Bottom Up Resistance Against Far Right Attacks on Refugees
RAPAR as an organisation is one of the founding members of SUTR and have been campaigning alongside them since their inception. Click Here to see the Page on our old Website
NAZI SALUTES FROM YOUTUBE STREAMER'S BODYGUARD AFTER BRUTAL RACIST ATTACK ON WOMEN IN MANCHESTER
Press Release by SUTR Manchester
4th September 2025
Stand Up To Racism Greater Manchester
NAZI SALUTES FROM YOUTUBE STREAMER'S BODYGUARD AFTER BRUTAL RACIST ATTACK ON WOMEN IN MANCHESTER
Stand Up To Racism Greater Manchester condemns the violent racist attacks carried out in Manchester’s Northern Quarter on Saturday by far-right YouTube streamer Charlie Veitch and his bodyguards
In a shocking and unprovoked assault, Nahella Ashraf, Chair of Stand Up To Racism Manchester, was pushed to the ground. She required first aid treatment from a nearby establishment due to her injury.
During the same incident, Jasmine, a trans woman, was violently dragged to the ground from behind by her hair by Veitch’s head bodyguard, Fred Willis. Both women sustained injuries in what was a clear case of male violence against women, carried out in full public view.
Although Veitch himself did not physically assault anyone during this particular attack, he incited the violence carried out by his bodyguards.
On this occasion, he was the main agitator — profiling the violence, hurling verbal abuse, and creating the hostile atmosphere in which his associates attacked.
There is also extensive footage from Veitch’s own YouTube channel showing him regularly committing acts of violence against vulnerable members of the public.
These repeated acts reflect a clear pattern of race hate and targeted abuse towards the most vulnerable in our communities - and are being glorified by his followers on his social media platforms.
Witnesses report that Veitch and his supporters recognised Stand Up To Racism campaigners before launching a sustained verbal and physical attack in front of horrified onlookers. Members of the public captured the incident on video and in photographs, which confirmed the assault.
After the attack, one of Veitch’s bodyguards performed a Nazi salute as they left, attempting to conceal it on a side street. The salute was nevertheless recorded on video and photographed and has since been widely circulated.
Nahella Ashraf said:
"These people want to cause violence and attack women and minorities in our communities. They want to divide the working class, and we can't afford to let them grow anymore than they already have."
There are fears among minority communities that racist thugs are becoming more confident, emboldened by the lack of police protection for peaceful anti-racist protesters.
Stand Up To Racism Greater Manchester calls on the wider community, trade unions, and all anti-racists to unite and resist the rise of the far right on our streets.
That’s why we are urging everyone to join the mass mobilisation against the far right in London on Saturday, 13th September — to stand together in solidarity and show that racism and fascism will never be welcome here.
ENDS
NAZI SALUTES FROM YOUTUBE STREAMER'S BODYGUARD AFTER BRUTAL RACIST ATTACK ON WOMEN IN MANCHESTER
Stand Up To Racism Greater Manchester condemns the violent racist attacks carried out in Manchester’s Northern Quarter on Saturday by far-right YouTube streamer Charlie Veitch and his bodyguards
In a shocking and unprovoked assault, Nahella Ashraf, Chair of Stand Up To Racism Manchester, was pushed to the ground. She required first aid treatment from a nearby establishment due to her injury.
During the same incident, Jasmine, a trans woman, was violently dragged to the ground from behind by her hair by Veitch’s head bodyguard, Fred Willis. Both women sustained injuries in what was a clear case of male violence against women, carried out in full public view.
Although Veitch himself did not physically assault anyone during this particular attack, he incited the violence carried out by his bodyguards.
On this occasion, he was the main agitator — profiling the violence, hurling verbal abuse, and creating the hostile atmosphere in which his associates attacked.
There is also extensive footage from Veitch’s own YouTube channel showing him regularly committing acts of violence against vulnerable members of the public.
These repeated acts reflect a clear pattern of race hate and targeted abuse towards the most vulnerable in our communities - and are being glorified by his followers on his social media platforms.
