Day the East End said 'No pasaran' to Blackshirts

[IndianaGreen]

Unlike the British 70 years ago, Americans surrendered to fascism in 2006 without making a fuzz.

Day the East End said 'No pasaran' to Blackshirts

Audrey Gillan
Saturday September 30, 2006
The Guardian


Demonstrators flee police during a protest in Cable Street, east London,
against a proposed fascist march. Photograph: David Savill/Topical Press
Agency/Getty Images

They built barricades from paving stones, timber and overturned lorries. Women threw the contents of chamber pots on to the heads of policemen and children hurled marbles under their horses and burst bags of pepper in front of their noses.

Next Wednesday marks the 70th anniversary of the day that Jews, communists, trade unionists, Labour party members, Irish Catholic dockers and the people of the East End of London united in defiance of Sir Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists and refused to let them march through their streets.

Shouting the Spanish civil war slogan "No pasaran" - "They shall not pass" - more than 300,000 people turned back an army of Blackshirts. Their victory over racism and anti-Semitism on Sunday October 4 1936 became known as the Battle of Cable Street and encapsulated the British fight against a fascism that was stomping across Europe.
Mosley planned to send columns of thousands of goose-stepping men throughout the impoverished East End dressed in uniforms that mimicked those of Hitler's Nazis. His target was the large Jewish community.

The Jewish Board of Deputies advised Jews to stay away. The Jewish Chronicle warned: "Jews are urgently warned to keep away from the route of the Blackshirt march and from their meetings.

"Jews who, however innocently, become involved in any possible disorders will be actively helping anti-Semitism and Jew-baiting. Unless you want to help the Jew baiters, keep away."

The Jews did not keep away.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/farright/story/0,,1884440,00.html

[nam78_two]

1. recommended/nt

[zeemike]

2. A piece of history I was only dimly aware of.

Thank you for posting that. The point is well made.
K&R

[annabanana]

3. I learn something new every day here!. . . . . n/t

[rubberducky]

4. We must always remember........

how "ordinary" people fought and won!

[rockymountaindem]

5. Thanks

I'd never heard of this before. K & R.

[ms liberty]

6. Wow. I'd never heard of this! K&R n/t

[Tom Joad]

7. Good story.

[IndianaGreen]

8. It was the people that opposed fascism

the politicians were pretty much AWOL, a notable exception was Churchill.

[Ken Burch]

12. And even Churchill was a latecomer, having been solidly pro-Franco

in the Thirties.

[struggle4progress]

9. Thanks for posting this.

[struggle4progress]

10. kick

:kick:

[Vidar]

11. Good post. Thank you.