Youth Defense visit Limerick city.

On Monday the 2nd of July, a group of around 20 Youth Defence distributed their anti-abortion material throughout the city of Limerick. One of the points upon which they decided to mobilise was the Limerick Family planning clinic (27 Mallow Street, Limerick. Tel: 061 312 02). It is in this building that men and woman go to get information on matters of contraception and abortion clinics . Pro-choice activists believe that women should have access to safe and legal abortion and, equally, that women should be protected from forced abortions.About 5 left wing activists staged a counter protest on the doors of the clinic for the majority of the time the extremists were present.

An elderly member of the catholic clergy was just one of the mostly young crowd of anti-abortion protestors. It was said to the priest that this would not be the first time the church has sided with right wing extremists (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Catholicism) and that he was a disgrace to the notion of freedom and equality present in libertarian theology. He refused to reply.

Outnumbered, the pro-abortion choice group stayed calm and peaceful throughout the protest. This was in the face of high levels of intimidation inflicted by the extremists present. One left activist was verbally threatened with being stabbed with a knife by one of the male youth defence members. The individual is identified in one of the photos below. Screams of abortion is murder and requesting that several woman should not enter the premises for their own "good", were just some of the disgraceful actions of the Youth Defence members present.

The police turned up but refused to address the public disorder of some Youth Defence. Screaming chants whilst a nursery operated across the road was highly inconsiderate. But to be expected by this sort of fanatics. Upon being informed that these protestors have attempted to storm family planning clinics in the past, the pro-choice group were told to move out of the way of the door of the building by the police force. This is after the woman inside in the offices had given the group permission to do so.

We continue the fight with the other men and women activists interested on this island and abroad to achieve actual social, culturally and economic equality. In this context, this means standing up to right wing bigots like Youth Defence who stand in the tradition of hate, intimidation and fascism (http://www.geocities.com/irishafa/news).

For futher reading:
http://www.choiceireland.blogspot.com/ Pro-chocie activist group
www.youthdefence.ie Extreme right wing group