They may not be racist, but they are certainly not anarchist. To support, as opposed to defend the right for, this protest would be equivalent to the opportunistic misguided promotion of religion that the SWP are currently playing with.

This is the same event as was advertised on here a few days ago isnt it? Frankly i think its a sad example of just how much the liberal-left has pandered to elements in brum and elsewhere who clearly have no interest in radical working class politics and instead seek to spread the idea that the british government is an institution for attacking the religion of Islam.

Like the above poster had already mentioned this is incredibly divisive, first of all it supposes that the religion of Islam is being attacked which it is not, secondly it supposes that we should be defending reactionary ideas because they are part of a multi-cultural society, thirdly it suggests that muslims, atheists, christians, (insert religious denomination) are different to each other because they believe one or other doctrine and as such these people need to be treated differently to each other, there is no working class just different target groups, give everyone his own place of worship and he'll be happy. This is of course the function of religion it pacifies, divides and splits the populace into easily controllable groups.

more liberal pricks defending islam. Why don't you middle class wankers fuck off and take you fat useless NGO 'charideee' workers and that arse of an archbishop with you.

nb. arab lands ( and also england ) were not always muslim or christian!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! To be either is to be a part of the attack on previous more women friendly cultures.

nnb the pope was a nazi

I would encourage anyone thinking of attending this to look at the following links:

 http://www.networksolutions.com/whois/results.jsp?domain=britishoppression.com
domain name lookup

 http://www.aboutus.org/BritishOppression.com
AboutUs entry for the site, describing it as being dedicated to spreading the teachings of...

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omar_Bakri_Mohammed
Omar Bakri Mohammed, former leader of al-Muhajiroun, outspoken Islamist, supporter of al-Qaeda and big fan of terrorism.

I would also advise reading britishoppression.com - "secularism", "democracy" and "the ways of the Kufr" are all derided and an Islamist alternative proposed.

New figures from Europol, the European police agency, reveal that Islamist terror attacks in Europe constituted 0.2% or all 'terrorism' throughout the continent in 2006.* Unsurprisingly, there has been little in the media about this interesting figure in the month since it was published.

In their first report of this nature - European Terrorism Situation and Trend Report 2007 - Europol reports that across the EU there were 498 terrorist attacks in 2006. These include:

424 'ethno-nationalist and separatist' (mostly in France and Spain)

55 'left-wing and anarchist' (mainly Greece , Italy, Spain and Germany)

1 failed Islamist terrorist attack (in Germany, plus two more attempts allegedly foiled in Denmark and the UK)
1 right-wing terrorist attack (in Poland)

The figures appear to over report left and anarchist 'terror' by categorising some political demonstrations which result in damage to property as 'terrorism'. On Germany it reports that 'the G8 Summit 2007 that still has to be held has already been the target of left-wing and anarchist terrorists.' The report also appears to under report 'right wing' and neo-fascist violence since this is as the report states: 'mainly investigated as right-wing extremism and not as right-wing terrorism'. The report only includes rightwing and animal rights political violence as terrorism if reported as such by member states.

The report does also note that the 0.2% of attacks undertaken by Islamists resulted in fully half the 706 arrests in the EU being of Muslims. The UK itself has seen hundreds of arrests on trumped up charges which are later shown to be false and often propagandist. Indeed one of the two alleged 'foiled' attacks in the figures is the much heralded transatlantic bomb plot in the UK which has certainly adversely affected millions of air passengers. However, it does appear that this plot existed much more in the minds of the security establishment than in reality:  http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Sources_August_Terror_Plot_Fiction_Underscoring_0918.html .

I wondered how well the pattern of media reporting conformed to the pattern of offences or the pattern of arrests. In 2006 the National press in the UK carried 26, 577 reports which mentioned the word 'terrorist' or 'terrorism'.^ Of these 7,620 also referred to 'Islam', 'Islamist' or 'Muslim'. In other words the media reported Islamist violence out of all proportion to the number of attacks. This is hardly helpful to those trying the resist the wave of islamophobia emanating from sections of the police and from the intelligence agencies and politicians. Nor does it give much hope for muslims under attack throughout the UK.



Notes

*Thanks to Eric Herring for drawing these figures to my attention.

^Figures from searches conducted on Lexis-nexis press database.

Europol, 'First Terrorism Situation and Trend Report of Europol released' News Release, The Hague, 10 April 2007.  http://www.europol.eu.int/index.asp?page=news&news=pr070410.htm

European Terrorism Situation and trend Report 2007
 http://www.europol.eu.int/publications/TESAT/TESAT2007.pdf

Adam Yosef should get his priorities right. The only racism going on in Britain is AGAINST Muslims with this nonsensical, yet vicious, "War on Terror" which Blair imported into this country on George Bush's command.

Yosef's Uncle Tom-like behaviour doesn't do favours to anyone, Muslim or non-Muslim alike. It is hight time that Muslims and non-Muslims rose up against British State Oppression. I wish the organizers of this Meeting all success.

can't help but find it curious that the two comments supportive of this demo have been turned into additions, whereas the one giving some more info about the group organising it hasn't been - even tho that would to a lot of people give the demo a different meaning.

I think it's wrong to refer to adam yosef as an uncle tom as he's not challenging the event but the vandalism. also we dont actually know who's behind the event and it may be radical groups.
the group doesn't actually label the osters as racist, that's the newspaper. its a little out of context. i dont know much about the event as its all a bit anonymous for my liking but i've got no probs with the anti-vandalism stuff x

I must be getting old! Since when has it been 'vandalism' to stick up posters around town? Is it 'vandalism', too, for political parties to put up posters during elections?

Compare that to the vandalism caused by British forces in places like Iraq and Afghanistan!

If billposting is to be considered 'vandalism' by protest groups then that only shows how tamed they have become made by the state. Dear god, what times we live in!

Yosef would have done best just to keep his mouth shut. There is no question that the British state is oppressive and that it deliberately scapegoats the Muslim community in what is state-condoned racism.

I admit, however, to have rashly wished the organisers of this Meeting good luck as all the time in the back of my mind a little voice was shouting, "Dirty work!"

This has been confirmed by Antagonist on his blog at  http://antagonise.blogspot.com/2007/05/british-oppression-downing-street.html and I would advise everyone to read it.

The British state would love to be able to use anything to further demonise Muslims. It looks very much like it and its agents are behind this event.

"The only racism going on in Britain is AGAINST Muslims with this nonsensical, yet vicious, "War on Terror" which Blair imported into this country on George Bush's command."


I must remember and tell this to someone from the Afro-carribbean community. I'm sure that it'll be news to them.

I didn't understand the last comment by Amused about Afro-Caribbeans so expand please, thanks

in response to KosmicK's comment:

"Yosef would have done best just to keep his mouth shut. There is no question that the British state is oppressive and that it deliberately scapegoats the Muslim community in what is state-condoned racism."

"The British state would love to be able to use anything to further demonise Muslims. It looks very much like it and its agents are behind this event."

Actually, I think the posters urging Muslims (those of whom it urges being largely British anyway) to rise against the 'British' suggests to the passer-by that that is the view of ALL Muslims in Britain (like the enemy within). The violent elements in the posters and the radical group behind them are what would demonise Muslims. Adam Yosef made it very clear that the Muslims in the area were not supporting a fringe group. How does that make him contribute towards demonistation toward Muslims exactly??? Leaving the posters up would have more served the 'WAR ON TERROR' and demonisation, that's what those radical groups are there for, serving the interest of the government's agenda.