The New Synagogue in Stamford Hill, Hackney. Original photo: Chris Whippet (CC BY-SA 2.0)
An antisemitic demonstration by a small group of neo-Nazis in the predominantly Jewish area of Stamford Hill was met by a much larger counter-demonstration on Saturday afternoon.
Saturday’s demonstration was reportedly organised by Eddie Stamton, a prominent British Nazi who is reported to have been a member of the British National Party (BNP) and the neo-Nazi organisations the National Front and Combat 18. The demonstrators are believed to have included members of Britain First and the former head of the National Front, Martin Webster.
Anti-fascist activists and locals assembled to oppose the demonstration, greatly outnumbering those taking part in the antisemitic “protest”. One banner carried by the far-right demonstrators read “equal rights for indigenous whites”.
Home to one of the largest Hasidic Jewish populations in Europe, Stamford Hill has been a recent focal point for incidents of antisemitism. An antisemitic “Liberate Stamford Hill” rally was planned to take place in March but subsequently abandoned due to lack of support.
Following the demonstration, a Twitter user named Hackney Muslims tweeted in support of the Stamford Hill Jewish community:
@ShomrimOfficial on the day your team cant (understandably) watch our backs… we all got yours #Hackney #demo #stamfordhill
— Hackney Muslims (@HackneyMuslims) April 18, 2015
Shomrim is a voluntary organisation whose members patrol Jewish communities “to combat quality-of-life nuisance crimes.”