Witnesses report that Veitch and his supporters recognised Stand Up To Racism campaigners before launching a sustained verbal and physical attack in front of horrified onlookers. Members of the public captured the incident on video and in photographs, which confirmed the assault.
After the attack, one of Veitch’s bodyguards performed a Nazi salute as they left, attempting to conceal it on a side street. The salute was nevertheless recorded on video and photographed and has since been widely circulated.
Nahella Ashraf said:
"These people want to cause violence and attack women and minorities in our communities. They want to divide the working class, and we can't afford to let them grow anymore than they already have."
There are fears among minority communities that racist thugs are becoming more confident, emboldened by the lack of police protection for peaceful anti-racist protesters.
Stand Up To Racism Greater Manchester calls on the wider community, trade unions, and all anti-racists to unite and resist the rise of the far right on our streets.
That’s why we are urging everyone to join the mass mobilisation against the far right in London on Saturday, 13th September — to stand together in solidarity and show that racism and fascism will never be welcome here.
ENDS
On Sunday 24th August 2025, the Guardian Newspaper published this 'COMMENT IS FREE' from the Chief Executive of Refugee Council. This is RAPAR’s statement, correcting his assertion that attacking asylum hotels and charities working with refugee people is ‘new’.
Attacking asylum hotels is not ‘new’.
In March 2010 the English Defence League attempted to break into our human rights charity, RAPAR in city centre Manchester to physically intimidate our volunteers meeting local antiracist activists about countering an EDL national march. The police were failing to challenge the ‘Allah is a Paedo’ placards that EDL gatherings regularly brandished at that time.
Since 2010 RAPAR has repeatedly challenged the Stop the Boats brigade, including coordinating the production of an open letter to then Prime Minister, David Cameron, from leaders representing the largest nationalities trapped in Calais. They never received a reply.
In summer 2020, when the government swept everyone off the streets and began opening ‘asylum hotels’, the UK wide Status Now Network that we initiated sounded the alarm about nascent targeting of hotels by fascist and racists and offered a blueprint of how to tackle it.
Since then, we have consistently called for embedding hotel residents representatives inside the anti-racist organising. However, these efforts are continuously obstructed by a Home Office that fails to compel its contractors to enable local communities to enter hotels and talk with groups of residents about how they want to respond to the far right threat. Most recently, two days following their participation in an anti-fascist rally, one of our members was physically threatened on the street by a racist he recognised from the rally. So far, the police have offered him a crime reference number.
Organisations in the refugee sector need to catch up, harden up and join in on the ground with the anti-racist push back. That may mean biting the Home Office hand that feeds them or finding another source of food.
Dr Rhetta Moran, Co-founder, RAPAR
In March 2010 the English Defence League attempted to break into our human rights charity, RAPAR in city centre Manchester to physically intimidate our volunteers meeting local antiracist activists about countering an EDL national march. The police were failing to challenge the ‘Allah is a Paedo’ placards that EDL gatherings regularly brandished at that time.
Since 2010 RAPAR has repeatedly challenged the Stop the Boats brigade, including coordinating the production of an open letter to then Prime Minister, David Cameron, from leaders representing the largest nationalities trapped in Calais. They never received a reply.
In summer 2020, when the government swept everyone off the streets and began opening ‘asylum hotels’, the UK wide Status Now Network that we initiated sounded the alarm about nascent targeting of hotels by fascist and racists and offered a blueprint of how to tackle it.
Since then, we have consistently called for embedding hotel residents representatives inside the anti-racist organising. However, these efforts are continuously obstructed by a Home Office that fails to compel its contractors to enable local communities to enter hotels and talk with groups of residents about how they want to respond to the far right threat. Most recently, two days following their participation in an anti-fascist rally, one of our members was physically threatened on the street by a racist he recognised from the rally. So far, the police have offered him a crime reference number.
Organisations in the refugee sector need to catch up, harden up and join in on the ground with the anti-racist push back. That may mean biting the Home Office hand that feeds them or finding another source of food.
Dr Rhetta Moran, Co-founder, RAPAR