HAND ROLLING TOBACCO The Virginian Socialist Challenge 16 July 1981 ground The 400 'shop with no estate.
police.
30 minutes, dows smashed and cars outside wrecked station, seemed to time for when they off they won the streets. Moss theirs.
first, Koad. smashing began to relax.
Everybody
onto the to each other begall nions. Young moved in of the Manchester stood no chance.
revenge, Side with his police.
squads in meat own streets.
USHEC DOCKS
night THE time is 1am on Wednesday, 8 July. A pall of smoke hangs over the 'meadow', a large field in the middle of Moss Side, Manchester. A hardware store has been burnt to the police, shields watch helplessly as young and olc money', 30 yards police lines. If the cops charge the crowd it just melts away into the nearby Doors are open to anyone who has to bolt for cover. The whole community, led by the black youth, is in open confrontation with the It began around 10pm on Tuesday night when a 80mph. thousand strong crowd of mainly black youth stormed Moss Side police station. It was under seige for been thrown.
its winpolice cowering behind their from the housing ruised around the area a Bv yom about J people had been arrested, by midnight, 150. And yet not one petrol bomb had But by 11.30pm a total of 900 police had imposed a curfew in Moss Side. The police prosecutor was later court: 'Any who knew what had been going on would stay in their own The only reason to be out is to be looking for effect, the whole was forced to stay in their homes. This is Anderton's so praisWillie Anderton attempted to justify the action by claimtrouble in Moss Side had been the work of outside agitators. He said:
personally cannot believe that it is within the of the noe a people inyoung people involved to plan an opera• There must be other people involved, intent on outside destruction and anarchy in the inner city There is no doubt in wole thing was pre-planned and was also the chased wielding Thursday We were just looking, were standing step? theme of local Labour MP George Morton who blamed 'people coming in from But if it was all the fault of 'outside agitators' why was it necessary for the police to intimidate the community by swampin were workers returning from night shift by truncheonpolice on the night? people arrested for on Talking to local people afterwards a clearer picture emerges. Everywhere people say the same: "+'s down to unemployment. "The police have gone to walking down the SUCELS.
jeorgın Side 15-year old in said:
'You can understand it The police seem to think they are some kind of You're superior species. doing nothing and they all roll up and make they're something specia No one likes being treate like that. If they have a g at me l walk away caus don't want any bother, be you just won't take anvmore.' Bas • Jonnson. driver who operates from depot in the heart of Mo explained the rea people saw comin Most blame the ToI government.
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