Axe falls on St George: Parade is halted after council says it attracts racist thugs.

[Beorn]

A thanks to West Country Patriot for bringing this to the fore.

Axe falls on St George: Parade is halted after council says it attracts racist thugs


England's biggest St George's Day parade is facing the axe after councillors said many of those attending it were racist.
For the last decade up to 15,000 have assembled in the town of West Bromwich under the slogan 'Forever England, For Everyone'.
Children and parents from all over the country parade through the Black Country town waving St George flags and marching to rousing anthems such as Jerusalem.
Organisers say one of the aims is to reclaim the Saint George Cross from Right-wingers and make it a source of pride for all.



But last night the local council, Labour-controlled Sandwell, voted to withdraw its support for the parade. Funds will go to support a Party in the Park instead.
It leaves parade organisers with what they say is the impossible task of raising £10,000 to cover their costs with only a few weeks to go.
In a letter to the organisers, one councillor, Yvonne Davies, said the parade created an 'unhealthy atmosphere' and inspired young boys to be racist.
She wrote: 'It is not only the parade which is the problem, but the tribal excitement it creates.'
The West Bromwich St George's Day parade started in 1998 and began as a fairly modest affair with 5,000 turning up. Now three times that attend the two-mile parade in April. Fire Service and Scout Association bands have played, the British Legion lends its support and each year ex-servicemen attend.
A volunteer dresses up as St George and rides with the marchers, children paint their faces with the St George Cross and there are activities such as medieval jousting.
There have been some problems - last year organisers had to clamp down on drinking in the street and a band with hard-Right roots joined in without their permission.
Councillor Davies wrote in her letter: 'I am sure most are very respectful and law-abiding, however some are distasteful in the extreme and wish to divide and separate people from each other.'
She said she had once been abused by youths who 'had been emboldened by the parade and thought racist chants were funny'.
'I have seen first hand how the parade (albeit unintentionally) creates an unhealthy atmosphere.'
At a meeting of Sandwell council cabinet last night, her colleagues sided with her and decided against backing the parade. Instead there will be the Party in the Park, a concert in the Town Hall and St George Flags will be flown on all of the council's buildings.
Trevor Collins of the Stone Cross Saint George Association, which organises the parade, said: 'To suggest the parade is racist is ridiculous and offensive. When you see the kids, the dogs, everyone out having fun, it's really a beautiful sight. It doesn't matter if you're black, white, green, brown or whatever, everyone's welcome.
'The council's decision means we have to foot the bills for insurance and security. We've got to come up with £10,000 in two months which seems impossible.'
Another organiser Mark Cowles said the parades had raised £7,000 for charity. He added that, as well as losing out on council support, they had probably missed the deadline for applying for road closures.
'All we wanted to do was organise a fun, family-friendly day for everyone that celebrates being English,' he said. 'We have been approached by extreme Right-wing groups and we have turned them away.'

Source


Meanwhile, in another part of merry Olde Englande...

Rolling road blocks will be in place for holy parade



A HUGE annual procession through the centre of High Wycombe to mark a Muslim holy day will take place in March.
Rolling road closures will be put on place whilst the procession to mark the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad takes place around several streets in the town centre, on Sunday, March 15.
It will start from the Green Street Mosque, travel down Desborough Road and Bridge Street and onto Oxford Road and on to Castle Street.
From there worshippers will walk down Corporation Road, turn right along the High Street and into Paul's Row, then through the underpass and up to Wycombe Hospital where they will stop for short prayers for the sick.
From here they will make their way back to the Mosque in Green Street.
Roads closures will start from 11.30am and last until 2.30pm.
Sarah Widows, of Buckinghamshire County Council's Highways Department, said the parade is expected to take about two hours.
She said: "Rolling road closures will be in place. Police will stop traffic to allow the parade to pass, before reopening the road and allowing traffic to flow again."

Source



...and did those feet in ancient times...

[Gooding]

Double standards like that seem to be global, unfortunately

[Treffie]

WTF?

[Hildolf]

I'd seen the story about the St.George's day parade ban but not the one about the Muslim March! (blood boiling!)

So we don't allow native people who love their country celebrate their day, but we allow non-natives who harbour terrorists to celebrate the birthday of their mad prophet. But of course we do this is 21st century England, we are enlightened are we not!

[Freomæg]

*sigh* I live in High Wycombe. One of the more 'enriched' towns of England certainly. This is getting beyond a joke. Celebrations of Englishness suppressed while celebrations of Islam encouraged. Our forefathers must be rolling in their graves. I feel ashamed - that we've let them down. I really hope we wake up, soon.

[stormlord]

"reclaim it from right wingers"; so now just being plain right wing is evil? No one ever says the words "left wing" with such contempt.

[Aemma]

Double standards like that seem to be global, unfortunately

Well I'm not sure about that sometimes Gooding. I think the reality is a bit different in Europe than it might be in North America. I'm not sure about where you live, but I've yet to see these types of parades in my city. We still have the regular St. Patty's Day, Remembrance Day, Christmas parades of course. For Canada Day there's always a huge (multicultural) party on Parliament Hill. We have Italian, Greek, Lebanese and First Nations festivities/festivals here too, but nothing that remotely looks like what many large communities seem to have in Europe. The Muslim presence is not blatantly felt here...yet. 'Tis a different world here right now I would hazard to say, well at least where I live. Of course my view might just be totally skewed as to what else is happening in North America. I live in the capital of Canada and we're known to be a bit of a conservative (read 'boring' at times ) city.

I don't know...of my fellow North Americans here, what is the reality in your respective neighbourhoods? Hmm methinks I shall post this question as a different thread now so as not to hijack this one . See this question in the racial tragedy section.

Cheers for now Gooding!...Aemma

[Hildolf]

I think the people of West Bomwich should stick two fingers up to the council and have a celebration on St.George's day outside West Bromwich council office's.

[Beorn]

'I am sure most are very respectful and law-abiding, however some are distasteful in the extreme and wish to divide and separate people from each other.'

That's what got me.

So she basically admits that the parade could proceed if the "extreme" members were excluded and thoughtfully brought to ridicule and exclusion.

So, why not clamp down on all parades like this?

Notting Hill carnival EVERY year has "extreme" members causing strife and civil disorder, mostly racial disorder, amongst the parades gathering, yet each year the authorities allow the carnival to proceed.

I suggest the tongue gets bitten and the organisers of the St.George parade collect money in the attempt to take the council to legal proceedings.

[Treffie]

This is beyond belief, and yet the Govt allows marches in support of Hamas?