Graham, Tom and Ian

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Gatley community stands together opposing far-right racists

by Lib Dem team on 20 January, 2015

A former BNP activist, currently a student at MMU, has taken to Twitter to proudly announce how he targeted Gatley, and in particular local councillor Iain Roberts, with literature promoting race hate, attacking both Jews and Muslims in our community.

Far-right racists have been illegally fly-posting in parts of Gatley with “Multiculturalism is Genocide” stickers – promoting their incoherent views. Following up residents’ complaints, Iain raised this with Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd.

“I’m proud to live in a strong community where people from different backgrounds and religions get along and work together for the good of all. The main political parties stand as one against far-right extremists trying to sow their poisonous, wrong-headed messages and I am very grateful for the support I received from people on the Gatley Facebook group.” Iain said.

Iain’s work opposing the extremists in Gatley was spotted by the ex-BNP activist who decided to leaflet Iain’s road with anti-semitic and anti-muslim race hate literature, then took to Twitter with a photo of Iain’s house, giving the address and telling his followers how he wouldn’t “shed any tears at a Liberal Democrat councillor being harmed”.

The race-hate literature has been passed onto the Police, who have recorded a hate incident and are continuing to investigate. We would like to thank the Police, who have done everything we could have asked to support the community. This is a particularly sensitive time following the terrorist attacks by Islamist extremists in Paris – an attack which Greater Manchester Muslims said “betrayed our principles, our religion and everything we stand for.”

Many people in our community are feeling vulnerable, making it all the more important for us to stand together as one against all extremism.

   30 Comments

30 Responses

  1. Mark McIntyre says:

    So Councillor, you are grateful for the support shown towards you by the Gatley Facebook group ?
    Ha, ha, ha, seeing as how only those whom the moderators like are allowed on to that otherwise closed site – one guesses they be of a like mind to your self and share the same prejudices to boot !

  2. Iain says:

    1,500 members seem to have managed to get on the Gatley Facebook Group.

  3. David Brown says:

    The BNP are not far right, they are, if anything on the left wing of politics.

    Could you please tell me what policies that the BNP have that are considered ‘far right’ and why you would consider them ‘far right’- I do not accept that racisism is either far right or far left.

    I get annoyed by politicians and the media who describe anyone who is racists as ‘far right’. The far left are just as capable as being racists

  4. Carolyn Minkes says:

    How depressing that such people exist,whether on the right or the left.

    • Judith says:

      I suppose it is to be expected that there will be people filled with hatred against people of colour or non-Christian religion in any place, but what matters is that we do not scapegoat any group, and look at what we share as human beings.

  5. shabs says:

    David Brown,

    you are correct, the left could be just as racist… however the BNP are racists… their policies had to change in order to become a legitimate party… so BNP’s policies (like most parties policies lol) are worth no more than the weight of paper its typed on….

    • Mark McIntyre says:

      Nothing wrong with racism – it simply means you support your own race.

      • Halifax says:

        Mark – I don’t think I can agree with that.

        I accept that if you want to be racist, then that is up to you, however if it affects other people than that is not acceptable. I’m sure the Nazi’s were convinced they were supporting their ‘own race’ but I hope you don’t think what they did was OK.

      • Judith says:

        I think you need to look up the meaning of this term.

  6. Dawn says:

    i am very sorry to read Iain that you have been the subject of such abuse, for being a tolerant and decent person. Rest assured that you do indeed have the support of all decent, fair-minded people. It is so sad that people are prepared to loathe others simply on the basis of religion or creed, rather than on their merits as a human being.

  7. Judy says:

    Let’s not have a pointless discussion about far right or far left. As a community we should be standing together to condemn racist behaviour wherever it rears its head. After seeing the offensive posters in Gatley and notifying Iain I was impressed by his prompt response in dealing with the matter.

    • Mark McIntyre says:

      You were impressed by his prompt ‘cover up’ more like – of the truth about him AND his party !

    • David says:

      Judy, it was Iain who brought up the far right of politics, can I ask why you didn’t ask him, after his original post, to refrain from the far right and left of politics?

  8. Paula Isherwood says:

    I’m so sorry that you have been the subject of abuse. Nobody deserves such treatment and you most definitely do not.

    • Mark McIntyre says:

      Oh contraire… these politicos put heir heads above the parapet – they cannot complain if someone takes a pot-shot at them !

  9. Sarah Thomas says:

    Iain, I was shocked to hear that you were a victim of racist abuse. I was also shocked to hear that the abuser was a student at MMU. Universities are supposed to encourage multiculturalism & open views towards other cultires. I hope the university has been informed & he has been chucked out! I am in complete agreement with comments above, the BNP are a racist party with racist values and anyone denying that is deluded. Also completely agree with the lady above who stated above that people who have posted and using this as a platform to discuss left/right politics should use another platform. The point is that we have no place in Gatley for small minded and obviously unintelligent people who are trying to encourage racism in our village! Iain, you have total support from your village apart from the few idiots who can see beyond their own hatred.

    • Halifax says:

      Sarah,

      You may or may not like his views, but just because you are opposed to them, does not mean that he should be chucked out of MMU. If you went down that road , where would you stop, and who would be the judge of what views we are allowed to express

      By the way legally the BNP are not racists – if they were, they would have been banned.

      • Sarah Thomas says:

        You must be deluded as I stated above…

        In an overtly racist message even by BNP standards, the party is “wishing you a white Christmas” in its annual greetings card.
        I’m pretty sure the commonly-accepted phrases are “wishing you a merry Christmas” and “white Christmas”, but they were collided because if you’re a BNP supporter Christmas is a time where you hope for snow but also BLOODY FOREIGNERS TO STOP COMING OVER HERE AND EATING OUR BRANDY BUTTER.
        In a festive message on the inside of the card, the party claims Christmas is under threat from pro-Islam penguins.

  10. Halifax says:

    Shabs, you are 100% right about Party Policies not being worth the weight of paper they are typed on. I recall a policy about tuition fees……

    • Iain Roberts says:

      Perhaps if more people had supported the one party with a policy to scrap tuition fees – the Lib Dems got 10% of the seats and both Tories and Labour had different policies. In the event, the system we have is fairer than the old Labour one with poorer graduates paying less, richer graduates paying more and everyone paying back less each year.

      • Halifax says:

        Iain, perhaps people didn’t support that party because they had little belief in it. You can’t get away from the fact that the Party made a manifesto pledge that it then ignored.

  11. Afzal Chaudhri says:

    Ian :
    I feel very up upset, when extremists speak, write and act to hurt others.
    Hate is a disease, which will internally destroy the hater, NOT the hated

  12. Ian says:

    Iain

    I am very sorry to hear about any abuse you have been subject too but knowing you it will not detract from the Excellent work you and your team do in our community and I know that you have the total support of a large proportion of the people you represent irrespective of Race,colour Creed or Religion.

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