Exposing The English Defence League's racist and violent nature, with panache and humour.

The English Defence League claim they are a protest movement against radical Islam within the UK and that is their only concern.

Yet anyone with any knowledge of the English Defence League will know that they are in fact a very racist and violent movement and that they do not oppose radical Islamists but all the followers of Islam.

Yet they and others often claim that this simple truth is indeed a lie.

If only there was a way to monitor the racist and violent nature of this so called “protest” group.

Well unfortunately for the EDL that has been going on for some time, as a Facebook group was created with this very objective in mind. 

Which was to expose the racism and hatred of the members and supporters of the EDL and any other such like idiots.

And they have exposed it again and again and again and again etc.

This group has now decided to create a Blog to share their activity with the world.

And we are more than happy to recommend that anyone and everyone follow their Blog, their Facebook group and Twitter account to view the EDL’s bigotry and the incredible stupidity that many of their member’s demonstrate.

Honestly some of the things these people post should carry a stupidity health warning.  

So here’s the link to the great new blog. And below it are the links to their Facebook page and their Twitter account.

A twitter account that is a “must follow” link to have when any EDL demos are occurring.

Exposing The English Defence League Blog

Exposing intolerance and racism online XVI,   Their Facebook group.

Exposingtweets,     Their Twitter account.


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Threats over 'neo Nazi' baby in Germany

A spat over the president becoming honorary godfather to the seventh baby of parents with far-right sympathies in an eastern German village escalated on Monday after neo-Nazis threatened the mayor.

Lalendorf Mayor Reinhard Knaack, who is from the far-left Die Linke party, had refused to give a certificate to the family that was sent by President Christian Wulff's office in Berlin last week.

Police said that around 10 people, many of them known to authorities as belonging to the far-right scene, illegally entered Knaack's garden on Sunday, a police spokesperson said. Knaack was unharmed.

"The mayor phoned us and we went round," spokesperson Volker Werner said. "Appropriate measures have now been agreed with the mayor and charges of trespassing have been laid."

After World War II, West Germany did away with the Nazis' practice of awarding a "Mother's Cross" to women who provided multiple offspring for the Third Reich.

But in 1949, after the founding of the post-war republic, it established a new honour, the president's honorary godfather award, for any family having seven children. Since then, 76 440 such awards have been bestowed.

Wulff's office last week defended his decision to persist with the tradition in the case of Petra and Marc Mueller, saying that it was the child that counted.

Wulff has since sent the award, which also comes with €500, directly to the family, reports said.

The father of the child reportedly works for a "eugenics institute" while the mother belongs to a far-right women's group.

Norbert Nieszery, an MP in the state parliament, has written a letter - signed by lawmakers from other parties - to the president, just back from Israel, supporting the mayor and calling on Wulff to change his mind.

The former communist east of Germany is generally poorer than the west, with considerably higher rates of unemployment, and in recent years has proved a fertile ground for the far right.

News 24

Ex-Nazi admits to Holocaust role says investigator - longtime Nazi hunters disagree with claims (USA)

A private investigator says he posed as a neo-Nazi to get a surviving SS officer to admit signing the order that started the Holocaust.

Bernhard Frank, 97, was caught on tape saying he signed the 1941 document that is widely credited with laying the groundwork for Hitler's "final solution."

"He had no signs of remorse. He was proud. He said it was necessary and blamed the Jews," investigator Mark Gould said at a New York news conference announcing a lawsuit against Frank.

Leading Nazi hunters question the claim, saying it has long been known that Frank, a linguist, signed the document - but only to confirm its language conformed with Nazi ideology.

"He's attributed with far more responsibility and criminal guilt than he actually deserves," said Efraim Zuroff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

NY Daily News

Teacher who said child was 'white trash' convicted of race crime (UK)

 Jane Turner intervened in a heated argument between a group of children near a school to help end it.

However, during the dispute a parent of one of the children reported hearing her say: “Go and play with your own little white friends, you’re nothing but white trash.”

After she was reported to police, Mrs Turner initially denied using the phrase but later admitted she had said “white trash” and has since apologised.

Mrs Turner was working at Moseley School, a specialist language college in Birmingham, when the incident took place almost 20 miles away.

She was convicted at Halesowen Magistrates Court of an offence of using racially threatening words or behaviour likely to cause harassment or distress.

She was made subject of a community order for one year with a requirement to carry out 80 hours of unpaid work and was ordered to pay compensation of £50.

The General Teaching Council also investigated and yesterday announced its conclusions, criticising her for “unacceptable professional conduct” but stopping short of suspending her from teaching over the incident which took place in April 2009.

The GTC committee reported: “Mrs Turner witnessed a dispute between a group of young people near school premises, more than 20 miles from the school in which Mrs Turner taught.

“Mrs Turner intervened in the dispute and in the heat of the moment was observed by a parent of one of the other children saying: “Go and play with your own little white friends, you’re nothing but white trash.”

“Mrs Turner accepts that making a comment like this amounts to unprofessional conduct.

“Mrs Turner accepts that her words on this occasion may have been perceived as racist and that it is entirely inappropriate for a Registered Teacher to make such a comment.

