The day of getting slightly hot and bothered in the sunshine
THE organisers had promised a Day of Rage. The reality was a sweaty afternoon of petty squabbling.
One police source suggested the demonstration, which had pledged to bring London to a standstill and overthrow Theresa May, had rather more resembled a picnic than a revolution. Perhaps the stifling heat was to blame for stifling unrest.
Hot and bothered, the protesters – by the end of the day – appeared to be largely protesting among themselves: arguing over tactics and even accusing each other of being police informants.
The Day of Rage had been organised by a hard-left group called the Movement for Justice By Any Means Necessary (MFJ), demanding justice for the victims of the Grenfell Tower catastrophe and an end to Tory rule.
Coinciding with the Queen’s Speech, about 100 demonstrators gathered in Shepherd’s Bush in west London, close to Grenfell Tower, for the four-and-a-half mile march to Westminster in 90F heat. It didn’t begin well. Paul Nelson, 53, a Grenfell Tower relief volunteer who lives close to the scene of the tragedy, was involved in an angry confrontation with demonstrators at the start.
Mr Nelson, a computer software engineer condemned the protest as “undignified”, adding: “I’m very upset because I think it’s politicising the anger. Now is not the time.”
Mahad Egal, who had fled the tower with his family, even posted a video yesterday pleading for calm.
“Please, to all those protesting, we don’t need no violence in the community, we do not want that in our name,” said Mr Egal. “Please do not disgrace those who have been affected in Grenfell by resorting to violence, we need people to come together.”
As if to emphasise the point, as the protesters marched, accused of exploiting the tragedy, a coroner was opening an inquest into the deaths of the first people identified in the blaze.
Dr Fiona Wilcox, the Westminster coroner, said she “couldn’t imagine the agony” the victims had suffered.
Among them was Abu Fras Ibrahim, 39, a shopkeeper from Sudan, who jumped to his death after visiting his 70-year-old mother on the 23rd floor. She perished, too.
The 100-strong march eventually swelled and as many as 300 people converged on Whitehall. They included activists from other groups such as the Socialist Party and the Socialist Workers Party. Other demonstrators did not seem to show at all, including organisers of a mass line dance in protest at the prospect of the Democratic Unionist Party propping up Mrs May’s minority government.
By the time the crowd reached Downing Street en route to Parliament Square, tempers had begun to flare. A little. Several people appeared to be detained by police with protesters and officers squaring off. Activists, according to one witness, “yelled angrily”. It was almost as close as the demonstration got to “rage”.
One man was restrained as he screamed in the face of an officer and another male protester was pinned to the ground by police. Another man was led off in handcuffs for shouting at the demonstrators, hurling at them the abusive phrase “you’re a bunch of uni drop-outs,” before being carted off. As they passed Downing Street, the crowd let off bright flares and chanted “Justice for Grenfell” which was followed by cries of “murderers” and “terrorists”, aimed at No10. By 4pm, the demonstrators reached Parliament Square for a well-earned sit down (protest). “It seems to be lots of people sitting in the square having a picnic,” said one police source. “It does resemble more of a picnic than a rage.”
The protestors raged, ever so slightly, against each other. One woman was accused by another group of young women of being a police spy. Another group began bickering among themselves. One complained: “If we just stand on the green it’s not a protest, we’re just standing here having a chat.”
The Day of Rage organisers remained unbowed. Karen Doyle, the MFJ organiser, promised further action. “I believe that we can have double, triple, quadruple the number on this demonstration on the streets,” said Miss Doyle.
Despite the rather unimpressive turnout for her Day of Rage, she didn’t appear to be too angry about it.