Pegida UK
Pegida United Kingdom Pegida Rywvaneth Unys Pegida Ríocht Aontaithe Pegida Unitit Kinrick Pegida Claught Kängrick Pegida Rìoghachd Aonaichte Pegida Teyrnas Unedig | |
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Headquarters | Dresden, Germany |
Affiliation | Fortress Europe[1] |
Pegida UK is an anti-Islam organisation in the United Kingdom that was established by former English Defence League (EDL) leader Tommy Robinson. It is named after the German group Pegida.[2]
Following one attempted 'Pegida UK' march in London in the summer of 2015 by ex-EDL members, a second launch of the group was conducted on 4 January 2016 in a pub in Toddington, Bedfordshire by Tommy Robinson. On the day of the launch, he stepped down to the role of "adviser". Paul Weston (the chairman of a specific political group, Liberty GB) was named leader and Anne Marie Waters (chairman of Sharia Watch) was named as a third member of Pegida UK's management team.[3][4][5]
Robinson said that he hoped Pegida UK would be different from the EDL,[6] that it would attract a more "middle-class" demographic, and would discourage the "loutish behaviour and alcohol-fueled violence" of the EDL.[7] Robinson seeks a halt to Muslim immigration, the closure of sharia courts, a ban on the wearing of the burqa, and a moratorium on mosque construction.[7]
Pegida UK's launch event was a march in Birmingham, on 6 February 2016. It drew a crowd of approximately 200, fewer than the Pegida UK attempt of 2015, with a smaller counter-demonstration also taking place.[8][9]
References
- ↑ Gutteridge, Nick (28 January 2016). "Anti-Islam groups launch Europe-wide coalition pledging to defend 'Western civilisation'". Daily Express. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
- ↑ Josh Lowe (February 5, 2016). "Pegida U.K.: What does Tommy Robinson's 'Anti-Islam' group want?". Newsweek.
- ↑ Liam Deacon. "Anti-Islamisation 'PEGIDA' Group Launches UK Chapter". Breitbart.
- ↑ Adam Parris-Long. "Tommy Robinson hands over Pegida UK leadership to former Luton South parliamentary candidate Paul Weston". Luton Today - Luton News Herald & Post.
- ↑ Omar Hamdi. "As a Muslim comedian, I found having dinner with ex-EDL leader Tommy Robinson strange but enlightening". Independent.
- ↑ Jamie Bartlett. "Across Europe with Tommy Robinson: inside the new wave of anti-immigration protest coming soon to Britain". Telegraph.
- 1 2 Adrian Goldberg (January 29, 2016). "Tommy Robinson: The man behind the British version of Pegida". BBC.
- ↑ Harvey Day (January 7, 2016). "Tommy Robinson's Pegida UK group to be kept OUT of Birmingham city centre". Birmingham Mail.
- ↑ Josh Halliday (February 6, 2016). "Pegida UK supporters stage anti-Islam silent march in Birmingham". The Guardian.