by Fred Byrne & Hannah Fortune.
Students partying on Friday night following the first week of teaching were met by a loud anti-migrant march with protesters using threatening language.
About a dozen protesters walked along Kings Street past University grounds and The Bobbin pub chanting ‘send them home’ and ‘Christ is King’, in the first of an emerging trend of protest marches in Aberdeen.
Around 6.30pm on September 26th, about 30 individuals gathered at Don Street to oppose the repurposing of the student halls to an asylum seeker accommodation. An invitation to protest had been shared on the Facebook group Aberdeen Against Illegal Migration.
Activist Matthew Mossop, in his second year studying anthropology, observed the gathering. He saw the protesters chant outside the accommodation, and their move to march on King St about half an hour later, sharing:
“I suspect the spontaneous march was something of an impromptu launch of the ‘nighttime street patrols’ that they have been planning to do for a while. The police had told them such patrols were not allowed, so they announced that they would organise a ‘parents and community walking group’ instead.”
Superintendent David Howieson had addressed the planned street patrols in a statement to Aberdeen Live: “Police Scotland does not endorse, condone or encourage this activity and we are asking the public to refrain from participating.”
On Kings St, students were scattered around The Bobbin and surrounding supermarkets when about a dozen protesters arrived accompanied by police, with most students avoiding interaction with the protesters. Some students told The Gaudie they felt afraid, one pub-goer saying: “as a female I feel unsafe.”
Matthew shared:
“These fascist thugs pose a serious danger to the University of Aberdeen students’ safety, but especially at risk are international students and those from ethnic minority backgrounds.”
A first year student said they felt “embarrassed to be [near] people with so much hate in their heart” . Another first year added she was “disgusted” by the march. Two nurses sitting outside the pub said “this doesn’t represent our views” pointing out that the NHS relies on immigrant workers.
A police officer escorting the anti-migrant march spoke to people as he walked past, at one point asking a bystander “do you want to swap places?”. The same police officer appeared in a video posted by a protester who alleged the officer “put his hand on [me] three times.”
Later, a protester returned back down Kings St and approached a student waiting by a bus stop, telling her, “the airport is that way.” The student, who is Scottish, later said she was “gutted” but was less concerned for herself than for the wellbeing of her international peers.
A bigger impromptu march took place on King St on the following Wednesday night, announced on Facebook just hours before the event. Social media shows a few dozen marchers and verbal hostility by anti-migrant protesters towards police officers.
In August, the Home Office informed Aberdeen City Council that asylum seeker numbers in the city will double to 798, with student halls in Rosemount and Old Aberdeen repurposed to house immigrants for free while the government processes their claims for asylum. The move has fueled anti-migrant protests, which have been dividing Aberdeen since earlier this summer.
Don Street House near Hillhead Student Village was selected to house up to 166 asylum seekers, where Every Student had previously offered student rooms for less than £100 per week. Meanwhile, Unite Students had accommodated students at Farmers Hall in Rosemount, but now the building will be used to house up to 130 asylum seekers.
Replying for comment on Friday’s march, an Aberdeen City Council spokesperson said: “No application was received by the Council’s licensing team for the march. Aberdeen City Council policy is to facilitate peaceful protest. Any protest which is not peaceful is a matter for Police Scotland.” Police Scotland did not respond for comment.
A University spokesperson said: “The safety of our community is paramount, and we regularly promote safety messaging to our students signposting the various measures and services we have in place for advice and support.
“As a diverse community of staff and students from more than 120 nationalities, we pride ourselves on creating a multi-cultural, safe and respectful environment for all.
“Whilst we wholeheartedly acknowledge the importance of freedom of speech, this freedom does not protect hate speech or other forms of harmful or abusive conduct. We would encourage anyone who may witness such an incident to report them through the appropriate channels be that Police Scotland, the Student Advice and Support team or they may wish to use the Online Reporting Tool, which offers both an anonymous and an Adviser supported route.”