Monthly Archives: August 2014

Another flop for the fascists in Cricklewood

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Anti-SEA protest August 2014

Today the far-right South East Alliance staged a demonstration in Cricklewood, for the third time this year. They claimed to be protesting against the Muslim Brotherhood, who were once supposed to have an office there. As before, a large number of anti-fascists turned out for a counter-demo organised North West London United, among them Brent Council leader Muhammed Butt and London Assembly member Murad Qureshi.

It wasn’t looking good for the SEA, with a mere 15 “patriots” taking to the streets to resist the threat of Islamo-fascism. Having eventually managed to drag themselves out of the pub, they gathered on Cricklewood Broadway shortly after 1pm and seemed rather uncertain as to why they were there, shouting about Muslim grooming gangs and Muslim paedos. What that had to do with the Muslim Brotherhood was unclear.

Things picked up a bit for them an hour or so later when SEA leader Paul Pitt/Prodromou arrived with some more supporters, bringing flags and a few sheets of A4 paper with the words “Ban the Muslim Brotherhood” printed on them. The SEA’s banner was unfurled, featuring the slogan “One nation, one aim, one future” (presumably inspired by “Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer”), alongside those of two other far-right groupuscules, the Scottish Defence League and Scottish Volunteer Force.

The SEA hung around for another hour, during which they shouted incoherent abuse at the counter-demonstrators and delivered a couple of speeches nobody but themselves could hear. They were then escorted out of Cricklewood under police protection.

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Muslim basketball player speaks out against international federation’s ban on religious headwear

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Indira KaljoThe International Basketball Association’s ban on religious headwear like turbans, hijabs, and yarmulkes worn by some Sikh, Muslim, and Jewish basketball players is an “extremely disrespectful” way of forcing players to choose between their favorite sport and their religion, one of the Muslim women fighting to overturn the ban told ThinkProgress this week.

Indira Kaljo, a Bosnian-American Muslim who played college basketball for Tulane University, began challenging FIBA’s ban on religious headwear this year, when she decided she wanted to wear a hijab during games but could not if she wanted to play professionally in Europe.

Kaljo did not wear the hijab while playing at Tulane or during a year of professional ball in Ireland. But after deciding to adhere more closely to her faith, Kaljo took her story to the Council on American-Islamic Relations in an effort to pressure FIBA into changing its policy. She played covered in an American summer league this year and does not want to return to Europe if she cannot wear a hijab.

“I shouldn’t have to decide between faith and sports,” Kaljo said in a phone interview with ThinkProgress this week. “And not just me, players around the world.”

“It’s extremely disrespectful,” Kaljo said. “There’s no other way to put it other than, it’s disrespectful.”

The policy has drawn international criticism in the form of official complaints from the Turkish basketball federation, social media movements, online petitions, and even a letter from American lawmakers after multiple Indian Sikh players were told they could not wear traditional religious turbans during games in different Asian federation tournaments. It has been a focus too of Muslim groups and women players who have challenged it, including the women’s team from the Maldives, which withdrew from an under-18 Asian tournament this month when officials refused to let players wear hijabs during games.

FIBA was scheduled to review the policy during executive meetings in Spain this week before the start of the men’s basketball World Cup. But it announced Thursday that it would indefinitely delay its review, meaning the ban will remain in place.

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74-year-old man sentenced for shots at neighbors

Posted on by Bob Pitt

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — A judge has sentenced a 74-year-old man to 30 years in prison for firing a shotgun at his southern Indiana neighbors who he had become convinced were Islamic terrorists.

Monroe County Judge Kenneth Todd said during Thursday’s sentencing hearing he believed Robert Walp of Gosport was delusional when he attacked the married couple and their 12-year-old son who were his longtime neighbors in the rural area north of Bloomington.

A jury convicted Walp in July on three counts of attempted murder for the May 2013 attack. The Herald-Times reports Walp’s neighbors weren’t wounded and mental health experts determined he was sane and able to understand events taking place around him.

Walp told the judge he didn’t commit the crimes and was considering whether to appeal his convictions.

Associated Press, 28 August 2014

Torfaen councillor defiant as Facebook post branded ‘anti-Muslim’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Mike Harris Once a MuzzyComplaints have been made after a Torfaen councillor used the term “muzzy” in a post on Facebook – but he denies the comment was an anti-Muslim slur.

Torfaen independent councillor Mike Harris, the chairman of safer communities overview and scrutiny, posted “Once a Muzzy!” on Facebook alongside a Daily Mail article on Hamas reportedly executing 11 Israeli informers. This was quickly picked up by Hope Not Hate campaigners who posted it on their blog and Facebook page.

One person responded that Cllr Harris should step down, while another says that they made a complaint to Torfaen Council. But Cllr Harris has defended his post saying “it is not racist”.