“The Committee agrees. A registered teacher must demonstrate respect for diversity and promote equality. Conviction of an offence of this type brings the profession into disrepute.

“Although the offence was not committed in the vicinity of the school where Mrs Turner was teaching at that time, her behaviour set a very bad example for the schoolchildren who were present at the time.”

The GTC committee said that it took into account that she was of previous good character and that, while she was not at first willing to accept what she had done, she was now “genuinely sorry”.

It added that she told the police that, at the time of the incident, she was worried about the health of a relation.

The committee also noted that her head teacher at the time had not found it necessary to take any further action within the school.

The findings say that in other circumstances a much more severe sanction would have been appropriate, but that having regard to all the mitigating circumstances of the case, the committee considers that the appropriate and proportionate response was a reprimand, which will remain on Mrs Turner’s professional registration for two years.

Mrs Turner has a right of appeal to the High Court within 28 days.

The Telegraph

TOP DUTCH POLITICIAN: JEWS SHOULD EMIGRATE TO ISRAEL OR U.S. (Netherlands)

A prominent Dutch politician sparked a heated debate in the Netherlands this week by saying practicing Jews had “no future here, and should emigrate to the U.S. or Israel.” The statement made by Frits Bolkestein, former European Commissioner and ex-leader of Holland's ruling rightist VVD party, was published in the recently released book Het Verval (The Decline), written by Manfred Gerstenfeld, a Netherlands-raised Holocaust survivor and senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. Bolkstein backed up his statement by saying that the increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the Netherlands over the past decade had led him to have limited confidence in the ability of the government to fight anti-Semitism.

Bolkstein came under fire for his comment, including from members of the three-party coalition led by his own faction. Geert Wilders, the leader of the anti-Islam Party for Freedom, reacted by saying that “not Jews should emigrate, but anti-Semitic Moroccans.” In his book, Gerstenfeld examines the attitude of the Dutch Protestant Church toward Jews and claims that anti-Semitism is not restricted to people of Muslim background in the Netherlands. He cites as an example Gretta Duisenberg, a friend of the Dutch queen and pro-Palestinian, who recently told a Dutch newspaper that she was “almost proud to be called anti-Semitic.” Mirjam Sterk of the Christian Democrat party - the third partner of the current coalition – took a less reactionary stance, but also decried the remarks, saying: “The concerns are great but [emigration] is not the solution.”

The Netherlands has a Jewish community of roughly 40,000 people. According to a report by the Dutch police from September, the country has seen 209 discriminatory incidents targeting its Jews in 2009 - a 48-percent increase compared to 2008. Femke Halsema of the Green Party questioned Bolkestein’s sanity after she heard the remarks. Ronny Naftaniel, head of CIDI – the largest watchdog on anti-Semitism in the Netherlands – said this was not the first time Bolkestein has expressed this view. “It’s a warning, and this may be a reality if society and the government fail to act on anti-Semitism,” Naftaniel said. “But it’s too fatalistic – Jews and non-Jews need to fight against intolerance.” He described Bolkestein as “a friend of Israel.” Gerstenfeld said Bolkestein was “attentive to the Netherlands’ Jewish population.” Frits Bolkestein was political leader of the current ruling party VVD between 1990 en 1998. He later served as European Commissioner from 1999 until 2004.

Haaretz

FAR-RIGHT PARTY'S ACTIVITY SUSPENDED IN COURT (Czech Rep.)

The Czech Supreme Administrative Court (NSS) has suspended the activities of the far-right Association for the Republic-Republican Party of Czechoslovakia (SPR-RSC), as proposed by the government, CTK has found on its web page. The NSS has not yet disclosed the reasons for the ruling. Suspension is the first step toward dissolution. The SPR-RSC was established in December 1989. In 1992-1998 it was represented in parliament. It was headed by Miroslav Sladek. The SPR-RSC were notorious with extremist rhetoric and parliamentary obstructions. After the SPR-RSC failed to get into parliament in the 1998 elections, it was in financial dire straits. In February 2001, it was adjudged bankrupt. Even before this, its active members joined another party, called Miroslav Sladek's Republicans (RMS). In February 2008, the NSS suspended the activities of the RMS and the original SPR-RSC, again headed by Sladek, resumed its work. In the May 2010 elections to the Chamber of Deputies, the SPR-RSC received 0.03 percent of votes.

Prague Monitor

Racist onslaught puts paid to Poles' Capital bar dream (UK)

Two Polish women have told how they were forced to give up running an Edinburgh bar because of a sustained campaign of racist abuse.

Anna Brudnowska, 28, and Ewa Aromanowicz, 31, said they endured persistent taunting, abuse and intimidation during their 18-month stint at the helm of the former PRL bar in Bonnington Road.

The business partners claim they were plagued by up to 20 threatening phone calls per day - some making reference to gas chambers and the Holocaust. In the most extreme incident last year, a man shouting abuse smashed the bar with a hammer.

Trade suffered so badly as a result, the pair said they had to cut their losses and end their three-year lease early in September.

