Category Archives: Far right racists

Mosque opponents to take fight to Victoria’s highest court with help of right wing extremists

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Anti mosque campaigners in Bendigo will lobby right wing extremists nationwide to bankroll a possible appeal to Victoria’s highest court.

Imposing young men standing guard at the door were closely watched by patrolling police at a secret meeting of campaigners held on Wednesday night at the Bendigo East Public Hall. The Concerned Citizens of Bendigo group, linked to the Stop the Mosque in Bendigo Facebook page, has vowed to take its case to the Supreme Court if it loses a VCAT appeal against the mosque being built.

Sydney lawyer Robert Balzola, hired to represent the group by Restore Australia founder Mike Holt, estimates a Supreme Court appeal could cost up to $50,000. The group has raised just $4000 to date and will appeal to supporters of Restore Australia and the Patriot Defence League Australia to raise the extra cash if needed.

Calls at the meeting for Bendigo to be specially legislated as a mosque-free city by the State Government have been labelled as “offensive” by Planning Minister Matthew Guy. “To target people based on their faith goes against everything Australia stands for as a peaceful, tolerant nation,” Mr Guy said.

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Maidstone: Tory candidate kicked out of party over BNP ‘No More Mosques’ Facebook post

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Roger HoggA former Conservative borough council election candidate has lost his membership of the party after a campaign poster from the British National Party appeared on his Facebook page.

But Roger Hogg said: “I’m entirely innocent! I did not post this. My Facebook has been hacked!”

The poster which featured a picture of a mosque with a line through it and the caption “No More Mosques” was displayed on Mr Hogg’s page this week, but the self-employed security officer said: “I was unaware it was even on my wall till (Tory chief) John Wilson called me about it.”

Mr Hogg stood as the Tory candidate for Fant Ward in the May Maidstone Borough Council elections. He is the son of Mike Hogg, who is a Conservative member for South Ward.

His Facebook page read: “How can it be legal to not allow women to enter the front door of the Mosque? Is there any other building in the country that could even think of getting away with such anti-women bigotry and discrimination? These are very real, logical questions, please do contribute.”

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Racist graffiti man who sprayed ‘EDL’ on Blackburn properties walks free

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A father-of-one who sprayed racist graffiti in Blackburn has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Ethan Hesketh, 24, covered property in a predominantly Asian area of the town with the letters ‘EDL’ and other offensive language. The court heard how the defendant, formerly of Blackburn, but now living in Derby Square, Preston, also damaged 11 cars and stonework in Shear Brow and a sign belonging to Abbeydale Vets.

He pleaded guilty to five counts of racially aggravated criminal damage and nine further counts of criminal damage.

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SDL supporter who threatened arson attack on Edinburgh Central Mosque is fined and told to read a book

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A young man who sent an email threatening to burn an Edinburgh mosque ‘to the ground’ has been fined and told to read up on history by a sheriff.

Andrew Steele, 21, sent the message to an office manager at the Scottish Parliament in the wake of the murder of soldier Lee Rigby. It referred to a meeting of the Unite Against Facism movement at Edinburgh’s Central Mosque and included a comment of his that it should be ‘burned to the f****** ground’.

Fiscal Depute, Arlene Shaw, told the sheriff court that the email showed a screenshot photo of a Scottish Defence League Facebook page which contained several threats in relation to the meeting at the mosque the following day including his comment.

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ECHR ruling inspires FPÖ proposal for ‘burqa’ ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Austria’s Freedom Party (FPÖ) is calling for a ban on burqas, after the Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) backed France’s rules on religious headgear on Tuesday, when it ruled the country’s law banning full-face veils in public was legal.

The ECHR ruled that France’s ban on the wearing of the full-face veil in public does not violate the human rights of Muslim women. Judges said the law was justified on the grounds of social cohesion.

Freedom Party spokeswoman Carmen Gartelgruber said that in the “wide, conservative circles of Islamic immigration society”, the opinion prevails that women are second-class citizens. One of the many instruments for oppressing women is the burqa, she added.

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Denmark may enact French ‘burqa ban’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Pia Kjærsgaard DFA ban on people wearing clothing that covers their face in public, like a burqa or niqab, may find its way to Denmark following a landmark decision at the European Court of Human Rights on Tuesday.

Judges upheld France’s burqa law, accepting the argument that veils threatened the right of citizens to live together in society. And now, several legal experts have told Berlingske newspaper that they believe a similar ban could be enacted in Denmark.

Sten Schaumburg-Müller, a law professor at Aarhus University, agreed that the French model could be adopted by Denmark. “It’s obvious that a ban specifically targeting burqas would be hopeless,” he said. “But I believe a ban similar to France’s prohibiting the covering of the face in public could be established here.”

Jacob Mchangama, the head of think-tank Justitia, also believes the law could be recycled on Danish ground. “The defining element in the French legislation is that it isn’t targeted at specific religions, but instead the motivation is to ensure social cohesion and interaction between citizens,” he said.

Pia Kjærsgaard, the DF values spokesperson, thinks a ban on face-covering dress, whether it is specifically targeting Islamic burqas or not, should be introduced in Denmark. “We can’t have women being completely covered so you can’t see their facial expressions or who you have right in front of you,” she told Berlingske.

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Far Right rally fears grow

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A Far Right group linked with racial violence is staging a Wigan demo.

Concerns are rising after the confrontational Britain First party – an even more extreme splinter of the BNP and EDL, confirmed when approached by the Evening Post today that its members will hold a Regional Rally in Wigan this Saturday.

However, despite describing itself as a “legitimate political party,” it refused point blank to say where or at what time. Instead a spokesman stated that supporters would be “re-directed” to the real venue on the day.

