From Black Lives Matter and right-wing counter-protest, London, 12-13/06/2020 by David Sladek

Public Story

From Black Lives Matter and right-wing counter-protest, London, 12-13/06/2020

Copyright david sladek 2021

Date of Work 06/12/20 - 06/13/20

Updated 06/14/20

Location London, UK

Archived as Black and White, Black Lives Matter, Documentary, Human Rights, Photography, Photojournalism, Protests, Street

London's official Black Lives Matter organisers pulled off its support of this weekend's protests after a call by the Democratic Football Lads Association for their supporters to come to central London to protect some controversial statues from the British history. After the Friday’s BLM peaceful sit-in and march, on Saturday, groups of veterans stood guards by several statues boarded the night before by the city council. Thousands of what largely appeared to be football fans including sympathizers of far-right Britain First and EDL descended on Parliament Square with bags of beer cans and soon started looking for fights. First, the police had troubles holding the barrier on Whitehall established to divide the group from BLM protesters who were set on Trafalgar Square. Several journalists were attacked too. Eventually, groups of white radicals started attacking the peaceful BLM protest from every possible side of Trafalgar Square and police was sometimes too slow to keep things under control, eventually resorting in use of police dogs and horses. The BLM protesters tried to keep calm and not react to provocations but several fights broke out. When leaving the square at the end of the allocated time, the whole group marched via Strand and Waterloo Bridge to Waterloo where a group chased returning right wing protesters to the station. Police then re-routed the crowd to Southbank and London Eye.

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