"In the beginning the business was going well because we had done a major refurbishment and we were trying to open a nice new bar for customers," said Ewa. "We had managed to do that but soon we were being hassled on a regular basis.

"On busy nights, like Friday and Saturday, we were being phoned constantly and the verbal abuse we got was horrific.

"We received calls with people pretending to be from Scottish Gas, saying there was a special offer for Polish people where they had two gas chambers for the price of one."

The licensees said they suspected most of the abuse stemmed from one family, who were "very unhappy that there was a Polish place there".

"Every busy night we had, I knew there would be a problem with them calling or trying to fight the customers," said Ewa.

Ms Brudnowska, who was co-manager at PRL - which has now been relaunched as Foxes Bar - said she feared the Polish community had become a target. "It seemed like many people around Leith felt upset that there were more Polish people around. It was very upsetting but, because of that, we could not run our business.

"Edinburgh can be quite small in a way and if people hear that there may be knives and hammers flying about, they don't want to go there. Since that (hammer] incident, it all went downhill. I'm sure we were not welcome in the area."

A police spokesman said: "Lothian and Borders Police can confirm that inquiries were carried out in 2009 following incidents of a racial nature at a bar in Bonnington Road.

"A 37-year-old man was arrested and charged with alleged vandalism and weapon offences following an incident within the premises.

"In total, three reports of vandalism at the property on Bonnington Road have been made this year.

Two of these have been solved, while enquiries are ongoing in relation to the third incident."

The Iona Pub Partnership, which owns over 20 pubs across Scotland, including the former PRL Bar, could not be reached for comment.

Scotsman

RACIST SHAME’ OF OUR TOP TWO UNIVERSITIES (UK)

Britain's top two universities were accused of entrenched ­discrimination yesterday after it was revealed that 21 Oxbridge colleges took no British black students last year.

Admission figures for Oxford showed that one black Briton of Caribbean descent out of 35 applicants was accepted as an undergraduate in 2009.

Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by Labour MP David Lammy also highlight that Oxford’s Merton College has not taken a single UK domiciled black student for five years and just three in the past decade. Six black British Caribbean undergraduates were accepted by Cambridge last autumn.

Eleven of Oxford’s 38 colleges and 10 out of Cambridge’s 31 ­colleges made no offers to British black students last year. Of the 1,500 academic and lab staff at Cambridge, none is of British black origin. Mr Lammy accused Oxbridge of “entrenching inequa­lity instead of addressing it”.

Former Commission for Racial Equality chairman Lord Herman Ouseley said: “It’s a disgrace it still goes on in the 21st century. It’s a waste of talent and a denial of opportunity.”

Both universities denied any ­discrimination.

The Express

GREEK HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS ACQUITTED (Greece)

Three Greek human rights activists on trial for speaking out against judges who had acquitted a Holocaust-denying ultranationalist politician were acquitted. A three-judge panel on Monday unanimously found for the activists from the AntiNazi Initiative, an Athens-based group founded in 1997 that fights hate in Greek society. The activists were on trial Monday for speaking out against the judges who acquitted Kostas Plevris, an open admirer of National Socialism who was found guilty by a Greek court in 2007 of incitement to racial hatred based on statements in his book "Jews: The Whole Truth," but was later acquitted by an appeals court in a verdict that was upheld by the Greek Supreme Court. The president of the Athens Jewish community, Benjamin Albala, a member of the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece, expressed his satisfaction with ruling in favor of the activists. "The outcome shows that the brave human rights activists of the AntiNazi Initiative were right when claiming that in the previous trial some court officials were biased," Albala said.

One of the appellate court judges who had acquitted Plevris, Marianthi Pagouteli, has published anti-Semitic remarks on her blog, according to the Greek daily newspaper Elefterotypia, including "f. Jews I wish Hitler had exterminated you completely." The prosecutor's office in Athens started legal action against the Greek AntiNazi Initiative for publicly denouncing certain judges who had participated in the proceedings against Plevris. The AntiNazi Initiative organization, the Greek Helsinki Monitor and the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece had sued Plevris for incitement to racial hatred and violence against the Jews. Plevris sued senior representatives of the Greek Jewish community, several journalists and human rights activists for libel. World Jewish organizations protested vehemently to the United Nations following the Greek Supreme Court's ruling in favor of Plevris, the founder and leader of two nationalist parties. The U.N. in a letter to the Greek government asked for an explanation of the ruling.

JTA

Revealed: 15 become hate crime victims each day in Greater Manchester (UK)

Fifteen people a day become victims of hate crimes in Greater Manchester, new figures reveal.

Police have released the data which is based on a broader definition and includes crimes against disabled, gay and transgender people, and other minority groups.

A total of 5,348 hate crimes were recorded in Greater Manchester last year – accounting for 10.5 per cent of incidents recorded by 44 forces throughout England and Wales.

They included 4,406 racially-motivated crimes and 359 motivated by religion – the highest in the country outside London.

But the number of race-hate crimes actually represented a drop of 12pc on the previous year.

GMP also recorded 497 homophobic crimes, 12 ‘transphobic’ crimes, and 74 against disabled people.

While most other forces recorded no anti-Semitic crimes, GMP dealt with 198.

