REGARDING the letter from E Nicholls (Echo, May 10) concerning the EDL march in Weymouth on Saturday, April 6, and the mayhem, violence, pushchairs turned over, injured nuns, police baton charges etc – hang on, I was there, and I can’t recall anything of that.
I had previously read in the paper of the proposed march, and decided to see what it was all about and so spoke to many supporters who I met at the Moby Dick pub.
They were all good natured, very committed in their beliefs and certainly not drunks. The EDL marshals would not have allowed anyone who was to attend or take part.
As for someone objecting to the taking of photos of the gathering, I’m sure that there were many hundreds of images taken, not least by the police and media.
After listening to their views and concerns I decided to walk with them the short distance to the cenotaph and enjoyed the friendly atmosphere and comments of all those involved to the extent that I eventually spoke, on the spur of the moment via the PA system at the end of the march, in support.
As a retired ex-serviceman, with no tattoos and a reasonable haircut, I fully support their beliefs, and maybe others should wake up and see the true situation and for those that don’t want to, there is certainly lots of sand on the beach to bury their heads in.
Incidentally, I also spoke to many police officers on the day, and they had been assured by the organisers that they expected that any breaches of the law to be treated seriously, to my knowledge, there were none.
The police, either the thin blue line or the thick yellow line, depending on your opinion, seemed to be enjoying the sunshine and a day out.
J E CAINE, Lubbecke Way, Dorchester
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