There were crazy scenes this weekend in Melbourne as protesters on opposite sides of the immigration spectrum came to blows during a protest that quickly turned ugly.

On one side were the far right anti-Islam protesters ‘Reclaim Australia’, unhappy with what they deem to be the Islamification of Australia and a weak government stance on immigration policies. On the other was the anti-racism group ‘Coalition Against Racism and Fascism’, the two facing off in a protest quickly turned ugly. Below from 9News:

“The clear message is that Melburnians aren’t going to stand for the kind of far right racist, sexist, homophobic attitudes that have really been embodied in both the United Patriots Front and Reclaim Australia, and that we’re prepared to take a stand in the city, that we’re prepared to say Melbourne is not the place for those kinds of attitudes,” [Vashti Kenway] said.

How difficult was this incident for the police to maintain order? Harder than it might seem:

“From a policing point of view, we can’t see the difference between the two sides,” Assistant Commissioner Stephen Leane said.

I’ll give you a clue – one group is a bunch of inbred racist Aussies chanting slogans with words no longer than three syllables, that might make it easier.

In the end police were forced to use ‘capsicum spray’ (how cultured they are Down Under) with four people arrested at the scene and more charged.

[source:9news]