Senior GMP sources said the figures, released by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), reflected Greater Manchester’s diversity and the seriousness of the force’s approach to hate crime.

Deputy Chief Constable Simon Byrne said: “It is encouraging to see that the number of racist incidents in Greater Manchester has fallen by nearly 12pc in the past year.

“Racially motivated crime is wholly abhorrent in all its forms and GMP vigorously investigates all allegations of hate crime, irrespective of the ethnic heritage of the victim or offender, so I would encourage anyone who is a victim of racism to report it.

“All 12 police areas in Greater Manchester have a Community and Race Relations Officer who liaises with their local communities to encourage reporting.

“Victims can also report any incidents through the GMP website or at one of the many reporting centres in outside agencies.”

Chief Constable Stephen Otter, from ACPO, said: “Hate crimes cause a great deal of harm.

By publishing this data, and demonstrating the service’s commitment to open reporting of hate crime,we hope to encourage victims and witnesses to come forward.”

MenMedia

Pizza Hut accused of racism after black footballers asked to pay up front (UK)

Pizza Hut was accused of racism yesterday after asking a group of black professional footballers to pay in advance for their meals.

The demand was made as a table of white youngsters seated nearby were allowed to settle up after eating.

Five AFC Bournemouth players were stunned when a duty manager told them to pay up front because of “the way you lot look”.

When they refused, staff claimed they were being “disruptive” and called the police.

Officers arrived at the restaurant but took no action after the players, including £2,000-a-week first-team regulars Anton Robinson, Liam Feeney and Marvin Bartley, agreed to leave.

Pizza Hut last night apologised to the League One stars and admitted they had been treated “very shabbily” but insisted there was no racism.

However, midfielder Mr Robinson, 24, said later: “The only thing that was different was the colour of our skins.”

Revealing his outrage on Facebook, he added: “I asked ‘has anyone else had to pay before they eat?’. He replied ‘no, but it’s the way you lot look’. I was gonna tear the place up but then it would just prove that he was right not to give us our food. The fact we left without even raising our voices will count against him.”

And Mr Bartley, 23, fumed: “It was 100 per cent a race issue. If it wasn’t then I would like to know what it was.” He said the manager told them he was asking them to pay because some people had earlier run off without doing so.

The defender added: “There was a bigger group of white lads aged about 17 and 18 in there and I asked if they had to pay and he said he wasn’t going to answer that.

“I went over and asked the group myself whether they had to pay in advance and they said they hadn’t.

“We were smartly dressed in jeans and jumpers or cardigans and the other group wore tracksuits and hooded tops.

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“I asked if it was because we were black and he again said he wasn’t going to answer and we would have to pay or he would call the police.

“I told him to call them as we hadn’t done anything wrong. The police turned up and asked us what had happened. One officer spoke to the other customers and asked them how we had behaved and everybody was fine with us. Some of the lads went somewhere else but I lost my appetite and went home.”

The group, also including another black player Mitchell Nelson, 21, and white team-mate Shaun Cooper, 27, had gone to Pizza Hut for lunch last Thursday.

Midfielder Mr Feeney, 23, commented: “The fact that there were other groups of white lads younger than us who weren’t asked to pay in advance didn’t really leave anything else for it to be.”

Their treatment has sparked anger among anti-racism groups.

Alison Vaughan, of football campaign group Kick It Out, said: “We would expect that such a high-profile company would ensure all staff are fully trained on issues of equality.”

And Dorset Race Equality Council boss Adnan Chaudry said: “If Pizza Hut is saying that it wasn’t racially motivated then I find that incredible.”

A football club spokesman said: “In this day and age, it is upsetting to hear that people are treated differently because of the colour of their skin.”

But a Pizza Hut spokesman insisted the incident was not racist.

He added: “We have had a spate of customers leaving without paying so were advised by the police to ask people to pay for their meal before dining.

“We have been doing this at our discretion, and in this case the situation was poorly handled. We have contacted the customers concerned to apologise for any offence caused.”

Daily Mirror

Greek police arrest six for suspected terrorist links

Greek police arrested six people on suspicion of having links with terrorism after a series of raids across the country.

The five men and a woman, aged between 21 and 30, were detained after police uncovered a haul of weapons, police chief Lefteris Oikonomou told a press briefing on Sunday.

Two of the individuals arrested were wanted for alleged connections with the left-wing group Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei. The organization is believed to be responsible for a series of parcel bombs sent to international embassies and European leaders, including Chancellor Angela Merkel and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, last month.

The first two suspects were detained on Saturday after officers found three Kalashnikov assault rifles, semi-automatic guns, handguns, grenades and explosives - along with stolen car license plates, face hoods and wigs - in a basement garage just outside Athens.

Further arrests were later made around Athens, the central town of Agrinio and on the island of Crete.

Counter-terrorism police said the weapons were typical of those used by the left-wing guerrilla group Sect of Revolutionaries which has claimed responsibility for the murder in July of Sokratis Giolas, a prominent investigative journalist. However, early ballistics tests revealed no link with extremist activity.

