Huge turnout in London for protest against austerity measures

 

 

About half a million people marched through the streets of central London to protest against government spending cuts.

Michael Goldfarb March 26, 2011 15:28

Police officers and protesters clash on Piccadilly during marches in protest at government cuts on March 26, 2011, in London, England. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

LONDON, U.K. — About half a million people marched through the streets of central London today to protest against austerity measures.
Protesters wove past all the major tourist attractions — Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus before reaching Hyde Park. Many marchers held signs paying tribute to the protests in Egypt — one read, "Rise up, Protest Like an Egyptian." Other signs displayed British wit: "You are tightening your belts around our necks."
It was the country's largest demonstration since 2003, just before the invasion of Iraq, when a million people turned out in protest.
This time, the massive turnout was due to government spending cuts by the coalition government. Prime Minister David Cameron is trying to eliminate Britain's structural deficit in four years. In order to do this, dramatic cuts in public spending — the largest since the Great Depression — are being put in place.
The event — called the March for the Alternative — drew people from all over the country. It was organized by the Trade Union Congress, Britain's equivalent of the AFL-CIO, and most of those marching were union members.
There were small outbreaks of trouble: The main shopping crossroads, Oxford Circus, was occupied by anarchists who scuffled with police and vandalized the flagship stores of some of Britain's most popular retail outlets. Fortnum and Mason's — a store whose tea and shortbread biscuits are beloved by Americans and Japanese tourists — was occupied by UK Uncut, an activist group that targets corporate tax evaders. There were scuffles with police here, as well.
Despite the minor clashes, and the chaos of trying to get so many people organized at the start of the march, the crowd was good-natured. Outside the Wellington pub in the Strand, a number of union members and others enjoyed a quick pint before setting off.
Paul Naylor, who runs the Legh Arms pub on the edge of Manchester, said there were many reasons he had made the journey from up north. He believes that 30 pubs a week are closing in Britain because beer is the easiest thing for the government to tax.
"But the main reason I'm here is for my kids," he said, nodding to his teenage son. The Conservative-led coalition has trebled university tuition fees, and cut the student discount on public transportation. His son wants to study marine biology, but the cost of that education is starting to be prohibitive, Naylor said.