'Nazi' protesters outnumbered (London, Canada)

What was billed as a neo-Nazi rally outside London’s city hall instead turned into a bizarre shouting match between anarchists and two men who said they were there to protest fluoride in tap water.

The two fluoride protesters were known local white-supremacist Tomasz Winnicki and Dave Ruud, who heads the Northern Alliance, a far-right neo-Nazi group based in London.

Both held signs telling people to go to websites that promote taking fluoride out of city drinking water.

The two were far outnumbered by about 20 counter-protesters who showed up wearing black bandanas over their faces and shouting at the two men to go home.

“Are you a Nazi? Are you a Nazi?” yelled one man at Ruud, who backed away and said he was there to protest fluoride.

The rally was billed as a gathering of Combat 18 members. C18 is a violent neo-Nazi organization that began in England.

City hall security alerted councilors and other staffers of the planned rally on Thursday.

The Free Press reported about the C18 protest on Saturday.

“I’m here to protest fluoride,” Winnicki said, adding he’d heard of Combat 18 but didn’t know any members.

“The city website should have a voting system where we can vote on any issue that comes up and then we can vote ‘Do we want fluoridation?’” Winnicki said.

Winnicki said he'd heard about the neo-Nazi rally through the media and decided to show up to gain more publicity for his anti-fluoride movement.

Winnicki and Ruud held signs directing people to fluoridealert.org and waterloowatch.com, two anti-fluoridation websites.

The issue formed one of the planks of Winnicki’s unsuccessful bid for mayor in the October municipal election included getting rid of fluoride in the city’s tap water as one of its planks.

It's more recently come up at city hall after a group that helped lobby Calgary and Waterloo to take the substance out of its water supplies started lobbying in London.

The counter-protesters often got into the faces of the two white supremacists, yelling at them to leave.

“Word spread quickly about this and we tend to oppose fascists whenever we can,” said Anthony Verberckmoes, one of the counter-protesters. He’s part of an anarchist group called Common Cause.

“They pulled a crafty deflection. And there’s just two of them, which is great. White supremacist and fascism unfortunately has a history in London and in the broader world scene, in Europe and the United States, it’s on the rise.

“We don’t want to see London become a part of that rise.”

Another Londoner, Kara Jarvis, said she was compelled to come out to tell the white supremacists that “hate crime is wrong.”

“Everyone should not be complacent. We are a diverse city and these people are not tolerant and they are not welcome here. We have to let them know that,” she said.

Two uniformed police officers supervised the ongoing shouting match between the anarchist counter-protesters and the two men who said they were there to fight fluoridation. After about 15 minutes, Winnicki and Ruud left.

IFPress.com

ALBANIA POLICE CRITICISED AFTER ATTACK ON ROMA CAMP

Some dwellers in the camp, which was home to roughly 40 families, told local media the attackers arrived at night and beat them with sticks while setting fire to their barracks over several days, pressuring them to relocate. The residents of the camps say the police failed to prevent the attacks and provide protection for the families, who now have moved to live in settlements in Tirana and other cities. It remains unclear if the attack was the result of racism or instigated by the financial interests of real estate developers looking to build in the area. Police denied on Friday that they had disregarded the laws against discrimination of minorities and the protection of children while dealing with the case. According to the police statement, the Roma “initiated the conflict” with their neighbors that then escalated. “We have questioned the Roma about the fire that swept their dwelling but they have refused to testify,” read the statement. According to the Union for Albanian Roma, a Tirana-based NGO, up to 150,000 Roma people live in Albania, part of a community that struggles with discrimination, poor literacy rates and massive unemployment.

Balkan Insight

FBI Joins Probe To Nab “Hate-Crime” Killers While Sikh Community Offers $30,000 Reward (USA)

A troubled Sikh community shocked by the shooting of their two elderly members offered a reward of $30,000 for any information leading to the culprits, as the local police said they suspected it to be a hate crime and has called in the FBI to join the manhunt.

The West Sacramento Police in California said they suspect that the tradition turbans worn by the Surinder Singh, 68, and Gurmej Atwal, 78, could have become beacons for an attack on them.

“Because they sported the turbans they might have been singled out,” the police said. The Elk Grove police department said that last week’s shootout would be the first targeting the Sikhs in the city if it turns out to be the hate crime. They also said FBI had been called in as it was suspected to be a hate crime.

While Surinder Singh died on the spot, Atwal is still reported to be in a critical condition and a deeply shocked community in the area have joined together to offer a reward of $30,000 for any information leading to the arrest of the culprits, who shot the two on March 4. This amount is over and above the $5,000 reward offered by a top Islamic body, who strongly condemned the attack.

Sikh men in beards and turbans are often targeted for discrimination by bigots who mistake them for Muslims, the Council on American-Islamic Council-Sacramenton Valley’s Executive Director, Basim Elkarra said.

“The Muslim community offers its condolences and support to the Sikh community in this time of sorrow, he said.

About 100 religious leaders, including ones from the Sikh community gathered at a Gurudwara in California, announcing a rise in the award money to informants that would lead to arrest of those responsible.

The Link