Sect surfaced after shooting of teenager

The Sect of Revolutionaries first came to notice after serious rioting in Greece following the death of teenager Alexis Grigoropoulos, who was hit by a police bullet in December 2008.

Greece has a long history of domestic terrorism, with more than 40 people killed in attacks in the last three decades.

Greece briefly halted the sending of mail and parcels abroad after a package addressed to Merkel arrived at the chancellery office in Berlin.

Another package, addressed to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, was discovered on board a plane at Bologna Airport.

DW-World

Churchmen unite to blast the BNP (uk)

Church leaders in South Derbyshire have joined forces to condemn the British National Party (BNP) ahead of its annual conference being held at a secret location in the district at the weekend.

The political party is staging the event from December 10 to 12 at an as yet undisclosed, ‘firstclass venue’ in the area.

Despite widespread speculation circulating in the area, details about the exact location remain unconfirmed, with the BNP refusing to disclose its choice of venue for ‘security reasons’.

In a letter sent to the Mail leaders of eight churches in the area have signed a joint declaration to make it clear they are having nothing to do with the conference and do not support the party’s actions in any way.

The letter states: “We reject their claim to speak for Christians, as an affront to our beliefs and a danger to the unity of our whole community.

“We wish to affirm our belief that all human beings are created equal and to encourage everyone to join with us in working to build a society where that is fundamental.”

The letter was signed by Rev Jane Webb, chairman of Churches Together in Gresley, Swadlincote and

District, Major Anthony Clifton from the Salvation Army, Rev David Horsfall for Swadlincote parish, Rev Ian Hunter, Rector for Hartshorne and Bretby parishes, Rev David Perrett, vicar of Church Gresley parish, Rev Lesley de Pomerai, vicar for Walton on Trent, Linton and Castle Gresley, Croxhall and Rosliston parishes, along with Rev Sue Rolls, Superintendent Minister for Methodist Circuit, and Teresa Tilley, the leader of Gresley Mission Room.

John Ryde, a spokesman for the British National Party East Midlands region, who refused to reveal the exact location — but confirmed it will be held in the area, said: “We respect the views of these church leaders, but then again, I want to ask them to respect our views and opinions which is what Christians are supposed to do any way.”

 The event was described in a letter, posted on the BNP website to ‘fellow patriots’ by leader Nick Griffin, as ‘a spectacular combination of political speeches, audio-visual displays, training, policy debates, stalls and entertainment, all within a four-star venue complete with restaurant, bar and a whole range of suitable accommodation to fit your needs’.

A spokesman for Derbyshire Police said: “We are not aware of the conference venue at this time and we are still trying to engage with the BNP to find out if it will be taking place in South Derbyshire.”

Burton and Stafordshire news

INTEGRATING STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES IN GERMAN SCHOOLS STILL A BATTLE

When Marcel was old enough to start school, his mother picked out one of the public elementary schools in their neighborhood for him. The school, however, said he couldn't attend. Why? They said they weren't set up to deal with a kid in a wheelchair. For decades that's the way it was in Germany. Children with disabilities were sent to separate schools, each one specialized for a different disability. That is all set to change now that Germany has ratified a United Nations resolution that says that all children with disabilities have a right to be educated at a regular school. It's set to be a long process. Currently the majority of German children with disabilities don't go to regular schools. So far the city-state of Bremen is the only German state to open all its schools to everyone. In North Rhine-Westphalia, where Marcel lives, that could be a long way off, although he did eventually find a spot in what is called an integrated or inclusive school. "We had a hard struggle with the administration," his mother told Deutsche Welle, "because I didn't want him to go to those special schools for the handicapped. I wanted him to go to a normal school with all his friends from the neighborhood and I didn't want him to be separated from real life." Marcel's mother said she's convinced that if she hadn't put up such a fight and even threatened to take the school district to court he would never have been given a spot in one of the few schools in the area that teaches the disabled and the non-disabled together.

Still not an option at many schools
The elementary school that refused to accept Marcel years ago still doesn't take kids with disabilities, saying on its website that "because this is not an integration school, we cannot support children with disabilities and therefore we cannot accept them." The school is an old, brick building in a Bonn neighborhood peppered with half-timber cottages with green shutters. Inside the school, a wide staircase winds its way up four flights of stairs. At the very top the school principal, Jutta Fremerey, has her office. "We can't take kids in wheelchairs, just because of the building," said Fremerey. "And there are lots of buildings in Germany where it wouldn't be possible. At least not yet." Fremerey was not the principal when Marcel tried to attend. She said she supports the idea of having children with disabilities in the same classroom as children without disabilities in theory, but that a lot needs to change before that would be feasible nationwide. She would need at least two teachers per class, she said, and one of them would have to be specially trained for teaching disabled children. She said she'd need small extra rooms where kids could get more personal attention and all of the lessons would have to be adapted for each of the children with disabilities. "Because there are lots and lots of totally different types of disabilities and everyone needs something different," Fremerey said. "The blind child needs something completely different from the child who can't hear. The mentally disabled child needs completely different conditions than a child with emotional or social problems. Those different requirements need to be addressed." According to Anne Waldschmidt, a professor of disability studies at the University of Cologne, that kind of differentiation should be expected of a teacher. "Integration or inclusion means more personalized ways of teaching … to differentiate the subjects and the topics and to give every child the chance to learn according to personality and to individual interests and at their own pace," she said. "So that means the whole atmosphere is more individualized and that there isn't a standard approach."

