Who We Are

Our intention is to inform people of racist, homophobic, religious extreme hate speech perpetrators across social networking internet sites. And we also aim to be a focal point for people to access information and resources to report such perpetrators to appropriate web sites, governmental departments and law enforcement agencies around the world.

We will also post relevant news worthy items and information on Human rights issues, racism, extremist individuals and groups and far right political parties from around the world although predominantly Britain.

Sunday 12 September 2010

Wilders' New York speech passes off without incident

Geert Wilder's 15 minute speech to several hundred people at a protest against plans to build an Islamic  cultural centre close to Ground Zero in New York passed off without incident on Saturday.

In his address, Wilders drew a connection between New York and its Dutch roots. 'No mosque here,' he said. 'For their sakes, we must draw the line. So that New York, rooted in Dutch tolerance, will never become New Mecca'

Deviating from his written script, Wilders attacked the imam behind the cultural centre for his 'crazy and idiotic remarks'.

'The west has never harmed Islam before Islam has harmed us, over and over gain, for centuries,' he said.

Wilders also quoted US president Abraham Lincoln saying: 'those who deny freedom to others, deserve it not for themselves.'

The rally's organisers claimed 40,000 people had packed in to the area close to Ground Zero to hear Wilders and other conservative US speakers.

Although few people in New York have heard of him, Dutch politicians awaited Wilders's speech because of its implications for the ongoing formation talks.

Coalition
His party, the PVV, is involved in negotiations on forming a new right-wing government with the VVD Liberals and Christian Democrats.

Wilders has already said he feels free to say whatever he likes about Islam, despite his association with the possible next government.

And the three parties agreed to 'respect' each others' position on Islam before sitting round the negotiating table.

Nevertheless, there were fears that Wilders' appearance could damage the discussions - particularly because the PVV leader is seen by some as a representative of the Netherlands.

Candidate prime minister
Caretaker foreign minister Maxime Verhagen stressed after the speech that Wilders was speaking personally. Like the US government, the Dutch government respects the right of everyone to chose their own religion, he said.

VVD leader Mark Rutte did not comment on the speech.

Alexander Pechtold, leader of the Liberal democrats D66 and a vocal Wilders' critic, said earlier he felt VVD leader Mark Rutte should comment on Wilders' performance because Rutte is 'candidate prime minister'.

'On the eve of the the next step in Wilders' domination of Dutch politics, the completion of his marionette cabinet, he is going international,' Pechtold said. 'Not as a minister of foreign affairs but as as a speaker in a planning issue in New York.'

According to a Maurice de Hond poll, 20% of Dutch voters support Wilders' appearance in New York, 39% are opposed and 41% are neutral.

In The Hague, up to 150 people gathered in the city centre to demonstrate against Wilders' appearance at the New York protests.

Hirsi Ali
Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the anti-Islam campaigner and former Somali refugee turned Dutch politician who now now works in the US, said she felt Wilders should have stayed in the Netherlands.

'If I was Wilders I would have been at the negotiating table,' the Telegraaf quoted her as saying.

In the Netherlands, Wilders has called for a ban on new mosques, the closure of Islamic schools and a tax on headscarves worn by Muslim women

To read the full speech please click Here.

Dutch News

‘We are not and never will be at war with Islam’

Tensions flared yesterday over plans to build a mosque near ground zero, on a day that saw family members of September 11 victims recite loved one’s names at a sombre ceremony marking the ninth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the US.

Shortly before the start of ceremonies in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania to remember the day nearly 3000 people lost their lives, Florida Pastor Terry Jones confirmed he had backed off his threat to burn copies of the Koran.

News of the plan continued to outrage Muslims around the world yesterday, triggering outbreaks of violence in Afghanistan where demonstrators took to the streets in the northeast of the country for a second day.

President Barack Obama had warned that the burning of the Koran could harm America’s image abroad, endanger lives and act as a recruiting tool for al Qaeda. Obama told a memorial service in Washington that those who attacked the country with hijacked planes on September 11, 2001, had tried to deprive Americans of their ideals.

“They may seek to spark conflict between different faiths, but as Americans we are not and will never be at war with Islam. It was not a religion that attacked us that September day, it was al Qaeda – a sorry band of men which perverts religion,” he said.

As Obama spoke at the Pentagon, family and friends of those who died in the New York attacks placed flowers in a pool at the site. The names of the 2752 World Trade Centre victims were read out in alphabetical order during the ceremony.