He denies that it was intended as a racist slur but that he was using the word in its proper meaning as set out in the dictionary, “Unable to think clearly; confused”.

While referring to the picture accompanying the article, which shows the executioners carrying guns, he said: “They are executing people so they must be confused and not able to think clearly or muzzy as it says in the dictionary.”

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Man charged over ‘racist’ mosque attack

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Warrington mosque attack CCTVA 20-year-old man has been charged in connection to a racially aggravated attack on a mosque in Warrington town centre.

Nathan Hancox, of Thynne Street, was arrested on Thursday, and has been bailed. He is due to appear at Halton Magistrates Court on September 16.

The arrest follows a CCTV appeal in the Warrington Guardian. Images of suspects were released after the mosque on Arpley Street was vandalised, with a window smashed.

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Former BBC presenter rants about ‘Rotherham p*kis’, denounces ‘horrific Muslim infiltration of Britain’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Sam MasonA former BBC presenter sacked following a racist call to a taxi firm has been criticised for a series of Facebook comments – slamming Rotherham “P*kis”.

Ex glamour model Sam Mason, 45, was removed from her position as a local radio host after asking a cab company to send a ‘non-Asian driver’. She has now taken to Facebook and launched a racist tirade about the sex abuse scandal in Rotherham where the perpetrators were Asian.

In one post, on the public page, she said: “Dirty dirty filthy p*ki Rotherham bastards. Some p*ki woman is blaming the government for not looking after the p*ki community! Wtf is that all about? Jesus Christ. Now, anyone i offended by booking my daughter a taxi can you please fuck off.” (sic)

Mason was sacked from BBC Radio Bristol in 2008 after a recording of her conversation with a taxi operator was handed to The Sun newspaper. She was booking a taxi for her 14-year-old daughter when she said:  “A guy with a turban is going to freak her out. She’s not used to Asians.”

When the operator said it would not be possible to carry out her wishes, she said: “You’ve managed it before.” She was then refused a cab and was told: “We would class that as being racist. We can’t just penalise the Asian drivers and just send an English one.”

Mason has now shocked friends and followers were her latest outbursts.

She posts a link to a four-minute video entitled “The Horrific Muslim Infiltration Of Britain – Luton 2012”. She writes: “If in any doubt, watch this. Rotherham is just the tip of the ice berg. How many of these are in Syria fighting for IS? Don’t let the b*****ds back. F**k PC.”

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Rotherham child abuse scandal: EDL and Britain First stage protests

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Britain First Rotherham protestTwo of the most high-profile far-right groups in the UK have reacted to the publication of a report into child abuse in Rotherham.

The report revealed more than 1,400 children in the South Yorkshire town were abused over a period of 16 years by “mainly Asian men”, due to a series of failures by the authorities. The report by Prof Alexis Jay has led to increasing calls for South Yorkshire Police Commissioner Shaun Wright to resign for the abuse which occurred while he was head of child services from 2005 to 2010.

Following the release of the report, the Doncaster and Rotherham branch of the English Defence League (EDL) staged a minor protest outside Rotherham’s police station demanding the resignation of Wright. The group previously staged a demonstration in Rotherham in May against the “ideology of Islam”. The demonstration outside the station eventually died down and police confirmed no arrests were made.

Britain First, described as the “probably the only group experiencing growth on the far right”, also staged a demonstration at the council building in Rotherham against victims of “Muslim grooming”. Britain First, which came into prominence after staging a series of “invasions” at Mosques across the UK, described how it “stormed” the building as part of its new campaign in the town “against the council, the police and social services”. The group said it managed to unfurl a banner inside the building before being escorted out by police.

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Kreuzberg: Police suspect arsonists were behind mosque fire

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Germany Mosque FirePolice had believed that the fire at the Mevlana mosque in Kreuzberg might have been caused by a technical fault or started accidentally, but both of those possibilities have now been ruled out.

“We never ruled out arson,” Berlin police spokesman Thomas Neuendorf told The Local. “There was no direct evidence of an arson attack, no traces of a break-in… but by a process of elimination it turned out that it was probably a deliberately started fire.”

Germany’s vice-chancellor Sigmar Gabriel was already speaking of an “attack” in the days before the police announcement on a visit to the mosque, describing arson on a place of worship as “an attack on the centre of society”.

The fire began in building materials stored in an unfinished extension to the structure and caused smoke damage to the facade and the interior of the mosque. Renovation and extension work has been going on at the site since 2013. More than 60 firefighters were deployed to put out the blaze.

Members of the congregation have been praying in the street since the fire on August 11th.

Neuendorf said that times of conflict in the Middle East can lead to an increase in violent crime in Germany. “When a mosque is burned, that has to be taken very seriously,” he said. “There is no evidence of what the motive might be… but the target itself suggests that it might be political. When there are tensions in other countries, that can also lead to political crimes here… graffiti will increase, physical attacks will increase.”

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