Wigan borough has little ethnic diversity. The spokesman said it had been chosen because of its central position in the North West and its strong motorway and rail communications.

Council leader Lord Smith said that Labour “regretted” Britain First had chosen to hold a rally in Wigan, adding: “They and their racist views are not welcome in our town. We will work with the police to ensure that any nuisance they try to cause is minimised.”

Wigan MP Lisa Nandy said that despite desperate efforts by far right groups to “whip up hatred, racism and intolerance,” the area had consistently rejected their “message of hate.”

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Defend Muslims from mosque invasions – No to Britain First

Posted on by Bob Pitt

UAF_logoUnite Against Fascism (UAF) extends it’s solidarity with all those who are subject to threats, intimidation and Islamophobia, from the publicity hungry, fascist sect, Britain First (BF).

The group say they plan to travel around Britain to promote their poison. This follows from when on May 10/11th, BF subjected mosque goers to an ‘invasion’, where Bibles were thrust into Muslims’ hands. This was intimidation, and as ugly as BF’s politics. Many were bewildered by BF members who went on to holler insults and behave menacingly.

UAF has been contacted by several people who had their place of worship threatened by these thugs. All told a similar story of how worshippers were left shaken by this unwarranted attempt to put fear into Muslim people. This is totally unacceptable.

Were such behaviour to happen at churches or synagogues, there would be rightly be a public outcry. So there should be, here. At Glasgow Central Mosque and at Cumbernauld Mosque, to their great credit, it was Muslims who calmed the BF thugs down!

BF are also, as Hitler did, telling big lies about their popularity. They claim to have had over 500,000 Likes on Social Media. The reality is rather different. Using a series of ‘patriotic’ images, not immediately linked to BF, they have amassed fake popularity behind such fake postings. Their membership is barely 100, far away from their claims.

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Facebook protest against Kalgoorlie mosque gathers momentum

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Stop the mosque in Kalgoorlie Boulder Facebook page

Two Facebook pages waging a campaign against a proposed mosque in Kalgoorlie-Boulder have attracted more than 800 “likes” as the local council prepares to debate the item next month.

A planning application to build a place of public worship at 12 Park Street in the Kalgoorlie suburb of Williamstown was lodged by the Kalgoorlie Islamic Community Centre on June 3.

While the application has not yet gone before councillors, the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder has directly contacted surrounding homes and businesses and encouraged them to submit written feedback before close of business on Monday.

A Facebook page, “Stop the mosque in Kalgoorlie“, was created on June 25 and has attracted 735 members in just five days. It states: “Help us stop the mosque! This page is for practical support to the residents of Kalgoorlie opposing the Mosque. No Islamic debate or trolls tolerated here.”

Many of the posts featured on the page link to anti-Islam article and websites, and the page appears to hold a close association to an eastern states Facebook group, “Stop the mosque in Bendigo”. Far-right opponents of the planned Bendigo mosque recently received a donation of $10,000 to help fund their campaign.

The page has also set up a petition on change.org, calling on the council and local politicians, including Nationals MLA Wendy Duncan and Liberal MLA Graham Jacobs, to block the application. The petition, which has 583 signatures, states that “the council should outright DENY Muslims to build a mosque in Kalgoorlie Boulder to the very end”. The vast majority of signatures come from outside the Kalgoorlie region and even includes signatures from the US.

A second Facebook page, Stop the mosque in Kalgoorlie Boulder, is now also campaigning against the mosque. Created on June 24, the page has 131 “likes” and has shared links with the Patriot Defence League Australia – Eastern Victoria Charter, a group that bills itself as nation-wide “pro Australia” club, committed to protecting Australia from “Islamization”.

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Second far-right protest against planned Bolton mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Bryn Morgan addressing Bolton anti-mosque protestProtestors took to the steps of Bolton Town Hall to rally against plans to build a new mosque in Astley Bridge.

More than 100 campaigners, who insisted they were not representatives of any political party, demonstrated in Victoria Square today.

Plans have been submitted to Bolton Council for a mosque in Blackburn Road with space for more than 1,000 prayer mats by the Taiyabah Islamic Centre.

The protest was organised by Facebook campaign Stop the Astley Bridge Mosque, which has attracted more than 7,100 likes. The group also organised a similar protest at the site of the proposed mosque on Saturday, June 21.

Demonstrators, who chanted “no more mosques”, criticised Bolton Council over a technical fault which has left them unable to submit representation against the plans online.

Michael Birchall, aged 44, from Farnworth said: “They just put mosques up without caring about the local area, and nobody gets a chance to object. Extremist views have been attributed to mosques in the past. I am also concerned about the effect this will have on the community and how it could change.”

David Whittle, aged 46, from Westhoughton, added: “Once there is a mosque there, the Muslims take over that area. It is going to happen in Farnworth next. Anyone can see if this is built parking and traffic is going to be horrendous.”

Tony Burgess, aged 45, from Deane, said the situation in the Middle East played a part in why he was supporting the protest.

The Facebook campaign’s organiser, 38-year-old Bryn Morgan, said a petition against the “ostentatious” plans had already collected several thousand signatures.

Mr Morgan, from Heaton, added: “This is not racist and it is not about making the Muslim community in Bolton feel threatened. This is about showing normal, sensible people do not want their town turned into the sort of place Blackburn has become.

“The plans are for a big, ostentatious building which does not foster community spirit — we would be against it equally if it were a Hindu temple or Catholic church. It is now down to Bolton Council to work out whether they are for or against the democratic process.”

The protest took place on the first day of Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, which sees Muslims engage in fasting during daylight hours.

A passerby, who did not wish to be named, said she had seen Bryn Morgan wearing a British National Party (BNP) rosette at an election count. She added: “People walking past are being frightened into putting their personal details on that petition. The BNP are not wanted here.”

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