I hate what happened yesterday. And I hate even more the fact that we now have a whole generation of youths who have been politicised and judged by the wider population as violent yobs.
I first felt this way during the miners strike when we saw images of police and miners apparently waging war on each other.
To use horses on these occasions is to try to show your opponents that you are superior in weight and armoury . Those of us brought up in the north know the history of Peterloo in Manchester when a baton charge followed by horses resulted in the deaths of several people who were marching lawfully and peacefully.
I waited and prayed that it would not happen again during the miners strike I was on one occasion trying to get up to the north for a family birth by driving up the A1. The police quite simply treated us all as scum and turned us back, not just once but several times. I don't think I looked like a danger to anyone and they certainly were not listening to explanations.
These students are not our enemies. They are angry for good reasons...but they are not criminals.
When I went on marches of protestation against fascists in the 70s we all knew that there would be a sprinkling of trouble makers, the ones who long to escalate the moment into violent reaction. We were determined not to let it happen and by and large it didn't.
The yobs have now got the upper hand but they have been helped in this by the police who have set out in riot gear, have unlawfully kettled youths for long periods which has intensified the feelings of impotence and anger so that even those who set out innocently enough have been drawn into it.
I now pray that the excesses of yesterday can be put behind us. Do we really want a politicised police force again? Or a whole generation of youths who feel let down by society.
These young people are our future. In years to come they will be the teachers, lawyers and doctors who will be responsible leaders of society. What sort of lessons are they learning now?
5 comments:
Jean, I think you are right to be angry at both those who use these demonstrations to provoke trouble and I think are a tiny minority, who would be there, whoever is trying to demonstrate.
The Police do not help themselves by their actions, to lay on a demonstration of strength by starting in Riot gear is perhaps a red rag to a bull and a gift to those who wish to provoke trouble and then an excuse for the police to be heavy handed.
I was thinking of CND demonstrations where their actions in civil disobedience including sitting down and refusing to move, were invariably peaceful, albeit, it led to their arrests. The spirit they showed was one of peaceful protest, which made their point.
I just think that the NUS will now be advised to be a little more careful on what and how they plan their demonstrations - and perhaps taking them to other major cities might still make the point, without receiving or provoking the attention of trouble makers or the police in quite the same way.
In the end, this government needs to start listening - otherwise I feel that there is sadly, much more of this to come.
I totally agree with both Jean and UK viewer and would add that as a former CND Aldermaston marcher I remember only too well our long peacefull demonstrations being hijacked by the violent lunatic fringe who eagerly took over (usually at the very end of the march), in order to antagonise both bystanders and police.
Sadly, I also remember violent reactions from the police who had previously quietly accompanied us, who then treated all of us as potential criminals, even those they had chatted to on the earlier part of the demonstration.
If I were a student in this day and age, I would have been a part of yesterday's march and might quite possibly be writing this in a prison cell.
I have never condoned violence but would always add my voice to any such protest.
The only thing I will take issue with here is that these young people are not our future. They are our present. They act by choice and have to be accountable for their actions. I feel for those who popped out from lectures to make a valid and legal protest, and was saddened by the face-covered types who do violence without courage of disclosure.
As for the police - they are in a lose/lose situation. I know Cymraeg disagrees with my own posting on this, and I think I understand why - but how else would they turn up for a protest that may contain lethal weapons? They have much to learn, of course - but I am not sure how else they could have pitched up yesterday than dressed as they were and deployed as they were. Let us not forget that they too are young men and women often not much older than the protesters.
When all is said and done, yesterday was sad for all sort of reasons. A political party died, the Royals put in the wrong place and then attacked - and we might be forgiven for forgetting why in months to come.
I agree that the use of horses, riot gear and kettling was wrong. The whole tactic for dealing with a march of teenagers and students was too confrontational. Parents and teachers know that confrontation is not usually a good way to gain cooperation from young people.
It is also wholly unacceptable to hit young people with truncheons or to drag them around. It is illegal to hit or drag young people in the home or in schools and colleges yet it is possible to manage behaviour in a satisfactory way.
Better planning and discussions at the outset so that students were more involved in stewarding the first march would have allowed the police to take a background role.Trapping the marchers without food, water and toilet facilities was inhumane and provocative. It would provoke outcry if it happened in a school. Far better to have let them return home which is what most wanted. By the second march it was too late.
Post a Comment