Three adults in the classroom
Marcel's school, which is also in Bonn, has the manpower to do just that. In addition to the various subject-matter teachers that teach his class math, German, English or history, a special education teacher is also present all day long. Bringing the number of adults in the classroom to three is Marcel's attendant, who only occasionally has to get Marcel a book he needs but can spend the rest of the time helping other kids in the class one-on-one. Marcel is totally integrated into his class, his special education teacher Daniel Mays said, as are the five students with learning disabilities. "Being with the other kids, it gives you the feeling of just being normal," Marcel said. His classmate May said she doesn't forget that Marcel is in a wheelchair, but that it doesn't make much of a difference in their friendship. "I think it's like with anybody else," she said. "When I'm with other guys I act the same way." Despite these successes only two of six classes in each grade at the school are integrated and it is not required to take on more disabled children.

Slow progress
Germany may officially be on board with bringing differently abled children together, but it still has a relatively low rate of integration. According to the European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education, only about 15 percent of children with disabilities are educated in a regular classroom in Germany. In neighboring France and Poland, for example, it's about 31 percent and 46 percent, respectively. According to Mays, who has done his own statistical analysis for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, any recent increase to Germany's level of integration is undone by the fact that more and more children who already attend regular schools are being identified as having a disability, usually a learning or emotional disability. At the same time Germans are having fewer children than in the past and the number of pupils drops each year. "Now we have the UN convention for the rights of people with disabilities and Germany ratified it a year ago. We have to change our system into an inclusive system," Marcel's mother said. "But no one is willing, really willing to do it. There are several examples like this school here. They've been doing it for many years. But it's just two classes per grade level that do integration. Why isn't it all of them?"





dw-world

Mosque arson arrest teenagers bailed (UK)

Three teenagers arrested following an arson attempt in which a gas pipe was fed through a mosque window have been released on bail.

The incident in Stoke-on-Trent is being treated by police as a deliberate racist attack.

Officers were called to Regent Road at 0630 GMT on Friday after CCTV footage showed smoke emerging from inside the building.

A fourth teenager who was arrested faces no further action.

Police said inquiries were continuing although a forensic investigation had now ended.

"A number of items have been secured by police scenes of crimes officers which will now undergo a series of forensic tests to recover any further evidence which could help identify the persons responsible," a spokesman said.

BBC News

Welsh Defence League links with neo-Nazis are unmasked (UK)

Two admitted involvement in racist violence at demonstrations organised by the defence leagues in other parts of the country.

One invited other WDL followers to join him in burning a Koran and joked online about how best to kill black people.

Another talks about driving Muslims out of the south Wales valleys.

Examining the evidence in the special programme, Judge Mark Powell QC said: "It's mindless, its racist, the purpose of what they are doing is to inflame racial hatred…I think from what you have shown me it is criminal behaviour and no doubt something that the police would want to look at."

Shadow Welsh Secretary Peter Hain, who has campaigned for years against racist groups, said: "I think every mainstream politician in Wales, wherever they are based, should make it a priority to talk to young people to explain the WDL is in a long line that goes back through the Nazis.

"And I don't say that lightly because, that is the exact political situation in which Hitler was able to come into power because main stream politicians did not deal with the grievances in Germany.

"Now I'm not suggesting the WDL is anything like as powerful as Hitler's Nazi party became, the WDL is a tiny marginalised party, but once you allow these groups to gain credibility that's where you could end up."

Jeff Marsh, who uses a variety of aliases and wears a balaclava to broadcast online to followers, says he has disbanded the WDL because of the racist element.

He has set up another organisation against Muslim extremists called 'The Welsh Casuals'.

He insisted that the group is non-racist.

Another group calling itself the Cymru Defence League has emerged out of the WDL.

The English Defence League now has around 60,000 followers on the social networking site Facebook and thousands have attended protests around Britain.

Saleem Kidwai of the Muslim Council for Wales said most people are opposed to both the defence leagues and Muslim extremists.

"We have extremist groups and they are as ignorant as the Welsh Defence League, or the English Defence League," he stated.

'Significant threat'
"We can condemn them as much as anyone else. They are misguided youngsters being misinformed and used by extremist ideologues who want to use religion for their own political motives.

"That's how we see it. That's why they are banned in all mosques in Wales because people don't like those extremist views and ideals."

The programme also highlights the potential cost, as police forces are called to marshall demonstrations, both by the WDL and the counter-demonstrations they could spark.

It is estimated the bill to the taxpayer could be as much as £500,000.

Det Ch Supt Adrian Tudway, the national co-ordinator for domestic extremism, advises local forces on the threat posed by the various defence leagues.

"I think it's a very significant threat. It's one I know the police service are taking very seriously, together with the Home Office and local authorities," he said.

"Unmasked: Welsh Defence League" is on BBC One Wales at 2030 GMT on Monday 6 December.

