An expected ‘white pride’ rally outside London city hall drew a large crowd Saturday afternoon — but one marching under an anti-racism banner.
About 100 people from various activist groups, including Occupy London members, converged at 300 Dufferin Ave. in a kind of counter-protest to the pro-white event that had been planned.
“We’re here to say you’re not welcome in our community,” said one member of the group, whose face was bandana-clad and gave his name only as Jake.
Several police officers and city hall security were also present — though a conflict happened earlier, at about 3 p.m., when the much-smaller white pride group clashed with the anti-racist crowd near the intersection of York and Wellington streets.
Police say what they're calling a white pride group, heavily outnumbered, left the area, leaving their planned city hall protest in doubt.
The anti-racist group then marched through downtown streets, arriving at city hall at about 4 p.m. Police were keeping a close watch on the situation, said Const. D’arcy Bruce.
“Everybody’s sensitive giving the nature of what happened at Fanshawe” last weekend, he said. “We’re just monitoring it.”
It’s believed one person was arrested at the York-Wellington incident, though details were unclear.
Though the anti-racism group was clear in their message — two carried a banner reading ‘smash racism’ — their attire was clearly intimidating for some.
As the group, many with their faces covered by bandanas, marched toward city hall, three visible minorities at a bus stop outside city hall scurried across the street from them.
“We’re an anti-racism group,” one marcher shouted at the trio.
Récit de la contre-manif à Edmonton :
EDMONTON — A white pride rally in Edmonton's downtown lasted only minutes when the demonstrators fled into a subway stairwell after they were greeted by over 100 anti-racist counter-protesters.
Police then blocked subway platform entrances until the roughly two dozen white pride demonstrators, most of them masked, were able to leave on a train.
Police spokesman Scott Pattison said at one point as the racist group was nearing the site near Edmonton City Hall, both sides clashed briefly, but police separated them quickly.
"I believe there was some pushing and shoving but it was only momentary," Pattison said, noting there were no injuries or arrests.
As the groups neared City Hall, police kept the anti-racists from crossing the street and getting close to the white pride rally, but both sides shouted insults at each other until the white pride group left.
Anti-racist demonstrators ran from entrance to entrance of the subway in an effort to follow the rally, and expressed their frustration at police who were blocking the doors.
"I think it's a shame that our tax dollars are being used to coddle and protect racist hate groups in our city," said one anti-racist demonstrator with a megaphone.
"Shame on police for coddling extremists. They should be ashamed of themselves," he added.
A similar white pride group gathered Saturday afternoon for a rally at London City Hall, where it was also met by a large group of anti-racists. Police said in a news release that there was "an altercation" between the two groups but that both sides dispersed when police arrived.
London police say there was minor damage to a parking arm, but there were no further incidents.
Springtime white pride rallies in Alberta have been held in Calgary in previous years, but organizers moved it to Edmonton this year. The Edmonton rally was promoted on several racist websites, but those sites didn't say exactly where it would be.
Anti-racists staged their own rally earlier in the day, and then marched downtown when they heard it was where the pro-white demonstrators were gathering.
Pattison defended the decision by Edmonton police to keep both sides apart.
"I think the whole intent today, from EPS's standpoint, was to preserve the rights and freedoms of both groups and I think they successfully did that. And to maintain peace and order," he said.
Read more: http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/201203 ... z1q9jtHNe8
Vidéo ici:
[url="http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20120324/edmonton-demonstration-120324/#ixzz1q5kzUw8u"]http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20120324/edmonton-demonstration-120324/#ixzz1q5kzUw8u[/url]
Récit de la contre-manif à Calgary :
After years of annual clashes between white supremacists and anti-racist activists at downtown rallies, this year’s version was peaceful as the city’s neo-Nazis elected not to show up.
The two sides typically square off in competing rallies downtown around the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and are surrounded by a heavy police presence.
On Saturday morning, a few dozen anti-racist activists showed up — outnumbered by police — in front of city hall.
Police said they were prepared and went in trying to balance public safety with the right to free speech.
“These kinds of incidents can escalate or turn out to be nothing. Our plan is to be prepared for any type of situation,” said Acting Insp. Colin Adair.
The largest turnout was in 2009, when 60 white supremacists confronted about 400 anti-racist demonstrators.
It wasn’t a surprise that the skinheads did not appear: the group Blood and Honour had printed flyers saying that this year’s march would take place in Edmonton.
“On the one hand, that’s a definite success for Calgary,” said anti-racist organizer Jason Devine. “It shows that they’re tired of being outnumbered, they’re tired of being corralled.
“On the flip side, it’s a displacement. If they’re not focusing on Calgary and now they’re focusing in Edmonton, to some extent the problem has been moved there.”
Indeed, white supremacists chanting “worldwide white pride” faced off with anti-racism protesters in Alberta’s capital city on Saturday afternoon.
