Oxford Street Protest: First Hand Account

As I left the office last night to start my usual walk to Oxford Circus for the tube home, I wasn't surprised to see a helicopter overhead given the protests under a mile away. It isn't unusual to see emergency lights on Oxford Street - but it's normally due to someone fainting in a department store.

As I rounded the corner to find riot police in the road, my first thought was that there had been an attack on Top Shop and other brands, as there had been the previous weekend over firms lack of UK tax payments. And the evidence backed this up with 60-80 protesters outside a rather damaged shop window.

However, as the number of Police increased and started containing the crowd, the feeling and nature of the group changed. It became hard to judge who were protesting and who were shopping. Whatever, as fires were lit, there were some 300 taking action, as many police and several thousand onlookers.

As the numbers increased, so did the fire and there was strange mix of chants. It started with the expected (for a tuition fees protest) 'No ifs, no buts, no education cuts' with posters condemning the Lib Dems. Increasingly, 'Our Street' and 'Tory Scum' became the chant from the people banging and standing on bins. It was unclear what THIS protest was against but clear its participants weren't just students.

The crowd grew to some 500 with larger missiles thrown at the Police. I now learn that during one of the surges forward, these items were also aimed at Prince Charles. A strong smell of burning, alcohol, cannabis and a more threatening atmosphere filled the air. With protesters circling on bikes and many using social media applications on their mobiles, it became clear something was about to happen.

There was a sudden rush of at least 600 protesters down Oxford Street off to their next location at Marble Arch. On the way down they pulled the emergency stop on a number of buses, paralysing the entire road.  But as they move away so did the cleaners appear and the evidence of what had just gone was quickly erased. 

Having reported on student protests as a University Radio Reporter in France and the UK, witnessed teacher protests as a work placement journalist in France and covered a number of crowd events as a trainee reporter at Sheffield, I have seen more than the average number of protests.  This was different.  The selection of Oxford Street and Prince Charles' car rather than just Parliament and Government Buildings make me wonder the motivation of the protesters.  Given the slogans these weren't all students.  Given the alcohol, drugs and weapons available this was not always intended to be peaceful. 

The policing was fair and subtle; I witnessed no provocation and, conversely, during the run down Oxford Street I saw no Police control or warning of the general public.  The flash mob technique was successful if intimidating. 

As I walked down Oxford Street back to work this morning, there is little evidence as to what happened last night bar the repairs to shop windows.  Yet it is all that the media (and office) are talking about.  I wonder how long the repairs to reputations in Westminster and to the Students' cause will take. 

Tweets: Oxford Circus "Student" Protest as it Happened

Below is a summary of my tweets from Oxrford Circus via Twitter @cjgrinbergs on Thursday 09/12/10. 

1937:  At oxford circus. Riot police out after attacks on top shop. #demo2010

1939:  Mass rush down oxford street. 8 police vehicles & at least 60 police. hard to work out who are shoppers & rioters. #demo2010

1940:  At least 40 riot police in groups, helicopter over, at least 5 riot vehicles. more sirens approaching. #demo2010

1942:  @BBCTravelAlert Buses delayed on oxford street as wild cat protest & police go through #demo2010

1945:  Chants of tory scum andpolice battons raised in centre of oxford circus #demo2010

1953:  Tube back open and buses moving down regent street. #demos2010

1956:  60-80 Protestors outside top shop. at least as many police. 10 times aa many onlookers/shoppets. 3 more police vans. #demo2010

1958: Chants up 'our street', protest group larger, contained by riot police #demo2010

2001:  Chant of 'no ifs not buts no edu cuts' & 'tory cuts' now. Is this an anti tax protest or anti #tuitionfees? #demo2010

2005:  Riot police in groups at either end oxford street, Lines holding tourists, demonstrators & police apart #Demo2010

2007:  Protestors hard to distinguish from tourists. hundreds descending. flash protest getting larger. 300 May be. #demo2010

2009:  fire in middle oxford street. 4/500 now. #Demo2010

2012:  Chants change from 'tory scum' to 'our streets' to against education cuts. unclear what focus of protest is. #demo2010

2015:  Lots of alcohol being drunk by protestors, bins used as drums, fire stoked & smell of cannabis in air. #demo2010

2019:  Scuffle with police. bottles thrown. fire quite large. still people arriving about 500 now. #demo2010

2020:  Banner appeared criticising lib dems but chants of 'our streets' #demo2010

2028:  Fireworks and larger missiles thrown. Cheers go up everytime riot police forced back. more threatening now. #Demo2010

2032:  Group splits. at least 600 rush up oxford street. police don't stop or control #demo2010

2034:  Tube closed, buses stopped, thinner crowd and street cleaners already in place. #demo2010

2037:  Protestors on bikes circle everywhere and head off down oxford circus to next flash protest #demo2010

2040:  Lots of mobiles with social media apps open. may be reports of next protest. #demo2010

2044:  bus driver tells me protestors pulled emergency engine cut on all buses they passed down oxford street. at least 10 still stopped #demo2010

2046Heavy security in shops. many cleaning mess or guarding

2049:  Shoppers reactions: 'at least h&m's still open' 'we all av to suffer cuts' but mainly bemused/intrigued. #Demo2010

2052:  crowds clearing, still 6 police vans plus loads of officers at oxford circus. #demo2010

2117:  On way home, life on oxford street returns to normal but I remember why I wanted & trained to be a journalist #demo2010

2154:  Protestors failed to disrupt royal variety but prince charles car got it. didn't realise i was that close into things. #demo10

2208:  RT @gedrobinson Spot on 'headline' on ITN. "Rioters hijack student protests."