BBC News

Nuneaton traders call for ban on any more EDL demos (UK)

Businesses in Nuneaton have threatened to “shut up shop” if another rally by the English Defence League is allowed to go ahead in the town on a Saturday afternoon.

Calls have already been made by the borough council and the MP for action to be taken by the Home Secretary to prevent a repeat of last weekend’s arrival of 1,500 EDL supporters.

A massive police operation contained and controlled the demonstration away from the main shopping area – but store owners and stall holders were still left to count the cost, with takings badly hit.

“In 42 years, this was the worst Saturday afternoon I have ever known,” said Stuart Tooby, who sells confectionery and is a spokesman for Nuneaton market traders.

“It is the first time I have failed to take enough money to meet my day’s costs. I had to pay staff out of my own pocket. After lunchtime, the town was absolutely deserted. Shoppers stayed away because they were frightened of what might happen.

“The manager of one main store told me their takings were 50 per cent down. Others closed early and everyone started to pack up their stalls around 3pm. This is people’s livelihoods we are talking about – and we are not prepared to be put into this situation again.”

Mr Tooby said that traders will refuse to turn out if the EDL stages another Saturday demo in Nuneaton.

“Why should we be forced to lose money? We have made our feelings known to the council – and have suggested that in such circumstances, perhaps we could have the street market on a Friday or Sunday instead.”

Council leader Dennis Harvey said: “Nuneaton has now been targeted four times by the EDL and it is a mystery why they should pick on our town to cause disruption.

“It did have a disastrous effect on businesses last Saturday afternoon, as well as stretching the police resources.

“I do have to congratulate the police for the way they organised their operation and also thank everyone, traders and shoppers, who did try to go about their business as normal.”

A letter has gone from the borough council to Theresa May asking her to block any future EDL requests to meet in Nuneaton, while local MP Marcus Jones has also pressed the Home Secretary to take action.

He said: “It is unfair that our town has been targeted in this way, by people from outside the area coming in to cause disruption. It also puts businesses and people’s jobs at risk.”

Coventry Telegraph

Racist T-shirts branded 'ignorant' (Australia)

Racist T-shirts on sale at Queen Victoria Market are telling foreigners to "speak f-----' English''.

The shirts, which are on a stall close to shops selling stuffed koalas and boomerangs, have been branded ignorant by a multicultural group.

One shirt, featuring the Australian map and flag, has the phrase, "This is Australia we eat meat, we drink beer and we speak f-----' English!'

Another sports the flag with the phrase, "Support it or f--- off!"

Andrew Jakubowicz, chair of the Institute for Cultural Diversity, said: "If somebody is so unsure about their identity that they need to use that kind of (phrase), it says more about them than it does about anyone else.

"It might take a while for some Australians to speak English, but those who use it the best don't need to use those kinds of words to make a point."

The discovery of the provocative shirts comes after the Federation of the Ethnic Communities Councils of Australia met sporting, religious and ethnic groups around the country last month to tackle racism nationwide.

Queen Victoria Market spokeswoman Misti Dullard said the market was "investigating the appropriateness" of the T-shirts and other items sold by stall operators.

"We have noticed that recently there has been an increase in (those) types of T-shirts," Ms Dullard said.

"Assuming the trader in question is permitted to sell T-shirts under our agreement with them and those T-shirts are legally and generally available then there is little that Queen Victoria Market Pty Ltd can do."

She said the market was widely recognised as one of the multicultural hubs of the city. The Australian manufacturer of one of the shirts, Samsousan Designs, also sells drug and sex-themed shirts online.

"The person wearing this T-shirt is a police officer lie flat on your back and do everything the nice police officer tells you to do," one shirt on the Samsousan website reads.

Sunday Herald Sun

POLICE INVESTIGATE TORCHLIT NEO-NAZI PARADE IN BERLIN (Germany)

A group of about 25 apparent neo-Nazis who marched through Berlin streets with flaming torches face an investigation for a possible hate crime, German police said on Saturday. The group marched in the inner-city district of Tiergarten and chanted offensive slogans Friday evening. Police said the chants broke Germany's law on sedition, which prohibits anti-Semitism and incitement to hatred.

Torchlit parades were a common ritual when German was under Nazi rule 1933-45. The group extinguished the torches and scattered before police arrived, but plain-clothes officers in the area detained four and collected leaflets the group had been handing out. Police said those identified were aged 20 to 26 and may face hate charges.

DPA

Racism controversy dampens Holland's Sinterklaas tradition

Children across Europe eagerly await the arrive of St. Nicholas on December 6. But in Holland, the tradition has racist implications that the Dutch aren't quite willing to give up.

For the Dutch, Sinterklaasavond (St. Nicholas Eve) on December 5 is the biggest celebration of the year - bigger than Christmas. That evening, families gather and exchange presents, and children leave out their shoes in the hopes that Sinterklaas will have fill them with candy by the next morning.

 What seems like a harmless holiday devoted to gifts, candy, and children, has a catch: Sinterklaas' helpers, the Zwarte Pieten or "Black Peters," are portrayed according to degrading racial stereotypes.