In lower Manhattan, hundreds of supporters of the mosque project, which organisers say is intended to build bridges between communities, called for religious tolerance and brandished placards saying “Your bigotry and hatred is a national security risk” or “the attack on Islam is racism”.

Herald Scotland

France condemns Castro Roma 'holocaust' remark

France says comments by former Cuban leader Fidel Castro about its treatment of Roma migrants are unacceptable and show his ignorance of history.

Mr Castro accused Paris of carrying out a "racial holocaust" over its expulsion of members of the Roma community.

France has come under increasing international criticism after about 1,000 Roma were deported recently.

The European Parliament has urged the government to halt the deportations - a call rejected by Paris.

"The use of 'holocaust' by Mr Castro demonstrates his ignorance of history and disdain towards its victims," said French foreign ministry spokesman Bernard Valero. "Such words are unacceptable."

In a clear reference to Cuba's treatment of dissidents, Mr Valero added: "That Fidel Castro shows an interest in human rights is truly revolutionary."

French irritation
Mr Castro, 84, made his controversial remark at an event in Havana to promote the second volume of his autobiography.

"The last thing one would expect is the news of the expulsion of French gypsies, who are victims of the cruelty of the extreme right wing in France," he said.


Migrants were, he said, "victims of another kind of racial holocaust".

Fidel Castro's words have clearly angered the French government, the BBC's David Chazan reports from Paris.

It has been irritated by international condemnation of its treatment of the Roma and comparisons with the round-ups of Jews under the Nazi occupation.

It says it is scrupulously observing French laws and European regulations.

Since Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007, many Roma have come to France.

But the government has blamed them for a rise in crime and violence and says they cannot stay in France without jobs.

BBC News

Some neo-Nazi webpages heroizing Slovak shooter (Czech Rep)

The crimes of Ľubomír Harman, who shot seven people and then committed suicide last week in the Devínská Nová Ves quarter of Bratislava, seem to have prompted other emotions in the Czech Republic and Slovakia besides condemnation and horror. The shooter is starting to acquire fans, especially on neo-Nazi and nationalist internet forums. The weekly “Plus 7 dní” reports that while the motive for Harman’s shooting spree is unknown the authors of many articles on the web are claiming he wanted to settle scores with his allegedly problematic neighbors because police were unable to.

The victims of the shooting were six members of a single family. Two of them were of Roma origin. In the aftermath of the tragedy, media speculated that the unemployed man’s motivation had been racism. The theory has also surfaced that the shooter committed the murders because of disputes with his neighbors. Police have reported that the family, who were neighbors of the man who murdered them, led a busy social life.

Police have not reported any motive for the shooting and their representatives admit they may never succeed in discovering the murderer’s motivation. The seventh victim was a woman whom Harman evidently hit randomly while shooting up an adjacent housing unit.

"It is clear that when we put all these factors into the equation, we find the solution: The murderer wanted to rid his building of a problematic family. He has inscribed himself into the annals of history as a controversial figure, but for many of us he is a hero – what’s more, he died in battle with representatives of the system (the police), who bear their share of responsibility for the entire situation,” the authors of an article on one of the neo-Nazi web pages write.

An article on the nationalist web forum Prop also pleads Harman’s case. "As can be seen from the emotional reactions of many people, they are sick of multiculturalism and it seems that if Ľubomír Harman had not shot others in addition to the main target, he would have been celebrated by many as a hero," a contribution on this web page reads. The weekly “Plus 7 dní” points out that many Facebook pages are lauding Harman’s behavior.

As news server Romea.cz determined, one such Facebook group has been founded by someone under the name Jerry O'Thomas, whose profile includes photos of the logo of the Workers’ Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti - DSSS). Other members of this Facebook group are being recruited from the promoters and even members of the DSSS. One member is Iveta Machová, who ran in fifth place on the DSSS ticket in the Moravian-Silesian region for the Czech lower house. Another member of the group is the “fragile” DSSS girl Lucie Šlégrová, who is also Vice Chair of the Workers’ Youth. After news server Romea.cz reported on the existence of this Facebook group on the afternoon of Thursday, 9 September 2010, its author removed it for a short while, but as of Saturday 11 September the group is again completely operational with more than 130 members.