2208:  RT @voyagerd79 Sorry students, you have lost all credibility after what you have done today.

2212:  Policing I saw was surprisingly careful given closeness of prince charles but protestors tested firmly. #demo10

2214:  @TimothyJMoore It was nasty & the protestors were throwing large items & using flash mob techniques. Reports about right.

2218:  Reporting on news seems fair to me: protestors used flash mob techmiques, threw large items & were not provoked by police.

2222:  News has missed fact that protestors' slogans showed many non-fees participants & heavy presence of alcohol/drugs. They weren't all students

2225: Given selection of top shop & prince charles as targets, not just parliament/gov depts makes me wonder some protestors' motivations

Tuition Fees & Future University Funding: Rolling Blog

This is a rolling blog during the 36 hours ahead of the Government vote on tuition fees on the evening of Thursday 9 December 2010. This will try to cover & discuss the national day of action by the NUS (Wednesday 8 December), any news from London, the Universities of Westminster (my work institution) or Roehampton (my PhD institution) and any news on the political negotiations. All opinions my own, keep an eye on my twitter feed @cjgrinbergs and remember all new entries will appear at the top so read from the bottom for the start of the story.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1905 My Blog: What the #tuitionfees protests mean for social media & citizen journalism http://tinyurl.com/38d98v3

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1859 My Blog: Why I don't want this vote to spell the start of the end of coalition politics: http://tinyurl.com/38d98v3
09/12/10 1830 So the vote has taken place and there was a majority of 21 (323 for, 302 against) which is a reduced governmental majority from 84.  Apparently 21 Lib Dems voted against.  The policy has got through and so the university system can now start to move on and adjust to its new funding regime. 

I think there are some issues that have been raised about the wider political and media fall outs from this. 

Firstly, this has been one of the first protests organised and covered using social media (including blogs and tweets like this).  Though the shots of police charges and demonstrators are reminiscent of the protests over Poll Tax and the numbers involved remind us of the Iraq protest, this protest is different.  It is on a scale not seen for a while, a violence not seen for 20 years and organised using media that we didn't know exist.  The issues of impartiality of the broadcasters (the BBC will come in for criticism again) will never go away but their role as a reporter of facts looks secure.  However, as at the election, the use of social media & 'citizen journalism' to provide alternative comment & to 'rally the troops' is becoming more important, as seen today in the interactivity and organisation of the opposition to the tuition fees vote. 

For the political, this is one of the first tests of coalition government.  Neither side have found this easy and this falls into a wider shift in the Lib Dem's politics to the right.  It's not an easy shift and one which may end up damaging the party at its core but one which has been on the cards for some time.  Whether the Lib Dems will hold together is going to dictate how long this coalition lasts.  From my perspective, their 'liberal' input to Tory politics is the sort of impact I want them to have and if today signals the start of the end of that alliance, then it is a shame.  Coalition politics could be far more interesting and representative if we allow it to develop. 

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1836  @thisisdavid Always a problem. As is fact most camera shots are from behind police so students look like they 'attack' & not police charging

Twitter @thisisdavid 09/12/10 1832 @cjgrinbergs agreed that both sides have had time. But during the peak of the reporting it wasn't balanced.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1830 @thisisdavid But leaders of NUS & UCU given airtime + full interview with Simon Hughes last night. Balance is seen over days not minutes.

Twitter @thisisdavid 09/12/10 1829 @cjgrinbergs on the ground they were grabbing whoever. There was no parity.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1828 RT @jason_manc Ed Miliband wants it both ways. Condeming the HE changes but refuses to guarantee he'd reverse it. Pathetic, opportunist student politician.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1827 Interesting vote: 21 majority says worrying things about strength of coalition. what will happen on issues like voting reform? #tuitionfees

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1824 @thisisdavid But plenty against fees on the ground interviewed by BBC news this pm including very good interview with NUS vice pres.

Twitter @thisisdavid 09/12/10 1823 BBC news please spend as much time finding student voices as you have for the other side. No one against fees in studio yet.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1612 Just as the protests get hotter outside, so are things within the Lib Dems. Impact of the #tuitionfees vote getting worse.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1611 Lib Dem Resignation from Government: Mike Crockart to go. #tuitionfees

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1553 RT @journotutor Live blog of student #demo2010 from @JUS_news http://bit.ly/gCqn8i

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1545 RT @joshuwahwah Why would they charge the crowd with horses? This is only going to inflame the situation.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1543  Police horses charging students reminds me of Poll Tax riots. Not good publicity for protestors or government. #tuitionfees

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1541  RT @BBCLauraK Best current guess: 16 lib ministers vote yes, a few other b'benchers too, 15 or so vote against, leaving about 20 abstensions: a guess!