 They're typically dressed in 19th-century Moorish outfits, curly Afro wigs, and painted red lips. It is common for both adults and children to dress up as Zwarte Piet, complete with their faces painted black.

 "Zwarte Piet is a person who is happy, who is the assistant of St. Nicholas, the first person who has contact with children and speaks with children," said Bert Jansen, a schoolteacher in Rotterdam who has organized the Rotterdam Sinterklaas parade for 10 years and also walks in the parade as the chief Zwarte Piet.

 Indeed, nowadays the Zwarte Pieten are friendly characters that are clever and mischievous, and adored by children. Yet in the original Sinterklaas story, the Zwarte Pieten were slaves. Gradually, the tale evolved and they became Sinterklaas' helpers, but they were portrayed as being stupid and spoke broken Dutch with a Surinamese accent. They were also frightening figures: It was their job to punish misbehaved children by beating them.

In an effort to tone down any racist implication, the story now says Zwarte Piet is black because they're covered in chimney soot. However, some say that explanation is unconvincing.

 "That just doesn't work for someone who is a grown-up. Where did the Afro come from?" commented Ama van Dantzig, a resident of Amsterdam whose mother is Ghanian and father Dutch.

 Questioning the tradition
The proposal to eliminate Zwarte Piet from the celebration altogether has arisen from time to time, but not yet taken hold.

 "Personally, I think it is an invented tradition and Sinterklaas can stay, but the Zwarte Pieten have to go," said Artwell Cain, director of the National Institute for the Study of Dutch Slavery and its Legacy (NiNsee). "It is an affront to people of the African Diaspora in the Netherlands, and it is not proper in this age."

 The question is even more urgent today as the Netherlands is focusing more on integration efforts and the right-wing Party For Freedom - led by controversial figure Geert Wilders - is the third largest party in the Parliament.

 At a time when there is pressure for minorities to integrate into Dutch society, a tradition like Zwarte Piet sends the wrong message, Cain said.

 "If you are developing this sense of belonging and then this tradition of Zwarte Piet is running around, it diminishes your confidence in what you are as a Dutch person," Cain said. "You become something like an ambiguous citizen. You question yourself: 'Why do I have to enjoy this? Why do I have to be confronted openly with this form of racism?'"

 Others see Zwarte Piet as an essential Dutch tradition that is enjoyed by all children and families, regardless of race or ethnic background.

 "Everyone is happy about Zwarte Piet, and if you are from Holland or you come from Morocco or Somalia, every child puts his shoe by the door or chimney in the hope that Zwarte Piet puts a present in his shoe; everyone does it," said Peter Boelhouwer, an event organizer who has managed the Sinterklaas parade in The Hague for the past 10 years.

 A 19th-century creation
Although celebrations around Sinterklaas date back to the 16th century, they were usually spontaneous, wild celebrations in the street, said John Helsloot, a researcher at the Meertens Institute who specializes in Sinterklaas traditions. The current story of Sinterklaas and Zwarte Piet dates back to 1850, when Jan Schenkman, a schoolteacher from Amsterdam, published an illustrated children's book that introduced many elements of the Sinterklaas story that caught on, including the Zwarte Pieten.

 The book was quite popular among the bourgeois and there was a readiness to adopt the festival, Helsloot said. From there, it slowly evolved into the celebration that exists today.

 It's not uncommon for St. Nicholas figures to have a devilish companion - such a figure exists in both Austrian and Swiss traditions - but the Netherlands is the only place where he is imagined as a black man. It is difficult to say why this particular story emerged here, but Helsloot suggested that it could be tied to the Dutch abolishment of slavery in 1863.

 "You can see that racism was stronger even after the abolishment of slavery," Helsloot said. "Zwarte Piet was part of this general idea of foreign people, black people as frightening, and that people should be punished by frightening figures."

Goodbye to Zwarte Piet?
If lasting changes are to be made to the Zwarte Pieten, it seems they will have to be organic rather than imposed by a political organization. In 2006, The Dutch Programme Foundation encouraged people to paint their faces with rainbow colors, but the effort failed and the next year the usual Zwarte Piet black face returned.

 Though that's not to say change isn't possible.

"With more and more people like me who become Dutch and don't find it necessary that the Zwarte Pieten stay black, it can change, but slowly," said Sueli Brodin, a resident of Maastricht who is Japanese-French and has lived in The Netherlands for 19 years. "It has to happen naturally because society is changing."

 Helsloot also could see a future where children smear their faces with black ink rather than paint their whole faces black to lose the racial association and show instead that Zwarte Piet is actually covered in chimney soot.

 Still others say Zwarte Piet must be taken out of the tradition completely.

 "I think it can happen, but it is completely tied to the question of racism in general and how we are conscious about how racism affects the whole of society," said Max van Lingen, a representative of the International Socialists who works on anti-racism campaigns. "This is not something that will happen within the next five years; it really is a long battle."

 Van Dantzig is not as optimistic. "The people around me are highly educated, internationally-oriented people and the Dutch in that group don't understand the big deal with Zwarte Piet, and they are the future change makers if you ask me," she said. "They are very protective of Zwarte Piet and it will be difficult to change it."

DW-World