“Plus 7 dní” reports many neo-Nazis are doing their best to learn where the shooter will be buried. The weekly points out that the place of his final rest might become a rallying point for neo-Nazi and racist groups. However, the media have reported that Harman will evidently be buried secretly.

Harman, who was a member of sport shooting club, shot his victims with a machine gun. Possession of such a weapon in Slovakia is legal only if it has been modified to fire single rounds, but Slovak Interior Minister Daniel Lipšic said in an interview that preliminary information shows the machine gun shot multiple rounds. The Slovak Interior Ministry announced new restrictions on weapons possession rules after the massacre.

Romea.Cz

Leicestershire police and city council may ban English Defence League demo

Theresa May
Police and city council bosses are investigating measures to ban the controversial English Defence League from marching in Leicester.


Senior officers at Leicestershire police and Leicester City Council are considering asking Home Secretary Theresa May to prohibit a march it is believed the group is aiming to stage next month.

The English Defence League (EDL), which says it is opposed to Islamic extremism, has said it intends to hold a demonstration in Leicester on Saturday, October 9.

Crucially, it has not said whether it intends to stage a march through the city or a static demonstration.
To obtain permission to march, it must formally apply to the authorities to agree a route and timing.


The Home Secretary can step in to ban marches, if there is a credible threat of violence and disorder but only following a request by a council and police force.

However, neither the police nor the Home Secretary have any power to ban static demonstrations. But conditions can be imposed to control the location, size and duration of a demonstration.

The EDL, whose critics accuse of using violent tactics during recent protests in Bradford and Nottingham, did not respond to a request by the Mercury yesterday for it to clarify its plans.

Leicester City Council also said yesterday it had nothing to add to a statement it issued earlier this week in which it confirmed it was holding discussions with senior police officers.

Councillor Mohammed Dawood, the city council's cabinet member for community cohesion, said the council and police would follow the correct legal procedures if the EDL confirmed its intention to march.

He said: "The EDL has held protests in other cities and there always seems to be public order issues.

"Leicester is a strong city and it will overcome this if the EDL does come here."

Patrick Kitterick, whose Castle ward includes the city centre, said: "There is always a balance to be struck between civil liberties but my feeling is the EDL is not welcome in Leicester."

The Leicester Multicultural Advisory Group, an informal group of community leaders, police officers and city council representatives, will discuss the EDL demonstration today.

The Leicestershire Federation of Muslim Organisations, which represents most of the mosques in the city and county, yesterday said the EDL's presence could cause tensions.

This is Leicestershire

EDL and Muslim against Crusades clash at US Embassy in London

Groups from the EDL and the Muslim Against Crusades clashed as they recognised the 9/11 attacks in London.
The English Defence League held a march of a few hundred people remembering the 9/11 attacks outside the US Embassy by the laying of a wreath. They continued to march to the Saudi Arabian Embassy and shouted the usual anti-Muslim chants.

Later outside the US Embassy a similar sized group from the Muslim Against Crusades, including Anjem Choudary demonstrated forcefully with much anti-Western, pro-extreme Islamic rhetoric. This was followed by the burning of the US and UK flag, as well as a photograph of Pastor Terry Jones.

The EDL returned to the US Embassy to protest against the Muslim Against Crusades prescence, and apart from a few minor scuffles and tension this finished relatively peacefully.

This was one of the few times that the EDL have come close to the focus of their hatred, and on this occasion their voice and prescence had little consequence.

Demotix

Windsor law dean candidate alleges racism (Canada)

A law professor is asking the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario to force the University of Windsor to appoint her dean of law, after her candidacy was spoiled by accusations of plagiarism and, she claims, racism and sexism.
Emily Carasco, a one-time NDP candidate who teaches family and immigration law at the university, is also seeking payments for “injury to dignity” of $60,000 from the school, and $15,000 from her colleague who raised the accusation, hate-speech expert Richard Moon.

In her complaint to the HRTO, Prof. Carasco alleges that Prof. Moon “sabotaged” her candidacy in a “personal attack,” with “overblown, hearsay-based allegations of plagiarism,” which the school used as a “convenient pretext” to reject her candidacy with “indecent haste.” All of this, she alleges, was motivated by racism and sexism, and the school’s refusal to accept a woman of colour as a leader.

She claims the school found her “threatening” because of her intentions to “do more than pay lip service to equity” by addressing the “distinct contrast” between the diverse student population and the “white male leadership.”

