#ukprotests

#GLAZERS OUT ... #EAT THE RICH?

I went to the protests today, the MUFC fans against the owners of MUFC.  The wider message of “this is our community and we will not have the wealthy outsiders exploit it and take it away from us”.  No wonder people are so drawn to going to the football.  It is the working man’s church, it’s where they go to sing their hymns.  To bond with their fellow man (/woman/human).  To be a part of something bigger than themselves.  To feel at one, in unison.

That is what it is like to go to a protest.  You can just stand there still, in a sea of people and you never want to leave.  You think, ‘what’s a better way to spend my time right now? … go home and watch TV? … no there is nothing … I’m just going to stay here...it’s good right here”. You don’t even have to say anything or speak to anyone.  Just standing there with your fellow man/woman/human, you are doing something.  You feel a part of something bigger than yourself.  It’s hard to take yourself away, it’s so easy to get carried away with it all.

The throwing and smashing of glass bottles though, maybe felt a bit unnecessary.  Maybe felt a bit too much.  Looking around at the 16-20 year old kids, laughing, missile flinging, swearing with aggression.  Maybe they are here for the wrong reason, maybe.  But they are here, as a force.   The fact that 90% of protesters came with their own booze, is that really protesting then?  Sainsburys plastic bags at their feet with crates of Stella Artois inside, cans in hand. 

Then the waves of people rushing back, “what’s going on down there…why are people running away?”. People retreating with speed and haste, bit of fear mixed in there.  Can’t see over the heads though.  More beer bottles and cans throwing and more chanting.  Bit more time and more people running back.  Then you can see what’s going on, it’s the police gradually gaining ground and then holding their lines.  Pushing the protesters back with grand authority.  More people running.  More bottles flying.  Those guys fuming, arms out wide shouting and gesticulating right in the polices face.

That’s when I realised that there were some people here that were not acting in the right way.  The look in some of the police officers eyes, there was pain and grievance in them.  They were all stood there, holding their lines, with their batons ready to go. Some with regret on their face. Others, the more riot trained police, running at the protesters looking to create more retreat, batons placed with intent.  That’s when I realized that some of the police are perhaps antagonizing the protesters.

The police had gained a lot of ground and forced a lot of the protesters back, thinking about where they were all gathered earlier.  Would this not create some kind of fight-back, some kind of response or retaliation from those protesting? Aggression greeting aggression.  Fire and fire and that.  Why did the police have to force people back?  Perhaps the bottle throwing or perhaps something else.