Organisation and structure of the English Defence League
[5] Busher noted that these individuals were aware of the tactical advantages of doing so, believing that in presenting itself in this manner it could avoid associations both with older far-right groups like the NF and BNP and with accusations of racism.
[6] Like several other counter-jihad groups operating in Western countries,[7] the EDL describes itself as a human rights organisation,[8] although this characterisation is not widely accepted among the British public.
[12] In its early years, the EDL was controlled by a leadership group referred to as the "team" and which were generally secretive about their operations;[13] they often remained anonymous or used pseudonyms.
[15] The 2010 reforms included the introduction of a code of conduct which commanded members to respect and obey the leadership, to act in a unified manner, and to be aware that any comments that they made to the press would be taken as formal EDL statements.
[19] The EDL lacked a central regulatory structure through which to impose a uniform approach to strategy or maintain ideological purity throughout.
[31] They were typically unstructured, lacking any formal agenda or the taking of minutes, and were mainly an opportunity for divisional organisers to inform members of their decisions.
[33] The EDL accepted donations and local divisions sought to raise funds by selling merchandise and holding fundraising events such as barbeques.
These have included official street demonstrations of varying size, unofficial or 'flash' demonstrations, petitions against mosques, leafleting campaigns, attempted boycotts of restaurants selling halal food, organisational social media pages, personal social media pages of activists, memorials for symbolically significant events and various charity fundraisers.
[80] The use of the hoodie has symbolic connections with anti-social behaviour and the stereotype of the chav; it was thus selected for its intimidating atmosphere and as a reassertion of working-class status.
[60] Reflecting the place of football hooligans in the EDL, some of its male members wore expensive designer clothing to its rallies, most notably Fred Perry polo shirts, jeans or combat trousers, and Adidas trainers.
[58] Lager, cocaine, a bit of shouting and singing, the possibility of a punch-up, surrounded by friends and like-minded others - there was an air of adventure to proceedings, and some found all of this very attractive.
[84] In October 2010, West Yorkshire Police successfully requested a government ban on the EDL holding a rally in Bradford, fearing that it would spark violent racial tensions akin to those which had taken place in 2001.
[84] In October 2010, the Home Secretary Theresa May granted Leicester Police's request to ban a planned EDL march in that city.
[87] Although some EDL members expressed reservations about the violent tactics adopted by others, this was not considered sufficient to stop many of them from returning to further events.
[16] After a group of inebriated Somali women carried out a racist assault against a white woman, Rhea Page, in Leicester in June 2010, the EDL organised a protest rally in the city, attributing the attack to the supremacist attitude cultivated by Islam among its followers.
[93] In April 2010, the group amassed a demonstration of 3000 supporters in Dudley to protest the construction of a new mosque, an issue that had already attracted local opposition.
[55] These individuals may have found a decreasing number of opportunities to engage in violence at football matches themselves, due to greater use of banning orders targeting known hooligans, a more effective police presence, and increasing ticket prices that had becoming prohibitively high for those on low incomes.
They for instance described the account of an 18 year old man from a White British working-class background who was a member of a local football firm and who reported that when drunk, he and two friends came upon "a pyjama wearing Paki kid" aged about 20.
He further explaining that a group of British Asian youth had similarly physically assaulted him when he was a school pupil, with his injuries necessitating hospitalisation.
"[112] Treadwell and Garland similarly reported that those EDL members engaging in violence repeatedly presented it as a heroic act.
[118] On the EDL News section of its website it produced articles, commentary, and information on forthcoming events and campaigns, which were then linked to throughout its social media.
[120] The EDL also used its website as a venue through which to sell its branded merchandise, which included hoodies, t-shirts, caps, pin badges, and face masks.
[121] The EDL has also used the internet and in particular social media to broadcast their activities, such as the placing of severed pig heads outside mosques, the burning of copies of the Qur'an, or footage from demonstrations.
[122] Despite its many unique features, the EDL is nonetheless representative of a wider political change that has swept across Europe over the past fifteen years.
[128] In October 2010, American Tea Party activist Rabbi Nachum Shifren travelled to England to speak at a rally.
[135] In June 2010 two EDL representatives attended the Counter-Jihad 2010 conference held by the anti-Muslim International Civil Liberties Alliance in Zürich.
[13] The Scottish Defence League retained secret links with the BNP,[136] although in Scotland, it produced particularly difficult to bridge sectarian divisions between rival football firms under the same banner.
[118] The Welsh Defence League faced divisions between its contingent from Swansea, some of whom were former members of Combat 18, and the Casuals United-contingent from Cardiff.
[118] After a BBC Wales investigation into the group revealed that a number of its members had neo-Nazi beliefs, in 2011 it was shut down and replaced by the Welsh Casuals.
[140] However recent attempts to establish a presence in Denmark and the Netherlands have failed to attract support and were respectively described as "a humiliation" and as "a damp squib".