Her complaint includes a list of all Windsor Law deans back to 1967, of which she says only one was not a white man and she left the post early.

“The University and Faculty of Law leadership remain in the hands of white males,” Prof. Carasco claims, creating a “culture of privilege which white men expect to have continue, and will defend with impunity.”

She claims the alleged sexism and racism behind her rejection is “particularly hard to swallow in a context where I am surrounded by individuals who claim that they understand and live by the values that underlie human rights law.”

The school, now without a law dean since July, has started a new search, which Prof. Carasco is asking the HRTO to block until her complaint is resolved.

Most unusual, though, is her request for an order appointing her dean for a five-year, renewable term, which is likely beyond the tribunal’s practical power.

Prof. Carasco was one of two people on a short list created by the law school’s search committee, which included a judge, a member of the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, visible minorities and women, including the chair, Kathleen McCrone. After months of interviews and debate beginning last year, the committee recommended neither candidate, forcing the school to start fresh.

The other failed candidate, lawyer Scott Fairley, said the process seemed to him rigorous and fair, with no sign of racism. He said the process was “structurally very transparent and very public, almost to the point of paralysis.”

“The only odd thing was the committee choked at the end,” he said. “This was a hugely expensive and time-consuming process, and the university was left with nothing at the end.”

The scandal began in March, near the scheduled end of the search process, when Prof. Moon, who was not on the search committee, contacted the chair to describe a “very serious” accusation of plagiarism in a 2006 book co-authored by Prof. Carasco called Immigration and Refugee Law: Cases, Materials and Commentary, parts of which had to be recalled from the publisher and rewritten by another co-author.

Prof. Moon, a constitutional law scholar at the University of Windsor, is best known for his 2008 report to the Canadian Human Rights Commission recommending the end of its hate speech mandate.

His note suggested the committee seek out the original chapters to see for themselves the “sources that were not properly referenced,” according to Prof. Carasco’s complaint.

One of Prof. Carasco’s co-authors on the book was Prof. Moon’s wife, University of Toronto law professor Audrey Macklin, a prominent advocate for Omar Khadr.

“Professor Moon’s reasons for making these spurious allegations at the eleventh hour are highly suspicious,” Prof. Carasco wrote, given that he heard them from Prof. Macklin long ago. “[H]e raised them at a time and in a manner that would do maximum damage to my reputation and candidacy.”

Prof. Carasco’s explanation of the alleged plagiarism was that another co-author raised it over email while she was overseas, and that she consented to have him rewrite parts of her chapter.

This co-author, University of Victoria law professor Donald Galloway, “made substantial alterations to the galley proofs of my chapter, removing my material outlining the history of racism in Canada’s immigration policy.” She said her own recent review of this episode “disclosed no problems” and showed she in fact made “voluminous attributions” to the author of the allegedly plagiarized passages, Ottawa journalist Valerie Knowles, who has written two histories of Canadian immigration.

Prof. Carasco said she was the only person of colour among the four co-authors, and now believes that Prof. Galloway’s “focus on the attribution issue” was an excuse for him to “remove material on racism which he believed should not have been included.”

Prof. Galloway could not be reached on Thursday.

Prof. Moon’s lawyer, Freya Kristjanson, denied the allegations of racism and sexism, and said his client raised his concerns in the appropriate manner, “motivated by genuine concern for academic integrity.”

University of Windsor spokeswoman Holly Ward said the allegations are a surprise, and are taken very seriously. She said the school has hired lawyer Raj Anand, a former chief commissioner of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, to prepare a response.

The call for applicants said the new dean should be a “distinguished academic” with administrative experience. It also expressed the school’s openness to candidates from “traditionally marginalized groups.”

Prof. Carasco, who was born in Bombay and grew up in Uganda, studied law at Makerere University in Kampala, then fled as a refugee in 1972, shortly after dictator Idi Amin took power. She has two degrees from Harvard Law School and has been a Canadian citizen since 1983.

She ran for the federal NDP in 1993 against Liberal veteran Herb Gray, and has served on Ontario’s Judicial Appointments Advisory Committee. One newsworthy episode in her past role as human rights commissioner for the University of Windsor — and author of the school’s human rights policy — involved her vowing to punish whoever was responsible for a poster that showed a faculty member’s face superimposed on a picture of Adolf Hitler.

The National Post