Manchester resists ‘Britain First’

rs21 members argue that the counter-protest against fascist Britain First marked a significant step forward for antifascism in Manchester, one that was particularly welcome in the week before the by-election in Gorton and Denton.

Over a thousand people gathered in Manchester’s Sackville Gardens for the Resist Britain First demonstration on Saturday 21 February, called by a local coalition including rs21 Greater Manchester. Antifascists successfully avoided being kettled, remained mobile and caused major disruption to the fascist march. This shows just how much ground antifascist organising gained in contrast to last year, when Britain First outnumbered counter-protesters, who were kettled by the police.

Police attempts to kettle antifascists at their meeting point failed. Multiple groups went through police lines onto Portland Street, blocking Britain First’s route at numerous points, delaying the start of their march and forcing the police to reroute them over and over.

Antifascists had to fend off police dogs, horses, batons, and punches to the face from cops wearing tactical hard-knuckle gloves. This cannot be emphasised enough: Greater Manchester Police repeatedly deployed violence to try and make it possible that a group of organised racists could march through our city freely. Local politicians’ condemnations of Britain First are meaningless when the police go to such lengths to facilitate their hatred.

But antifascists ruined Britain First’s day. They showed determination in breaking out of kettles, with some climbing the scaffolding on buildings to get past and others finding their way through gaps in police lines. Despite the police’s brutality, groups of antifascists – ranging from dozens to hundreds – confronted the far-right again and again.

There were around 700-800 on the Britain First march (the same size or smaller than their last march in Manchester). At every opportunity the police gave them, Britain First’s goons harassed and violently attacked people of colour. They launched misogynistic and transmisogynistic tirades against women. They reminded Manchester why they must not be allowed to spread their hatred unchallenged.

Their leader, Paul Golding, complained on social media that the repeated blockades and diversions broke their morale and caused their numbers to dwindle. By the time they got to the end-point of their rally, only around 150 supporters remained to hear their leaders’ speeches. Although co-leader Ashlea Simon begged their supporters to stay, most left after she spoke. A dejected Paul Golding scrapped his prepared speech, briefly thanked the few who remained for showing up, and walked away. 

This result is a testament to the sheer determination of antifascists. The unity of different groups in the lead-up to the demonstration and on the day itself was impressive, and must be maintained and strengthened going forward. Our mobilisation aimed to be both militant and mass, eschewing the downsides of antifascist initiatives focused exclusively either on listening to speeches or on a militant minority physically confronting the far-right. Instead, our strength was in our numbers, in our mutual trust and commitment, and in our willingness to defend one another and go on the offensive together when necessary. 

Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) held a static rally at Piccadilly Gardens near where the Britain First march started and then marched to St Peter’s Square, which was not on Britain First’s intended route. They heard speeches from Jeremy Corbyn, the Green Party and several trade unionists and anti-racist campaigners.

SUTR focused mainly on holding Piccadilly Gardens, though sporadic confrontations also broke out between attendees of SUTR’s rally and Britain First supporters. It is a shame that many SUTR activists criticised Resist Britain First protestors for meeting separately and tried to discourage people from joining them at Sackville Gardens. A more constructive approach would have been to welcome the diversity of tactics on the day: those willing to physically stop Britain First from marching through Manchester could have joined the mobile protest, whereas those more risk-averse could have remained at the SUTR rally. Had SUTR chosen this approach, the number of antifascists trying to stop Britain First would have been greater, their action even more effective, and the overall risks lower.

The Resist Britain First protest showed that antifascists can confront and disrupt fascist marches in our towns and cities. There is clearly support for militant opposition to fascism. This is a qualitative step forward for the antifascist movement in Greater Manchester and beyond. With the threat of a Reform government looming nationally, we will need a movement capable of challenging the threat of an emboldened far-right.

Upset by their humiliation, Britain First have angrily announced that they plan to return to Manchester on 18 April. Antifascists need to learn from and build on the success of February 21.

See you in the streets.