‘Racist’ thugs were filmed hurling shocking abuse at Black Lives Matter protestors in Hertfordshire yesterday, with one man shouting: ‘Go back to Africa’.
The footage was recorded in the town of Hoddesdon as around 300 peaceful protestors gathered to demonstrate against the death of George Floyd in America and racism in society.
They gathered by the Clock Tower in the town’s centre, holding signs and chanting ‘No justice, no peace’ while appearing to maintain social distancing.
However, they were met by a horde of angry locals, who numbered around 200 and hurled abuse at them.
In shocking scenes, the counter-demonstrators swore and threatened the Black Lives Matter protestors, with one telling them to ‘go back to Africa’.
Others hurled a string of foul-mouthed curses and even seemed to challenge the activists to fights.
Black Lives Matter protestors in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire were met by furious locals who hurled abuse at them
A particularly furious thug was taken aside by police and spoken to but told the officer ‘don’t you even think about it’.
The Black Lives Matter protestors appeared to be made up of young people, with a large number of young women.
The counter-demonstrators were heard chanting: ‘Get your t**s out for the lads.’
They also shouted that the protests were because KFC was closed because of the coronavirus lockdown, a reference to the racist stereotype that black people enjoy fried chicken.
The event organisers posted a message on their Instagram page after the event that read: ‘Thank you to everyone who came out and protested today.
‘Though we had to directly face racists who tried to discredit our efforts, together we showed solidarity, letting Hoddesdon know that #blacklivesmatter.’
Some protestors also reported that the counter-demonstrators made Nazi salutes, though this wasn’t captured on film.
One protestor said: ‘They were saying, ‘go back to your own country’, ‘go back to your rock’, there were Nazi salutes, ‘you’re not welcome here’,’educate yourself’, ‘you’re only here because we allowed you to come here’ – that narrative the whole time.’
Around 300 peaceful protestors gathered to demonstrate against the death of George Floyd in America and racism in society in Hoddesdon
The Black Lives Matter protestors appeared to be made up of young people, with a large number of young women
Demi-Leigh Sheahan attended the protest: ‘Personally, what I find so disgusting and frightening about these videos is, firstly, that ending racism has somehow become a controversial topic.
‘Regardless whether you support the riots or not, I would find it hard to believe that you would be comfortable with a fully grown adult man shouting ‘get your t**s out’ at your daughter, mother, sister, friend or even just anyone you know.’
Hertfordshire Police did not make any arrests at the protest, though they are currently looking at some of the ugly scenes from the demonstration that have been shared on social media.
The angry locals claimed they were attempting to protect the town’s war memorial after seeing statues defaced in other protests across the UK.
However, there is no indication that the protestors planned to damage the memorial, with organisers insisting the demonstration was peaceful.
They were met by a horde of angry locals, who numbered around 200 and hurled abuse at them
Hertfordshire Police did not make any arrests at the protest, though they are currently looking at some of the ugly scenes from the demonstration
This woman was stunned after hearing someone yell ‘Go back to Africa’ at the protestors
Speaking ahead of the demonstration, Zain, one of the organisers, said: ‘We wanted to show solidarity within Hertfordshire as well as bringing other black people and others in Hertfordshire together. It’s to show that in the UK there are still issues that black people are facing.
‘It’s important as, while we’re facing a pandemic, there’s still also the risk of being killed as a black person – we’re facing two pandemics.
‘I think the main issues are that it’s not as blatant here [in Hertfordshire]. So people will sometimes make comments that are ignorant or that they don’t realise are racist to say.
‘The people here don’t know because it’s a predominantly white area so they don’t realise how that actually affects people.
‘I’d like to see more education on this because one thing that we have noticed is that so many people are unaware of what is even going on in this country.
‘We need to make sure people stay educated on these issues and that it’s made more apparent. People will say ‘oh it’s a multicultural society’ but they don’t look at the darker side of things.
‘It should be made one of the main things we study in history in schools.
‘Some schools offer a brief African history as an option but it’s not pushed enough and making it one of the main focuses on the curriculum would be really useful.’