Gee whiz.
A month or two ago the Sydney-based fascist grouplet ‘Party For Freedom’ (PFF) — the organisers of the Cronulla Riot Re-enactment failboat last year (and the ‘anti white genocide’ Palm Sunday counter-rally a few weeks ago) — decided that it would be A Good Idea to hold an anti-Muslim rally outside the Halal Expo in Ascot Vale. According to reports, around 20 or so folk travelled down from Sydney to join the rally, and were joined by a smaller number of locals. In any event, their rally was briefly the site of a scuffle, after a small group of anti-fascists decided to say ‘G’day’ and welcome them to marvelous, multicultural Melbourne. There appear to have been no arrests, but the PFF lost a number of flags and placards, and one of their supporters — wearing a PFF t-shirt bearing the slogan ‘Rapefugees Not Welcome Stay Away!’ — appeared on the TV with a cut and some blood on his face.
See : Halal festival brawl latest incident in Melbourne’s multicultural battle, Timna Jacks and Steve Lillebuen, The Age | Anti-Muslim and anti-racism protesters ‘intensely’ clash outside Melbourne’s Halal Expo, ABC | Anti-Islam and anti-fascist protesters clash in violent brawl at Halal expo in Melbourne, news.com.au …
The PFF will be staging another anti-Muslim protest outside the Halal Expo in Sydney on April 10. This will be the second occasion on which the PFF have done so, having organised a rally outside the Halal Expo in 2015 which was also the site of a minor clash with anti-fascists (see : Protests at halal food expo turn violent, SBS, April 13, 2015).
Also today, a crowd of several hundred gathered at Fed Square to rally against racism and fascism. They also went on a march. A small contingent of Collingwood fans joined the rally, each one of them as beautiful as fascism is ugly. Props!
Well, count me as disappointed that I didn’t know about this action in advance. A Fascist group (unlike, say, a mere Right wing populist group) is a conspiracy to murder, so breaking them up is an act of self-defence. Nick Folkes and his followers got what they deserved, but it’s a pity that our side wasn’t a lot bigger, because the fash would then have gotten a lot more of what they deserved.