off her but a group of them surrounded her like flies. The other girl was brutally handled, they bruised her arm and she was arrested. We went to the police station to get her at the end of the day and still had a long wait. She came out at around 9. On bail. She'll be back in November but there won't be more than a fine I'm told. She is accused of reacting energetically to the police but she was provoked and she was brutally treated. The policeman in question should have been arrested instead.

There was a mix of Thames Valley and Met. The atmosphere today was different from usual; they wanted business from the start. They provoked, they pushed, they really tried to cause trouble. I suppose they want to discourage us but they have not dampened our spirits.

Why not contact those employed at Esmee Fairbairn (see email addresses below) and ask the staff if they really want to be associated with an institution like Oxford University, who aren’t just responsible for torturing and killing thousands of animals every year in a fraudulent scientific practice, but whose power extends as far as dictating the behaviour of the police. Ask them if they really agree with peaceful protestors being assaulted by police officers - young woman being pushed to the ground and kicked, elderly people being shoved and forced to march. They might not agree with our message, but do they want to live in a society were peaceful and legal protestors are treated in such a brutal way?

Please remember to be polite and courteous in any communications.

 dawn.austwick@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  tricia.brown@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  amanda.jones@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  finella.boyle@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  alison.holdom@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  jo.rideal@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  nikki.thompson@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  danyal.sattar@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  rachel.faulkes@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  nicola.pollock@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  john.mulligan@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  laurence.scott@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  sharon.shea@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  annabel.durling@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  tania.joseph@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  james.wragg@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  anna.bussell@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  ron.clarke@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  judith.dunworth@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  vandana.gopalji@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  liliana.lance@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  bharat.naygandhi@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  mairi.kennedy@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  tereasa.robinson@esmeefairbairn.org.uk,  david.dellaire@esmeefairbairn.org.uk