UMVA has learned that a highly charged and intense confrontation erupted outside the Oxford Union, where right-wing figure Tommy Robinson was invited to speak on the topic of whether the West is 'right to be suspicious of Islam', alongside Laurence Fox.
The event, which was scheduled to start at 8:30 pm, ultimately concluded at around 1 am, four hours later than expected, with protesters continuing to picket the exit routes. A few masked demonstrators chanted 'shove your Union up your arse' and 'whose streets? our streets' at those leaving the debate.
Before the event, clashes outside took a violent turn as an anti-Robinson protester was kicked in the head, while another one was punched in the face. The invitation to Robinson had caused outrage and calls for the talk to be cancelled, with several prominent figures, including Rees-Mogg, activist Abdullah al Andalusi, and podcaster Michael Doward, opposing the right-wing pair.
Protesters against and supporting Robinson gathered near the union building, which had been cordoned off with crowd control barriers. An anti-Robinson demonstrator, Tammy Samuels, 23, had travelled from Cardiff to oppose Robinson's participation, stating that he's 'vile' and that she couldn't believe such a prestigious organisation had allowed him to speak.
Anti-racist groups shouted 'Oxford is anti-fascist' and 'racist scum off our streets', while Robinson supporters carrying Union Jack and St George's flags had gathered outside the union entrance, separated from the protesters by police and private security. The two camps were seen trying to breach through the security cordon to get to each other, with both sides exchanging abuse.
One attendee at the debate, Alex Hernandez, a second-year law student, said that he wanted to see 'genuinely engaging conversation' at the event. However, the MP for Oxford East, Anneliese Dodds, accused the union of giving a 'loudspeaker' to the far-right through Robinson.
Oxford's city council has insisted that the union should foot the bill for the security operation surrounding their event, with the leader of Oxford City Council, Susan Brown, expressing deep concern over the Oxford Union's decision to host Robinson. The debate ultimately went ahead, with Rees-Mogg remarking at the end that 'everyone's quite keen to go home, but we've outlasted the protesters'.
