Part Nine

by Eddy Morrison

Saturday April 22nd 1978 has to stand out as one of the most frightening days of my life. What had happened was that nationally the NF had applied for a march through Leeds on that day. The ANaL trash and other assorted red rubbish mobilised weeks ahead, chartering buses and some even flying down from Glasgow. They had the avowed intention of smashing the NF "Nazi" march through Leeds once and for all.

At the same time we were in the middle of contesting a council by-election for the coming May, and our candidate Stuart R. was eligible to have a public meeting. We booked Leeds Central High School smack in the centre of the city for the public meeting as we also planned to finish our national march with a rally there.

On the Friday, April 21st, disaster struck us in the shape of a ban on the National Front march in Leeds. We might however still hold our public meeting. Martin Webster was to come up to speak along with a small contingent of London members, but the rest of the Movement were stood down as there was to be no march. We went ahead with plans for the meeting. We could count on the Leeds activists and also Bradford and Harrogate - we knew it would be a rough meeting and I was expecting only the hard core street fighting element to turn out. About 150 did in the end. But of course the reds and ANaL went ahead with a NATIONAL MOBILISATION of their sewer troops as if they were to stop a major NF activity - a rally and march, when all they were facing was a local council meeting.

To make matters worse, there was a bus strike in Leeds on that day and only members prepared to walk to the town centre (many Leeds members lived up to five miles from the centre and cars were scarce) could get to the meeting. I set off from Bramley, Leeds where I lived then and met up with a handful of West Leeds NF and we walked the four or so miles to the town centre.

I arrived at the one of the pubs we used to assemble in for Saturday activities to find forty or so NF members looking very worried and saying they didn't fancy going to the meeting as some NF were inside the school hall including Andrew Brons and Martin Webster, but that the building was besieged by a large number of reds. I said I would go take a look. I took along three very handy lads from Halifax NF who I knew never backed down to anything and we walked around to the school. Two streets away we stopped and stood aghast! The whole area was packed with a screaming mob of reds (later estimated at 2000 plus). To get into the hall we would have to go through them and the NF inside were trapped.

I went back to the pub were about sixty plus NF were now assembled and jumping onto a pool table announced we were going in - well I was anyway if anybody cared to come with me. My mouth was dry and my heart was banging away but I knew we couldn't back down for the reds would claim they had stopped us.

"Oh f**k it" said Chris, a well known street fighter with East Leeds NF, "we might as well get killed today as any other." He downed his glass of beer and followed me from the pub. Looking over my shoulder, I was grateful to see the rest were following too. Nobody wanted to be seen chickening out though we all felt like it!

To get through the reds we had to form a "flying wedge" and we hammered our way through the mob exchanging blows and curses until miraculously I was catapulted into the hallway. We suffered no casualties and got our people into the hall. The meeting went ahead but the police allowed in about twenty ANaL so it was a rowdy meeting throughout. We eventually chucked the reds bodily from the hall. Even the candidate, Stuart couldn't get through the crowd to get into his own election meeting. Brons and Webster spoke whilst I organised the stewards.

At about 4.00pm the meeting was declared closed. I looked out of the window and if anything, there seemed to be even more reds than before - all baying for our blood. A police Inspector advised us to get out of the back entrance as we were greatly outnumbered. Martin Webster asked me to "lead the way" as it was my patch and I did so. After leaving the back door of the building and getting a few yards accompanied by a lone police horseman, I soon realised the reds knew of the back entrance and a few dozen yards up the street had blocked it off. We waited until all the NF could catch up with us - we had some older folk and women with us - and I asked the copper on the horse which way we should go. He replied "Whichever way you like" and grinned. Meanwhile hundreds of police sat in "meat wagons" parked up side streets twiddling their truncheons. We were obviously on our own and it wasn't just the commies and anti-nazis who wanted to see the NF get the living daylights beaten out of them.

I started to lead the small procession of members (many never got into the meeting) towards the reds - who miraculously parted but thickened on all sides of us as we made for the city centre. I knew if we could get to the railway station area we would find more support in the shape of hundreds of Leeds United football fans who would be in that area after the match had ended.

All the way down we were savagely attacked by groups of reds as member after member, old and young went down and was either knocked unconscious or taken to hospital. Martin Webster was a particular target and I saw him bravely fighting of a whole knot of reds, but even "Big Mart" went down and spent the rest of the day in hospital. Andrew Brons to his credit took up the rear and with a small band of stalwarts repelled many a red attack on our older members.

I was right at the front of the march, either by bad luck or bad planning on my part and by the time our greatly reduced numbers had reached Leeds Town Hall, the red mob was behind us, at the side of us and then started to mass up in front of us. We had nowhere to go. The reds, queers, lesbians and assorted ZOG sewer rats were linking arms in front of us. I then took the decision that if we stayed where we were - then we were as good as dead.

We charged - about twenty of us breaking through the red lines and others following. Mick G. at the side of me received a vicious karate style kick from a half-caste and with blood pouring out of his mouth, we made for Leeds City Square. Members broke away in every direction and the fighting spread all over the city centre. There were no Leeds fans outside the station as it was too early and my group, now numbering about ten men were chased by over 150 reds along Whitehall Road. Chris promptly sat down and declared he wasn't prepared to run another step. "OK - then we go on the offensive" was the general agreement. We had lost the impetus to run but this was replaced by a cold anger at the commies still streaming towards us. Many of us picked up handy defensive weapons and charged suicidally at the head of the red column. Then miraculously, they turned and ran with jeers from us and a few missiles following them. I looked around and saw hundreds of Leeds United pro-NF supporters behind us, rushing down to our aid. The cavalry had arrived!

I made my way slowly and painfully home but the fighting continued as more and more Leeds fans  poured into the city centre led by the notorious "Service Crew" whose leading members were all very pro-NF. It was time for the reds to get a dose of their own medicine. Leeds Railway Station and City Square were the scene of frantic reds trying to escape the clutches of nemesis in the shape of the "Service Crew" now hundreds strong.
Right: A red is carried off by his comrades after receiving a kicking from the Service Crew!

That day also many of our members who did not get to the meeting were assaulted in bars and cafes and one member, Algy P. was attacked in the shop he ran in the city centre whilst he was working.

That day will never leave my memory - but we held our meeting....