Czech Republic: "Let's Block the Marches!" supporting Roma in Varnsdorf tomorrow during DSSS rally

Tomorrow, 14 September, racists from the right-wing extremist Workers’ Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti – DSSS) are planning yet another provocation in the town of Varnsdorf. Almost exactly two years to the day from when violence was provoked there by the party’s promoters, the DSSS has announced an assembly on Edvard Beneš Square in Varnsdorf.    

Activists from the "Let’s Block the Marches!" (Blokujeme!) platform will be supporting local Roma in Varnsdorf tomorrow. News server Romea.cz publishes their press release in full translation:

"Let’s Block the Marches!" (Blokujeme!) platform stands up to hate in Varnsdorf

The racist Workers’ Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti – DSSS) has announced a demonstration in Varnsdorf for Saturday, 14 September. Activists with the Blokujeme! platform will be at the scene to provide psycho-social aid to the victims targeted by this march and will hold a children’s program to distract their attention away from the hateful demonstration, supporting the local Roma community at this time of crisis and menace through our presence and solidarity. The Blokujeme! team has been working in Varnsdorf for several days already, preparing for tomorrow’s events in collaboration with the local Romani community.    

The aim of the DSSS demonstration, among other things, is to commemorate the demonstrations that played out under the direction of the party on 10 September 2011. Within a short space of time, that demonstration grew into an attempted pogrom on the Romani residents of Varnsdorf.

An aggressive mob marched through the town, assaulting police and attacking buildings in which Romani families live by chanting anti-Roma slogans. When the mob assaulted police with bottles and rocks it was dispersed by riot units using mounted police, stun grenades, and water cannon.    

During 2011, Varnsdorf experienced several violent anti-Roma demonstrations which have permanently marked relations between the majority society and the minority population in the town and most heavily impacted the psyches of the Romani children in front of whose homes there were either street battles between police and racists or many hours of anti-Roma slogans being chanted. "We still haven’t gotten over the summer of 2011. That was hell. If you weren’t there, you can’t even imagine what it was like. The children took it worst of all. They will be scarred by that for life. Those guys want to unleash all that again? Do they want to kill us?" Romani resident of Varnsdorf Helena G. said of tomorrow’s demonstration.

In 2011, an informal civic initiative called "Hate is No Solution" (Nenávist není řešení) supported the local Roma in Varnsdorf who were the victims of this hatred during all of the anti-Roma demonstrations. That initiative is now working with other groups and organizations under the rubric of the Blokujeme! platform.

"After what the volunteers with that initiative went through with the local Roma in Varndsorf last time, it is clear we won’t leave them in the lurch tomorrow. We actually never left Varnsdorf, after the marches ended we took the Romani children living in the residential hotels that were targeted by those marches on several trips in collaboration with the Evangelical Church, for example to the Roma music festival Khamoro in Prague and to participate in Roma Pride 2012," said Miroslav Brož.