There was a heavy police presence in Edmonton’s downtown core.
Police stood guard at the city’s Churchill LRT station to stop protesters from entering. The two groups started to move toward the provincial legislature grounds around 2:30 p.m.
With files from the Edmonton Journal
smassinon@calgaryherald.com
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
Read more: http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/calga ... z1q9i7WYhK
Meurtre d'un néo-nazi (il aurait attaqué des antifas après la manif) :
Police are concerned that the fatal stabbing of a white supremacist in southern B.C. could fuel simmering tensions between gangs in the area.
Jan Korinth, a member of the neo-Nazi group Blood and Honour, was stabbed to death last weekend during a fight in a Surrey home.
Rumours have abounded about the 26-year-old's death, with many speculating that Korinth was targeted for his involvement in the white supremacist group.
Homicide investigators, however, rebuff those reports and say that Korinth was the person who instigated the fight.
"It appears at this time that Jan was attempting to get into that residence. It was not Jan's home, he did not live there," said Sgt. Jennifer Pound of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.
A 36-year-old man suffered head injuries during the brawl, but he was transported to hospital and is expected to survive.
While the incident is still under investigation, police are concerned that any misinformation about Korinth's death could spark gang violence in Surrey.
"Whenever we're dealing with information that could potentially cause gang retaliation, then that needs to be our number one concern," Pound said Saturday. "In this case that is now our concern."
The warning came on the same day members of Blood and Honour clashed with anti-racism activists in downtown Edmonton. Members of the neo-Nazi group reportedly fled minutes after the rally began when more than a hundred counter-protesters showed up to confront them.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Lisa Rossington
Vidéo ici:
http://winnipeg.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local ... nnipegHome
Article d'ARA-Canada :
Misinformation About the Circumstances Behind Jan Korinth's Death
While focusing on the marches in Edmonton and London, we have also been paying attention to the Jan Korinth case.
Today, CBC reported that they received an email claiming that Korinth's death was because he was targeted. The person who sent the email to CBC wrote the following:
"They ... planned to attack, no doubt because Jan was a member of Blood and Honour. It was a hate crime against our people. We will not stop until there is justice for our fallen comrade," the purported friend — who would identify himself only as Mike — said in an email to CBC News.
Right away this didn't make sense. The person who have been hit with bear spray was found in the residence while the trail of blood that led to Korinth originated at that residence to a location a number of houses away. One would then surmise that it was the person who was hit with the bear spray who was the resident of the home and that Korinth was the one who was not the resident. If the guy found at the house wasn't the legal resident, wouldn't the police have arrested him?
We immediately suspected that "Mike" was one of two things. He could be someone with no connection to Korinth at all but wanted to stir the pot. The second option is that the anonymous emailer is someone very much familiar with this sub-culture and wants to use Korinth to further some twisted goal of building racial tensions to the point where more violence might occur.
We suspect the latter.
Later this evening, another report was filed, this time by CTV which appears to confirm our position:
Police fear rumours about neo-Nazi's death
By: ctvbc.ca
Date: Saturday Mar. 24, 2012 7:40 PM PT
The police investigation into the death of a white supremacist in Surrey has taken a bizarre turn as officers worry misinformation circulating about the case could spark a gang war.
Last weekend, 26-year-old Jan Korinth died after he was stabbed during a fight in a home. A 36-year-old man was taken to hospital with head injuries, but survived.
Korinth was a member of the neo-Nazi group Blood and Honour and at one time was a firefighter for Mayne Island Fire Rescue. Now investigators are addressing reports that this was a hate crime and Korinth was targeted for his involvement in the white supremacist group.
The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says this is not true, and that Korinth was the instigator not the target.
"It appears at this time that Jan was attempting to get into that residence. It was not Jan's home; he did not live there. The occupant of the home sustained injuries as did Jan, he sustained knife-wound injuries," Sgt. Jennifer Pound said.
"From what we can tell, (Jan) left that area and a blood trail led police to find him close by where he was pronounced deceased at the scene," she added.
The rumours now have police warning gang violence is possible.
"Whenever we're dealing with information that could potentially cause gang retaliation, then that needs to be our number one concern, and in this case that is now our concern. But that concern based on false information that was put out to the public," Pound said.
Police say they are still investigating what led up to Korinth's death.
In December, several Vancouver members of Blood and Honour were arrested and charged. They were accused of assaulting people for the colour of their skin.
On Saturday, members of Blood and Honour staged a rally in downtown Edmonton. The Canadian Press reports that demonstrators fled only minutes after it began when more than 100 anti-racist counter-protesters showed up.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Lisa Rossington
There is absolutely no indication that this incident had anything to do with Korinth's links to Blood & Honour or that he was attacking someone (or that he was attacked) based on ideology.
