Local Democracy Reporters face intimidation as anti-immigration protests sweep Kent

KentOnline / KMTV

Local Democracy Reporter Ollie Leaders opens up about his experiences.

Transcript

00:00I don't need to have your gift to use.

00:02Yeah, you're sending us some used toilet paper.

00:04That's my gift to use.

00:06Would you like to accept?

00:08It's not every day someone waves used toilet paper in your face

00:12when you're simply approaching them to get their point of view.

00:16We're not going to allow him to manipulate these.

00:19Or that incident getting tens of thousands of views on Facebook.

00:24But the abuse I received from Harry Hilden,

00:27one of the principal organisers behind a wave of anti-immigration protests in the county,

00:33is far from a unique experience for me or my colleagues.

00:38You never trust a lefty with your kids!

00:41Traitor! Traitor! Traitor! Traitor!

00:45You're not safe! You're not safe! You're not safe! You're not safe! You're not safe!

00:52This is just a snapshot of what covering the march in Canterbury over the weekend was like.

01:03A result of being singled out early in the day by organisers.

01:08Something which made reflecting the views of demonstrators there incredibly difficult.

01:14All these mainstream media are so utterly woke.

01:17The backlash had started online a few weeks ago.

01:20After we reported about hundreds descending on the streets of Favisham.

01:25But this new video circulating has been widely shared.

01:30And even liked by two senior figures within Kent County Council.

01:36With Chairman Richard Palmer claiming he hadn't watched the full clip.

01:41While Peter Osborne, the Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport, has been reached for comment.

01:48It was completely and utterly outrageous because it looks like an endorsement of that behaviour.

01:54And I saw in the Kent Online article that Richard Palmer said he made a mistake.

01:59OK, we all make mistakes. But if you hold an important position like Chairman of Kent County Council,

02:05you need to be careful about the social media content you interact with.

02:10Kent County Council buildings have been at the heart of protests in Canterbury and Favisham.

02:17Demonstrators at the weekend were marching to Connor's house,

02:21which looks after unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.

02:25I just find it absolutely incredible that any person, any ounce of compassion,

02:30would march on a children's home.

02:33You know, I find it almost astonishing that anyone would even do that.

02:40Just teenage boys in this home, not anything else.

02:46Would you much guess you're in teenage children? Absolutely disgraceful.

02:50The leader of the City Council was just one of more than a hundred counter-protesters

02:55organised by Stand Up To Racism, though this was far from the only pushback.

03:01While protestors chanted in the Cathedral City, a wave of deflagging was underway in Favisham.

03:08Where colleagues also faced intimidation.

03:16Yeah, well, with the camera, what goes that wide?

03:18Oh, no, not the cameras.

03:19I'll toe punch you if she's anywhere near me.

03:23She was filming anyone though.

03:25Is she allowed to just take pictures of people?

03:27Shady, you can ask what you should poke up your arse.

03:31And yes, I'll be honest, as a woman in her mid-fifties, I felt anxious about coming over here today.

03:38But I felt really strongly that we need to be visible.

03:41We absolutely need to be visible. It's not going to go away.

03:44After a summer of discontent, the anger that I witnessed on Saturday didn't come as a surprise.

03:51Caught between two increasingly polarised world views, it's easy to see how a journalist like myself can so easily be caught in the crossfire.

04:03Oli Lieder in Canterbury.

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