Heartland

I'm surprised no-one's put anything on here about this:

[url=http://twitter.com/chrisalyst]Chris Catalyst[/url] on twitter wrote:The #EDL yesterday smashed in windows of The Well in Leeds, who were hosting an anti-racism gig. Pls RT so all can know their stupidity.

That's "The Well" as in "Joseph's Well", the scene of the 2005 Near Meth Experience gig.

Of course it wasn't yesterday now, it was Saturday, but you get the idea.

It's not as if Leeds isn't well known around the country as being a racist place. Their football team have been endorsing it for years.

moses wrote:It's not as if Leeds isn't well known around the country as being a racist place. There football team have been endorsing it for years.

Post of the year 2011, well known? Sorry didn't get the memo.

I'll give moses the benefit of the doubt, it's certainly true that some elements of the LUFC fan-base are racists, but the same can be said for almost any football team (see here for example). Also there have been BNP councillors in Leeds (notably Chris Beverley for Morley) but again, there are (or have been) BNP councillors in Burnley, Oldham, Tower Hamlets, etc.

not to trivialise the original comment, but certain members of the lufc squad have been known to be racist, never mind their fans

remember the bowyer and woodgate thing a few years ago?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1701493.stm

and not to forget lufc's reputation of on-pitch thuggery earned in the 70s and never quite shaken off...

We call upon Norman Hunter and Purple Light to defend the name of their beloved Leeds.

I've wondered recently after that policeman was exposed as acting as an agent provocateur in that environmental activist group wether there's a few of them in the EDL/BNP. It would explain why when they seem to be getting a head of steam they do something unutterably stupid that destroys even the vaguest sympathy for them.

I think the fascists are perfectly capable of being "unutterably stupid" without any external help.

Oh indeed! I'm just curious why they don't do as well here as they do in the Continent. I don't buy that the British are somehow less racist than the Europeans, although that may be true for all I know.

DeWinter wrote:Oh indeed! I'm just curious why they don't do as well here as they do in the Continent. I don't buy that the British are somehow less racist than the Europeans, although that may be true for all I know.

Some have argued that the English language itself is naturally resistant to such things. Seriously.

sultan2075 wrote: Some have argued that the English language itself is naturally resistant to such things. Seriously.

"The language of irony" theory? I have heard that before, might be some truth in it. The kind of tub-thumping used by them does sound rather ridiculous in English.

weebleswobble wrote:

moses wrote:It's not as if Leeds isn't well known around the country as being a racist place. There football team have been endorsing it for years.

Post of the year 2011, well known? Sorry didn't get the memo.

Elland Road is a much more welcoming place now,compared to the late 80's.I remember going with a mate of mine to see Watford play there,the atmosphere was quite intimidating,especially considering that Leeds had no particular grief with lowly Watford,and on the walk back to the car,skinheads were stood on street corners,openly selling racist newspapers.Been back a few times over the 90's and the last decade as a Nottingham Forest fan,and it is completely different now,much more family friendly,and a lot less openly racist.

Quiff Boy wrote:not to trivialise the original comment, but certain members of the lufc squad have been known to be racist, never mind their fans

remember the bowyer and woodgate thing a few years ago?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1701493.stm

and not to forget lufc's reputation of on-pitch thuggery earned in the 70s and never quite shaken off...

Oh Barry, Barry, Barry...

I wouldn't want to defend Bowyer, Woodgate and his 'friends' involved, they're clearly stupid and odious people, but there's more to this incident than could allow it to be called a racist attack. Apparently the students had been abusing the 'famous footballers' throughout the evening which led to violent 'revenge' outside the club. Brutal, idiotic and unpleasant but hardly seeking out a target on the grounds of race. Indefensible actions clearly though.

Even more indefensible is the reputation of supposed thuggery of the Leeds team in the 70's. This vile myth says more about the hideous nature of a London-biased sporting media than the playing tactics of a team. Leeds was perceived as a grim place in the north in the 70's. It was. With no Beatles, chirpy Geordie TV series, tragic plane crash to create public sympathy or London post-code it clearly had no right to have a successful football team. But it did. Football was a more aggressive sport at the time. All the teams had 'hard' men. That was how it was but Leeds had no more than anyone else. Just make a list. Indeed the violence of Ron 'Chopper' Harris for Chelsea on the sublime Eddie Gray has led to anti Chelsea songs at Elland Road which continue to this day. But to suggest that Leeds were more violent than anyone else and that was how they were successful is nonsense. You don't win so many things just by kicking people. That's both disrespectful and anti-intuitive. Still, never let the truth get in the way eh? If you repeat nonsense over and over enough it becomes the truth right? Occasionally even the media admits this, e.g. a 'When Saturday Comes' article from 1999:

http://www.wsc.co.uk/content/view/4075/29/

Not a popular view amongst those who were never there. Leeds is still seen as grim undeserving place up north. It's not. I love it here.

We have a problem with racism? Why not the raft of problems every damn city in the UK has, to a greater or lesser extent? As I type, I can hear hooting morons throwing bottles down the road. I walked through city centre this afternoon, fending off three garbled requests for money from hyped-up drug addicts, negotiating mobs of over-priviliged hooting students, and cookie-cutter plaid-shirted thick-necked thugs on a lager binge.

This is one godawful problem yes, but it's one plank on a raft of shi sailing down the merry river Britain.

EDL meant nowt to me - I'm clued in now of course, us Weegies prefer oor bigotry a bit more religious