Epic anti-Fascist march 90 years on - a 'reminder of hatred and division'

Bricklayer Harry Reardon was passionate about standing up for his community. One of ten children, he was raised in poverty but never hesitated to lend a hand to help others. So, back in October 1936, when the then teenager heard there was to be a march through the heart of London’s East End by the British Union of Fascists led by Sir Oswald Mosley, he knew he had to act. What happened next became known as the Battle of Cable Street, as an estimated 100,000 demonstrators flooded the area with a simple message for Moseley’s Blackshirts and the world to hear - ‘They shall not pass’. Now, 90 years after the event, Harry’s daughter Helene Reardon Bond will join thousands of others this weekend attending events remembering the successful stand-off. Mum of two Helene, from Kentish Town, north London, explains: “Dad was a self-deprecating man who loved his garden and was proud of his family, but what happened at Cable Street remained with him all his life. He knew it showed the importance of communities standing together and what can be achieved with solidarity. That’s as important today as it was in 1936. “Now Dad’s grandchildren and great grandchildren all know what happened that day; the story and the values he stood for have been passed down the generations.” Back in 1936, the East End was one of the country’s poorest and most densely populated areas, with high unemployment and poor housing. Traditionally a district where immigrants and refugees settled, it was home to a diverse number of communities, including those from Jewish and Irish backgrounds. But the British Union of Fascists, founded in 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley, was determined to sow division. They promoted nationalism, antisemitism and authoritarian politics, with their uniformed Blackshirts increasingly using intimidation and violence to make their point. Meanwhile, fascism was taking hold in Europe. Benito Mussolini was leading the dictatorship in Italy and in Germany, Hitler held almost total dictatorial power, as head of the Nazi Party. Writer and educator David Rosenberg, 68, who runs guided walks around the Cable Street area, explains: “There were 500 branches of the BUF countrywide by 1934, but there was a particular focus on the East End. Mosley tried to win the Irish population over, by telling them it was the fault of the Jewish people that living and working conditions were so bad. It was blatant propaganda, but if you’re in economic hardship it can be easy to believe.” But in the East End, an anti-fascist movement was also growing. Made up, among others, of members of the Communist and Independent Labour Parties, as well as trade unionists and The Jewish People’s Council, it was trying hard to connect communities and build unity. When news of a planned march by Mosley broke, a petition carrying tens of thousands of names was presented to the Home Secretary, Sir John Simon, in a bid to ban it. The application was turned down. October 4 1936 saw around 5,000 of Mosley’s supporters mass in the area, with an estimated 100,000 anti-fascists determined to keep them from marching. Around 7,000 police were also deployed on the streets. David, whose grandparents came to the East End from Poland and the Ukraine, explains: “Mosley wanted to march provocatively through that area. He wanted to go right through the heart of the Jewish community. Three quarters of the shops along Cable Street had East European Jewish names on them and about a third Irish, but it was sort of a narrow alley and initially, Mosley never intended to march down it. ” Frustrated that main roads were blocked by protestors, despite the fact mounted police repeatedly tried to clear a path through by force, the fascists turned elsewhere. But anti-fascists, made up of trade unionists, Irish dockers, Jewish organisations and local residents, banded together. Barricades were put up and, as the marchers approached and police moved in, people living in the shops above rained down the contents of their kitchens - and chamber pots - on those below. The slogan “They shall not pass” - used by those fighting in the Spanish Civil War - was chanted. Under a huge barrage, the police retreated and told a furious Mosley that he and his Blackshirts had no hope of getting through. Explains David: “Mosley complied, because he didn’t want to get arrested - he was due to marry Diana Mitford in Berlin two days hence and Hitler would be a guest. He and his Blackshirts had suffered a big defeat, it was a humiliation and the exact opposite of what he had wanted. Instead of driving communities apart, the Battle of Cable Street, as it became to be known, united them. It was a people’s victory and a pivotal moment.” In direct response to the protest, Parliament passed the Public Order Act, which banned the wearing of political uniforms like the Blackshirts. It also gave police powers to ban public marches. By the late 1930s, support for the BUF had dropped sharply. Mosley himself was arrested and interned in 1940. A Holocaust denier, his later attempts at a political comeback failed. He died in 1980, aged 84, at his home near Paris. Now the East End community is once again preparing to take to the streets, this time to remember what happened in 1936, with a major march planned on Sunday Oct 4 - 90 years to the day since the Battle of Cable Street. Says David: “It’s so important to recognise and remember what happened. In many ways we are living through it again with the rise of the far right today - we’re hearing some of the same rhetoric. But we can learn from history.” Joe Rollin, senior organiser at the union UNITE, who has been involved in helping organise some of this weekend’s commemorative events, agrees: “We need to remember that fascism is always there. under a rock. It’s up to us working class people to call out the far right. Otherwise, we could be doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past.” Meanwhile, Helene and her family are preparing to join Sunday’s march to remember the battle and the part her dad, Harry, who died in 1997, played in it. She says: “I’m very proud of him. Dad always said ‘if you can do somebody a good turn, then do it.’ I don’t think there’s a better phrase by which to live.” Executive Mayor of Tower Hamlets Lutfur Rahman said: “Cable Street is a reminder of what can happen when people from different communities come together to stand up to hatred and division. "But this is not simply a story from the past. Tower Hamlets continues to be shaped by people from different backgrounds making their homes here, building communities and contributing to the life of the borough. That spirit of community remains today.” *The commemorative march will set off on Sunday 12 noon from Tower Hamlets Town Hall. An exhibition, the Battle of Cable Street, has opened at Tower Hamlets Local History Library and Archives.