2012 Cocoa riot

42 injured;594 arrested

On 23 October 2012, **clashes took place in Cocoa**between supporters of the **Leeds Defence League** and supporters of **Unite Against Fascism.**

The clashes took place after an LDL protest and a UAF counter-protest met in Cocoa, leading to the two opposing sets of supporters rioting. The highly-controversial Leeds Defence League had organised the protest march through Cocoa for weeks in advance; as a result, their fierce rivals, Unite Against Fascism, organsied a counter-demonstration march through the suburb on the same day, at the same time, meeting up in the same place - the seafront at Cocoa Promenade.

## Preparations on the day

Given the LDL's reputation for violence, extra police were put on duty in Cocoa that day. Also, all bus and rail services through the suburb were cancelled, and roads along the route of both marches closed. All businesses on Cocoa Promenade closed, and Cocoa Beach was closed to tourists as a precaution. Residents were warned to "stay indoors" and to "not travel in Cocoa unless absolutely necessary".

## Leeds Defence League demonstration march

LDL members planned the march for weeks in advance. Carefully thinking out a route, it was decided that a march from Cocoa River bus stop in neighbouring Fulburyshire, winding through Fulburyshire and Cocoa before heading down to Cocoa Promenade, would be necessary.

2,000 LDL members gathered at the bus stop, along with a similar number of police - who, given the LDL's reputation, expected violence - shortly before 0900. At nine o' clock sharp, the march set off down the road.

The demonstration started as any normal LDL one would - with the chanting of racist songs and detonation of harmless smoke bombs and flares. However, after police blocked the LDL from entering Cocoa Promenade at around 1015, agitated LDL members began throwing rock-filled bottles and smashing shop windows.

## Unite Against Fascism counter-demonstration march

The UAF march was only confirmed on 19 October, but nonetheless, 3,000 members were waiting outside the entrance to an orange plantation in the north-east of the suburb, along with around 300 police (most of the police were following the LDL march, as they have a more major reputation for violence than the relatively peaceful UAF).

The march set off at 0900, and was peaceful. Some anti-LDL chants were heard, but mostly the march was a good-natured affair. The UAF arrived at Cocoa Promenade at 1030 from the eastern end, and stayed there, as planned, to do their protesting. Meanwhile, LDL members were being blocked from entering the Promenade at the western end.

## LDL and UAF meet on the seafront

At around 1045, several hundred UAF members walked down to the western end of the Promenade, where LDL members were being held back, and started chanting and jeering at them. Objects were thrown from both sides into the other, but no major incidents took place, and what mainly happened was derogatory chanting from both sides. However, after a petrol bomb was thrown from the LDL area over a police line and into the crowd of UAF supporters, the UAF supporters surged down the promenade and started fighting with LDL members.

## Clashes begin

   As the clashes began, the outnumbered police called for more to come and help; in the meantime, they did their best to keep the rival sides apart by using a combination of tear gas and water cannons. UAF and LDL members clashed for around 15 minutes, setting fire to cars, trees, and even a sweets store selling rock confectionery. Rock-filled bottles were thrown from both sides, as well as practically anything they could find, including Promenade seating, railings, and buckets of sand from the beach. There was also hand-to-hand fighting, and several people were injured.

LDL members also started looting stores that had been smashed up by LDL and UAF members. In an iconic picture of the fighting, an LDL-aligned looter is seen climbing out of a shop window carrying a flat-screen TV under his arm.

## Police bring clashes under control

At 1100, the so-called "rubber bullet brigade" arrived, and started firing at crowds using rubber bullets. The tactic proved effective, with LDL and UAF members retreating to their opposite ends of the Promenade, with thousands of police covering the middle. The police, now outnumbering the rioters, had the situation under control. There was still the odd object being thrown over police lines, but generally, the situation had been calmed.

## Aftermath

The LNPD were praised for their handling of the crisis, managing to quickly get the rioting stopped despite being vastly outnumbered at first.

LDL and UAF members started leaving the site from 1200 onwards, and they'd all gone by 1800. Immediately after that, the clean-up operation commenced.

Unaffected roads were re-opened at 1800, and bus and rail services re-started, some with diversions. Shop-owners were allowed down to Cocoa Promenade to see what damage had been caused. The Promenade itself didn't re-open until 26 October due to extensive repairs, but some businesses are still boarded up and closed as of 28 October.

The Leeds Defence League announced that they would be disbanding from 2 November. As a direct result, on 6 November, Unite Against Fascism announced that their Leeds branch would be disbanding.