Place of worship raided on Thursday

[JazzyContemporaneousNotes]

I'm shocked by this, Quakers are hardly places where violence is condoned, or terrorism plotted! What a topsy turvey world we are all living in, now.

https://www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-events/news/quakers-condemn-police-raid-on-westminster-meeting-house

For those of a certain age Brian Eno wrote this press release about it:

PRESS RELEASE
28 March 2025
From Brian Eno: On the Arrest of Young People at a Quaker Meeting House

Last night, six young people were arrested by police during a peaceful gathering at a Quaker Meeting House. They had assembled to talk, reflect, and organise around two issues of overwhelming moral gravity: the climate emergency, and the continuing destruction in Gaza.

That the police chose to forcibly enter a Quaker space—a site known throughout history for its deep commitment to peace and nonviolence—is both alarming and telling. These young people were not disrupting the peace. They were enacting it.

We live in a time where the greatest threats to our future go unchallenged by those in power, while those who speak out are increasingly met with suspicion, hostility, and force. When the state begins to treat moral concern as criminal intent, we should all be paying close attention.

The people arrested last night were not extremists. They were citizens who care—young people who see the interconnected crises of climate collapse and human suffering and refuse to turn away. They gathered not in violent defiance, but in peaceful conscience.

I stand with them. I believe their voices are not only valid, but vital. If the institutions meant to protect us cannot bear to hear these voices, then it is not the protesters who are disrupting order—it is the silence of those who look away.

— Brian Eno

They were planning non-violent campaigning against Israel's atrocities in Gaza, so apparently we are America now. 😡

I am Jewish, before anyone comes at me with anything about antisemitism, BTW.

This is to be expected

That labour party that people believed was so 'reformed' under keir starmer was always going to be like this

Attacking the people too poorly to work but can't get pip, by slashing the lcwra element by 50% (Edit- for new applicants from next year, I think)

Attacking freedom of speech and protest (it's alright though, as long as some right wing nut job can still say the r word)

Kier was heavy handed when punishing the rioters in 2011, heavy handed with dealing with the racist riots (I agreed punishments were needed but his were extreme)

This is who he is, and who the Labour Party are. Terrifying times.

I'm a Quaker - I didn't make it clear, sorr

I'm just actually speechless about this, it's like raiding a mosque, synagog, church or gudwara. Aren't they supposed to be places of sanctuary?

What a road we're going down eh?

Exactly. This is really shitty. Once lines are crossed...

WTAF? Quakers?! What were they arrested for, their thoughts?

The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 and the Public Order Act 2023 have criminalised many forms of protest and allow police to halt actions deemed too disruptive

Thousands of tractors can block the roads in central London but a handful of Quakers can't have a discussion in a private space?

My MP is getting an email.

not if they harbour terrorists

What were they arrested for?

The Metropolitan Police stated that the arrests were made on suspicion of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance, citing plans for disruptive protests in London. They indicated that Youth Demand had expressed intentions to "shut down" London over the month of April using tactics such as "swarming" and roadblocks. The police emphasized their responsibility to intervene to prevent activities that could lead to serious disruption and other criminality. Instagram+3The Guardian+3Latest news & breaking headlines+3

You consider that terrorism?

Were the farmer's protests terrorism?

If i had access to Mi5 files then i can answer with more authority in my answer, i suspect there are more to this than we know.

Terrorism hasn't been mentioned in any articles therefore you must know. You're the one calling them terrorists.

How fucking dare the police invade a place of worship 😡😡😡

The issue is the oppressive laws brought in under the previous government about public protest. The police are obliged to enforce these as they're part of the law, and it's time for Parliament to repeal them

Religions aren’t renowned for being entirely innocent of criminal activity. Do you really think they should be immune from law enforcement?

Your comment is the sort of thing that was said in South Africa during apartheid, ie, it's the law and no one is exempt.

The police were not in there to prevent a shoot-out between factions of different theological persuasions. They were there to enforce a stupid law.

because i bet the intelligence services would of had more intelligence and just because the public are not aware of the specifics etc. plus from the sounds of their plans attempting to lock down a city basically amounts to terrorism, using fear to cause policy change = terrorism tatics.

The farmers locked down the city, they blocked the roads with thousands of tractors. They were trying to get the government to change the law through intimidation. Are they terrorists?

Just Stop Oil blocked motorways and made a nuisance of themselves for years. Are they terrorists?

yes any group that uses fear tatics to force policy change and hold the govt hostage by locking down cities or roads should all be classed as terrorists

You think the farmers and Just Stop Oil are trying to create fear? According to reports the people arrested were having a meeting and were planning on holding a series of protests. There's no information on intention to create fear.

According to reports, they were arrested because they were planning protests. They hadn't actually done anything. They're a youth group supported by pacifists.

based on what we have been told and im sure the intelligence services know more details

No worship was taking place at the time but rooms at the meeting house, in St Martin’s Lane in central London, are regularly rented out to other groups and activities

[Youth Demand] has been posting on social media about a plan to “shut down London” over April, using tactics including “swarming”, which involves a non-violent direct action strategy used by protesters to block roads. Last year, the group was responsible for spraying the Ministry of Defence with red paint.

On Friday, police made a further five arrests of four men and one woman in their early twenties across London and Exeter on suspicion of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance.

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/society/article/met-smash-down-door-of-quaker-meeting-house-to-arrest-activists-jhhchrtlt

I realise opinions differ on mass disruption as a protest strategy, but it's been well publicised that the government - both this one and the last - intended to crack down on protests without a permit, as they've been escalating in size, frequency and violence.

Of course other places of worship are raided by legal enforcement agencies - sometimes even during ceremonies. They always have been.

ETA: Public nuisance has been a crime since the 12th century. The current form of the law was made in 2022, mainly to clarify 'conspiracy to cause' which has been a common law offence all this time.

You assume they're intelligent.

I'm sure people said the same thing when Jean Charles de Menezes was shot dead

intelligence is not perfect, and if the public were smarter then why have they gave the us trump ?

Huh?

intelligence analysis is not perfect which is why the mistaken identity was made. on the person you mentioned.