Stand Up to Racism gathering in Paisley
Anti-racism protesters gather for Paisley counter protest in opposition to UK riots. The event, organised by Stand Up to Racism Scotland, involved roughly 200 to 300 anti-racism activists chanting "say it loud and say it clear, refugees are welcome here". One of the refugees was seen putting up a "thank you" banner in a window.
Anti-racism protesters gather for Paisley counter protest in opposition to UK riots. The event, organised by Stand Up to Racism Scotland, involved roughly 200 to 300 anti-racism activists chanting "say it loud and say it clear, refugees are welcome here". One of the refugees was seen putting up a "thank you" banner in a window.
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NewsTranscript
00:00We're here tonight to stand up to racism, to say no to Islamophobia, to say no to anti-semitism
00:11and to say that the far right are not welcome on our streets.
00:15For most of all, refugees are always welcome in Renfrewshire and Nazis are never ever welcome
00:27in Renfrewshire.
00:28My name's Ross, I'm going to be chairing along with Katie, we're both members of Stand
00:34Up To Racism Renfrewshire.
00:37I'm a Unite member, factory worker in the manufacturing branch in the west of Scotland.
00:42Katie's a leading member in the University and Colleges Union at UWS.
00:47But before we bring any speakers in, I just want to talk a bit about the context of tonight.
00:51This is going to be a static and peaceful demonstration against the efforts of local
00:55far right forces who are trying to mobilise to intimidate refugees being housed in this
01:00hotel.
01:03Some of us have had the misfortune to deal with these people before.
01:07They campaigned in Erskine for a number of months, they have a previous record of mobilising
01:11anti-refugee protests and while some of you may not have seen many of this information
01:15about their protests publicly, they've got private networks and private channels that
01:19they've used in the past and we believe they're using tonight to mobilise a demonstration
01:24tonight.
01:25And our goal is to stop them assembling peacefully with the massive people here tonight who oppose
01:30racism.
01:31The likes of Nigel Farage, who of course pretends to distance himself now when there's been
01:40a backlash against the violence, but incited it by questioning whether or not the police
01:46were covering up for terrorist attacks when those little girls were murdered in Southport.
01:53The likes of Tommy Robinson, really known as Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, who from the safe
01:59distance of his hotel, four hundred pounds a night in Cyprus, is egging on people to
02:06attack holiday inn hotels, burning down places where migrants and others and asylum seekers
02:13are afraid of dying, of living, of being burned alive.
02:20Those are the people who incited this violence from a safe distance and it's also a fact
02:25of course.