The media is full of it, yesterdays' EDL demo in Bradford that is, the reporting is all of the same vein - negative and showing as much violence as it can - this was predictable.

I do not claim that there is no violent element in the ranks of the EDL, there are bound to be those elements in any disparate organization , however that being said  we must look at the scenario that was constructed by the Police for the arrival of the EDL protesters.

The scene was set by the police and managed by the police.

The EDL marchers were herded into a compound, a compound of limited space, this was done to prevent any clashes between the EDL and the UAF.

Very few images of the UAF are shown in the media coverage - the images are all of EDL protesters - why is this?

Violence was inevitable primarily because the EDL had been kettled, this blocking off of all normal human amenities such as toilets does not make for a peaceful march.

Secondly the close proximity of the marchers of the EDL to each other will have produced responses within the marchers themselves that arise because of the invasion of their personal space. This can lead to violence.

It is a normal response to want to escape close confinement - to re-establish your own personal space, we have all seen the effects when people are crowded together and they start to feel threatened and anxious - they want out the most tragic example of this was the Hillsborough disaster.

You may ask - why does aggression  happen to a lesser degree in mass marches - people in mass marches can remove themselves at any time from the mass of other people, secondly as we can control who we have in close proximity  to ourselves thus surrendering our personal space for a short time, and then when felt necessary expanding it  to a more comfortable zone  by moving and creating more individual space.

When people are confined or kettled none of the above apply - the people cannot remove themselves from the invasive crowding - agitation will start - frustrations will mount and violence will happen.

The press photographed the breakout of the EDL from the paddock they were contained in, ALL photos were taken in such a way to show or give the impression that the streets were full of rioters, All photos were close in and tight to the subject thus giving the viewer no sense of scale, the camera does lie - quite often.

The above does not mean that the EDL were totally blameless in this instance, but the cards were stacked against them from the start, they walked into a situation that was engineered to produce a violent aggressive response, they must learn to avoid this, they must also take firm control over those whose primary aim is violence.

Future marches MUST be choreographed, they must be led, clear instructions given to the marchers and the marchers must be made aware of the effects on them of being confined in small spaces against their will.

Above all the EDL must take the protest to a higher level, the intellectual battle has to be engaged, their spokesmen must be prepared for the press.

I personally commend the EDL for their actions against Islam and all it entails, I can understand the frustrations that some of the marchers feel and these frustrations then boiling over into violence - I can understand it, but those emotions MUST be controlled otherwise credibility will disappear. The EDL MUST rid themselves of any kind of reference to the NAZI mindset, fascist salutes are not welcome in the UK, too many people died in order to stop that very thing

Here is one coverage out of many , please note how close in the photographs are and equally as important the selective subject matter:-

I have included some of the comments made on this article

Bottles, stones and smoke bomb hurled during English Defence League demonstration in Bradford

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 6:40 PM on 28th August 2010

• Five people arrested as police erect barricade

Violence broke out today at a controversial city centre demonstration by far-right group the English Defence League.

EDL supporters threw bottles, cans, stones and three smoke bombs at opponents gathered in Bradford, West Yorkshire.

Nearly 100 supporters of the far-right group then climbed over a temporary eight-foot barricade - aimed at keeping them inside the city's Urban Gardens - to get on to neighbouring waste ground from where they threw missiles at police.

Share this article:

Read more :