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 09/12/10 1530  Reply Retweeted (Undo) Still on My Blog: Rolling information & analysis as we prepare for the #tuitionfees vote http://tinyurl.com/38d98v3

09/12/10 1230 So the day has arrived and the debate has got under way.  I have a day full of meetings and business to cover but in the odd moment am catching up with what is happening out there. 

Victoria station was once again filled with students - mainly of school age who are realising that they are the ones to be particularly hit by this.  I am sure they are off to a protest and will join those already in universities and some academics. 

From an internal point of view, all University of Westminster staff have received an email from the Vice Chancellor saying that the institution is personally campaigning as well as via Universities UK against the reforms and will continue to do so.  He concludes:

We would go further and criticise the current Government for the imposition of the disproportionate Comprehensive Spending Review outcome for higher education. We will continue to argue for a rebalancing of the public-private contributions to HE that would have benefit for all students and all universities.

Though the vote takes place this afternoon, I am sensing this may not be the end of the battle and there may be more battles to be won.  08/12/10 2230 Just back from lectures at Roehampton University and I have to admit that both there and at the University of Westminster, there is little evidence of protests.  The tube had a few extra students on it and every meeting or session one attends, both academic and non-academic staff have it in their minds.  Indeed, some academics have told me they intend to campaign tomorrow in Parliament Square - one of the benefits of a central London setting.  That said, when in discussion with my own line manager, he reminded me that we really do not have to consider this as the end of the discussion on university funding: the issue of research and other funding has still to be resolved.  Though this is the most important part of the news, we cannot forget that the funding for research is also decreasing by 36%. 

There seems to have been a good 'discussion' (possibly a tad too generous a term) at both PMQs and a variety of venus outside Parliament.  There seems to be some forgetful Labour politicians who said they would take on board the Browne Review.  They are not in power so can make the grass look greener on their side.  That said, I have just heard that the government is confident to win the vote (ITV news) as they are not calling the Environment Minister back from Switzerland to vote. 

So, for all the political heat, a quieter day than some expected.  I suspect that tomorrow will be a little busier. 


08/12/10 1431 Just led session on research impact & funding: appropriate when we're talking about future of unis. #tuitionfees

08/12/10 1147 From 5live callers, Clegg not getting message over. Failure of communication rather than policy for government? #tuitionfees

08/12/10 1142 Just had a note round at work that Cable has confirmed that Part time students will get 25% funding, new students will need to repay when earning above £21,000 and existing students will pay from £15,000 but this will increase with inflation 2012-16.  On one level seems a better situation for those affected but not sure that if this will relieve the fact that more will have to be paid back. 

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 08/12/10 1141 Update at work - Cable: Part time students to get 25%, new students threshold £21k, existing £15k to increase with inflation

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 08/12/10 1136 More students & police than usual at Victoria Station on commute. Off to #tuitionfees protest or preparing to flood tube?

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 08/12/10 1134 My Blog: Rolling information & analysis as we prepare for the #tuitionfees vote http://tinyurl.com/38d98v3

08/12/10 1113 The UCU report on Universities at Dangeris interesting and a good read but I personally think that it misses out on certain aspects. The report examines the number of students from the Browne's 'favoured' and 'at threat' subject areas, the amount of income from the teaching grant and the number of non-EU international students. However, comprehensive though this number is, I think the report does not consider the financial situation of each of the institutions. Take Roehampton which was founded by three church organisations and therefore its finances are different to the mainstream. It's foundation basis mean that its financial calculations are different despite emphasis on the liberal arts. Also, the report does not examine the impact on the number of fee paying students and part-time students (which may go up with increased support).


Finally, it is unclear what level of debt the universities already have and what steps have already been undertaken by institutions to protect themselves in the cuts which is not surprising given this is a quantitative and not qualitative report. Certain universities have larger debts and less time, therefore, to address the current situation. Let's not get this wrong, we are looking at smaller universities (due to the research cuts as well as due to the changes in student funding) and a change in the emphasis of certain subjects get but this report does not show the entire story.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 08/12/10 1109 Clegg says #tuitionfees situation not a crisis.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 08/12/10 1105 Roehampton has backing of 3 churches which will affect how it goes forward & thus is not like others in UCU's risk list.

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 08/12/10 1103 Read UCU's Report http://alturl.com/2v2wz: interesting but not convinced by some of the analysis #tuitionfees

Twitter @cjgrinbergs 07/12/10 0953 Did Norman Baker et al really expect NOT to compromise on gov payroll? He should stop blackmail & resign. #libdems #tuitionfees

08/12/10 0937 Rolling Blog Live: Reading the UCU report and what it means.