A-Infos (en) WSM*.ie: Ireland, Belfast, Pro Life Pro Mass Murder? - arrested for protesting fascist on 'Rally for Life' march

Saturday's Youth Defense march in Belfast saw a WSM member arrested for protesting the 
presence of Michael Quinn, the fascist who told the Sunday World that he would "he would 
have "no problem" with an Anders Breivik style-massacre" in Ireland. When Quinn was 
pointed out to stewards on the so called 'Rally for Life' they protected him and allowed 
him to continue on the march. On Sunday Youth Defence deleted posts of the picture of 
Quinn on the demonstration from their Facebook page and banned people who posted the 
picture or demanded to know why they had allowed Quinn to march. ---- One woman described 
how "I posted up a picture of Micheal Quinn from the Belfast rally on the Youth Defence 
page. One person replied going something like 'that is a massive generalisation' and 
before I could reply, by posting up the youtube of his racist rant my post was removed and 
I was banned from posting on their page.

They seem to be particularly sensitive about people revealing Quinn's presence as I had 
previously posted a link to the Danish survey on mental health and abortion which was not 
removed and is still rumbling away according to my alerts."


Image: Quinn on Saturday's march wearing the logo of his tiny fascist DRM group.

A member of Anti-Fascist Action Ireland, who has been following Michael Quinn's entry into 
far-right politics since 2010, posted the same image to the Youth Defence page and was 
also then banned. "I wanted to alert their supporters that long-term YD activist Michael 
Quinn is now a self-confessed and active White Nationalist and has been building links 
with Irish neo-Nazis, formerly of the group Celtic Wolves, and Greek fascists from Golden 
Dawn. For my trouble, my post was deleted and I was banned from the page."

Other people also contacted us to tell us their posts on the same topic had also been 
deleted from the page. So what are Youth Defence trying to hide and what does it tell of 
the real nature of the 'Rally for Life'?

Image: Quinn is pointed out by by one WSM member, a group of 'Rally for Life' stewards 
gather to protect Quinn, another WSM member is knocked to the ground and arrested by the 
PSNI after trying to reach Quinn

Quinn's links with those around Youth Defence go back a long way. On July 11th 2000 the 
Independent described him as a member of Youth Defence after a court appearance with five 
other Youth Defence members. The others listed included Justin Barrett and Maurice Colgan. 
Barrett's link with the far right have already been broadly exposed in the mainstream 
press but AFA told us that "The former National Organiser of Youth Defence, Maurice 
Colgan, shared a flat with Anthony Barnes, lead singer of Dublin neo-Nazi bonehead band 
‘Celtic Dawn”, in the late 1980s/early 1990s. Colgan was seen at least once, at a YD 
leafleting session, wearing a Celtic Dawn t-shirt. His friend Barnes was later convicted 
for assault, slicing a political opponents neck with a beer bottle."  (as reported in the 
Dublin Tribune, Nov 15 1990)  (Read more )

The Sunday World article revealed that "As the news of the sickening Norwegian terror 
attack broke last week, DRM chief Quinn (51) took to the web to broadcast his sickening 
support for the murders." The article then went on to point out that "Fascist Quinn ran 
for election in Dun Laoghaire in 1992 as an 'Independent pro-life' candidate but failed to 
gain popular support. He went on to become a supporter of Justin Barrett, the anti-Nice 
treaty campaigner disgraced over alleged links to European neo-nazis . Barrett and Quinn 
were arrested at a violent anti-abortion picket of a Dublin hospital in 1999 but the 
charges were later dropped." Another Sunday World article sub headed "Sick Irish thugs' 
recruitment drive with members of racist BNP group" published April 29 2012 revealed that 
Quinn had previously travelled to Belfast to meet with the far right British National 
Party and loyalists.

There was also controversy over Quinn's presence on last years anti-choice march in Dublin 
- in short there is no excuse for claiming not to know who and what he is. Quinn is 
certainly a nut, but after the Breivik massacre in which 76 people were killed, many of 
them teenagers, nuts cannot be simply dismissed as harmless. The fact that Quinn was not 
only tolerated but protected by stewards exposes the lie that is the entire 'Pro-Life' 
label. Those on the pro-choice counter rally were chanting "Pro Life, that's a lie, they 
don't care of women die" as the march passed. The continued toleration and protection of 
Quinn reveal that the fundamental truth of that slogan is much deeper than many of those 
chanting it probably realized. (Watch a copy of Quinn's post massacre youtube video)

The "Rally for Life' was otherwise the standard march of the religious far right 
determined to continue the regime which makes it possible to criminalize Irish women and 
doctors. The organizers pulled their usual branding routine of having young women carry 
the front banner but apart from this banner and a couple of other 'created to be 
photographed' clumps the march was overwhelmingly composed of religious fundamentalists, 
men, women over 50 and young children. In other words almost no one on the march was 
someone who might find themselves pregnant in the near future yet all were determined that 
a women with a crisis pregnancy should not be allowed to decide themselves whether or not 
to continue with it.  Many of those marching thrust rosary beads into the faces of those 
on the counter protest or waved religious placards.  Many of the older men were either 
wearing priests collars or were wearing the standard priest black shirt with the collar 
removed. (Facebook album of photos from the march).

The anti-choice march seemed quite a bit smaller than last years march, despite the 
massive amount spent promoting it and running coaches to it from all over the island. On 
the other hand the 'organised on a shoestring' counter rally had grown in numbers in 
comparison with that last year with as many as 300 taking part.

Those attending included a coach load of pro-choice campaigners from Dublin who had been 
moved to action by the shocking Youth Defence billboard campaign aimed at traumatizing the 
tens of thousands of Irish women who have had abortions abroad. As we previously reported 
women outraged at these bill boards have torn many of them down, splashed them with paint 
or covered them with counter slogans.

All this in the context in the south where the Labour Party seems so scared of Youth 
Defence that rather than legislate for abortion in the very limited circumstances of the 
X-Case judgement they voted down a Dail bill to do just this and are hiding behind seeking 
a report from yet another committee. This 20 years after the X-case and after all previous 
governments have either tried and failed to overturn this judgment in referenda or also 
hidden behind getting reports from committees. This pathetic situation has gone on far too 
long, every day women are forced to make the difficult and often expensive trip aboard for 
an abortion or risk using medication ordered off the internet to self-induce an abortion 
at home.

Youth Defence have been crowing about their success in stopping legislation being passed 
under the weird '100,000 babies saved' slogan. Weird because in reality about that number 
of women in Ireland have obtained an abortion since 1992 through travel or self 
inducement. Women have not been prevented exercising choice by Youth Defence, its just 
been made much more difficult for them. It's time Youth Defence were stood up to, their 
constant campaigns of shaming and traumatizing women ended and abortion made available, 
free and on demand as part of the Irish health services north and south.

The history of Pro-Choice stuggles in Ireland http://www.wsm.ie/pro-choice
Follow AFA Ireland on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/afaireland
Choice Ireland website http://www.choiceireland.org/
RAG - revolutionary anarcha-feminist group http://ragdublin.blogspot.ie/

Source: http://www.wsm.ie/c/pro-life-mass-murder-arrested-fascist-belfast

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