Chris Filsell explains why he thinks your polite ignorance would probably have done more to damage their credibility than shouting matches ever could have.
What is it about the English Defence League that makes them such a hot topic of conversation? Even the most politically illiterate amongst us have an opinion on the organisation, even if it is just some vague comment about how they’re ‘a bit racist.’ For many people, the EDL are despicable, threatening and downright disturbing, showcasing the worst aspects of ignorance and bigotry.
If an Exeter student was found to have the vaguest link to the organisation, even the fanciest of gilet’s would not prevent them from being ostracized by our community. For me, however, the EDL are an essentially pathetic group and therefore provide us with a great deal of entertainment. This is one of the reasons why I did not participate in the Exeter Together counter-demonstration on Saturday.
Photo Credit: Niklas Rahmel
Now don’t get me wrong, I find the majority of the English Defence League’s political views abhorrent. Nonetheless, I can’t help but feel like there might have been something more worthwhile to do last Saturday than protest against a group who are most famous for a viral video concerning the spread of “Iraqi Law in London.”
For those of you who have not seen it, a quick YouTube search for ‘muslamic ray guns’ will show you a man in a tracksuit spouting incoherently about the grave threat that Islam poses to the entirety of the world. Clearly, this man is bigoted but, crucially, his views are so ridiculous that we are unable to take him seriously; in speaking his mind, he has compromised his organisation.
Therefore, I see little point in the protesting: if you want the EDL to be exposed as ‘racist’ or ‘ignorant’ let them do the talking, it will be a lot more effective than any crudely made placard ever could be.
Protesting could, in fact, have done more harm than good. For one, it immediately legitimises the supposed ‘threat’ that the EDL poses, when we should really be attempting to make them appear irrelevant. The organisation should be considered on a similar level to the various drunkards ranting in the streets at night, not as a serious political organisation. In protesting, you are transforming a demonstration that could easily be ignored into an ‘event’, creating more exposure for the English Defence League, which can only be a bad thing.
There is also the question of whether protesting could actually generate some form of sympathy for the organisation. This may seem like a stupid statement: how could anyone in their right mind possibly feel sorry for the EDL? But if we cast our minds back to 2009, the year in which BNP leader Nick Griffin appeared on BBC’s Question Time, we can see how other supposed ‘bigots’ were able to make themselves appear hard done-by. Whilst some may argue that Griffin’s appearance only strengthened his negative public image, in actuality, it was something of a Succès de scandale, with 243 of the 416 complaints concerned with the BBC’s supposed bias.
This does not mean that I am directly comparing an Exeter EDL march with a national television event; the amount of exposure generated by a television appearance is obviously greater than that of a protest. But it is important to recognise that by going into town and shouting at the EDL, you aren’t doing anything other than giving them more attention and possibly, if the abuse hurled is almost equally angry, winning them a few more supporters.
Perhaps more importantly, we should question whether a counter-demonstration actually achieved anything? Protesting was not exactly going to ‘convert’ existing EDL supporters to our side: it was only going to strengthen their views as they are presented with something to ‘fight against.’ Similarly, since the general consensus on the English Defence League appears to be that they are ‘bigots’, it seems unlikely that we will be saying anything that has not already been said a thousand times over. Sorry to be so cynical, but I can’t help but wonder whether this counter-demonstration was only set up in order to allow those who attend to say that they went.
But I’ll move away from this tangent, because I actually have a serious point to make. If you really do oppose the EDL that much, then you had every right to march in town on Saturday. But rather than joining the Exeter Together demonstration, it might have been more effective to try walking past the EDL, listening to what they were saying and walking on. Your polite ignorance would probably have done more to damage their credibility than shouting matches ever could have.
Chris Filsell
Did you go out and march against the EDL? Is ignoring them the most effective response? Leave a comment below or write to the Comment team at the Exeposé Comment Facebook Group or on Twitter@CommentExepose.
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