They see themselves as the vanguard in a battle for the soul of Britain
against extremist Islamist forces — the “enemy within” bent on imposing
Sharia. Casuals United announced their arrival on Saturday when a small army
of shirt-sleeved, middle-aged men with beer bellies clashed in a flurry of
punches and kicks with young Asians in Birmingham city centre.
The group, which is closely affiliated with the far-right English Defence
League, insists that it is a peaceful movement representing ordinary working
people angered by the sight of Muslims hurling insults at British soldiers
on homecoming parades. But if the chants of “England, England” and the
aggressive posturing appear familiar, it is because they are.
The members of Casuals United are largely former football hooligans drawn from
the terraces and, according to their critics, are essentially the BNP and
National Front repackaged. The groupings have attracted the support of BNP
activists including Chris Renton, who created the English Defence League
website.
Jeff Marsh, the leader of Casuals United, told The Times that the
organisation was a “mixed-race group of English people, from businessmen and
women, to football hooligans”.
He said: “I came up with the idea to unite football fans to forget their petty
rivalries and come together in a national movement. There are a lot of
people in their forties and fifties who used to be hooligans but went on to
settle down. A lot of young football fans want to get involved.”
Mr Marsh, who holds a degree in criminal justice, claims to have support among
serving soldiers and points to the activities of army wives on the website
Armchair Warriors. “Their men can’t be seen to be supporting us directly,”
he said.
The new beast on the far Right came to prominence when its members clashed
with anti-fascist protesters in Birmingham on Saturday. Police made 30
arrests and are still studying closed-circuit television footage.
According to the anti-fascist group Searchlight, Casuals United was created
after the trouble in March when Islamists demonstrated against troops
returning from Afghanistan to Luton. Two months later, members of Casuals
United marched through the town and last month they picketed an Islamic
roadshow in North London.
Mr Marsh, 44, whose book The Trouble with Taffies is an account of
football violence in South Wales, confirmed that the Luton parade had been
the catalyst. He said that a generation of former football hooligans were
stirred to action by the sight of Muslim extremists abusing the men of the
Royal Anglian Regiment.
After the group was outnumbered by United Against Fascism in Birmingham on
Saturday, Mr Marsh pledged that it would return to the city on August 30.
The group is also planning a protest in Manchester in October.
The Casuals make full use of modern communications, using social networking
websites, notably Facebook, where there are about 40 branches, many of which
declare allegiance to various football clubs. The Arsenal branch sums up the
group’s manifesto, saying that it was formed to “protest peacefully against
the Government allowing Islamic Hatemongers to live in our country while
raising money for terror abroad, cursing our soldiers and trying to force
Sharia law on us”.
Gerry Gable, of Searchlight, said: “We predicted real trouble in Birmingham.
They are not a non-violent group. They have been involved in trouble in
Luton. There are connections between people who run far-right websites and
we know the BNP were actively offering to find them people for both
Birmingham and for [a demonstration] in Luton on August Bank Holiday”.
Weyman Bennett, joint secretary of the United Against Fascism group, said:
“Nobody should be taken in by the pretence that these marches and rallies
are not aimed at whipping up race hatred against Muslims and Asians. They
are racist demos and we should not allow them to take place.”
