24 HANDBOOK OF CULTURAL GEOGRAPHYattacks were motivated by racist hatred seemed confirmed. Six days later, in the early
evening of 30 April 1999, a third bomb exploded in the Admiral Duncan pub in Soho. The
holdall with the bomb was placed at the centre of the pub, so the blast was concentrated
within the building. This time, three people were killed and 76 injured. The Admiral
Duncan was (and is) a well-known ‘gay’ hangout, and speculation centred now on the pos-
sibility that a far right racist and homophobic organization was behind the bombing.
It seemed clear to most, probably all, commentators that a small cell of highly active
‘fascists’ was at fault. Indeed, soon after the first attack, a number of little groups – such
as Combat 18, the White Wolves, the English National Party and the English Liberation
Army – had claimed responsibility for planting the bombs. Preliminary research by
police and journalists highlighted that groups such as these were keen to detonate a race
war in Britain. In fact, the bombings had the exact opposite effect. Different groups with
different political agendas, across the width of the political spectrum, began to mobilize
against the ‘Nazi’ threat. Thus 1 May 1999 was going to have a very different feel to
previous years.
As the usual heterogeneous groups of Marxists began to gather at Trafalgar Square, they were
joined by anti-racist marchers from the south, having walked from Brixton, and from the east,
from Brick Lane. From the north, gay and lesbian activists had occupied Soho and begun to
drift into the Square. At the bottom of Nelson’s Column, a remarkable array of different kinds
of protests and protesters began to mingle together, as the different groups walked through one
another to get to the podium, where speakers from various groups were set to speak. Though
different protests, and different causes, were represented and being expressed, at that moment
these turned into one crowd, one voice. What they did not know was that the police already had
the name of a suspect and were tracking him down. On 30 June 2000, David Copeland was
given six life sentences for the bombings. Chillingly, he showed no emotion, either during his
police interviews or during his sentencing. Nor has he shown remorse for his actions. And, as
you might expect, police found evidence of Copeland’s membership of far right organizations.
However, they could not find any evidence linking the bomb attacks to anyone in those groups.
He had, it seemed, acted alone.
Of course, Trafalgar Square – and central London – had been associated with
popular protest long before 1 May 1999. In London, on 1 May 1517, there had been attacks
against buildings associated with rich foreign merchants and craftsmen. London, before and
after, witnessed other riots – such as, to name but a few, those in 1660 (by Charles II loyal-
ists), 1736 (against Irish workers living in the area where Brick Lane is today), 1780 (by
‘conservative’ elements led by Lord Gordon), 1866 (for political reform) and 1886 (by politi-
cal radicals) – though for markedly different (conservative/radical) reasons. (It has to be
remembered that the so-called left do not have a monopoly on either rioting or resistance.)
Most recently, demonstrations in 1990 against the poll tax turned sour and fighting broke out
between protesters and police. It was said, at the time, that a pall of smoke hung over
Nelson’s Column. It was lucky it was not beaten up and arrested.
By 1 May 2000, police were on their guard (Pile, forthcoming). Not this time against
anti-racist or anti-homophobic demonstrators, but against the threat of ‘anti-capitalist’
demonstrations. Having been taken by surprise at the volume and ferocity of the demonstra-
tions in the financial district on 18 June the previous year, the police were in no mood to
underestimate the potential for trouble. However, they did. Within hours of the initial
protesters arriving, attacks had been carried out on one of the great symbols of the evils of3029-intro.qxd 03-10-02 5:17 PM Page 24