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          Set her free placards

          Protest against forced deportations of women at 10.30pm tonight

          Steve Bray and police officer

          “They might as well have called it the Steve Bray law”: huge support for Mr Stop Brexit

          Police speak to Steve Bray

          Noisy protest warning and now a court summons for Mr Stop Brexit

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          The mathematics of human behaviour: how my new model can spot liars and counter disinformation

          woman on boat

          Where have all the EU citizens gone, long time passing…?

          to seek asylum is not a crime

          Momentous week ahead for women trapped in detention in County Durham

          RMT official picket

          Rail strikes: is class solidarity back?

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          doctorbird

          Doctorbird (Jamaica 1998)

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          gymnast

          Culture of fear in British gymnastics uncovered by the Whyte Review

          Kennedy and Rhind

          Kennedy and Rhind: more time to enjoy a North East favourite

          Hoppings

          The Hoppings is back in Newcastle!

          Chi Onwurah MP

          Chi backs watchdog for fast fashion industry

          High Force waterfall

          Feeling the full force of Teesdale at the High Force Hotel

          A group of swimmers stand in the sea at sunrise.

          Interview with cold water swimmer Sarah Rowland

          Meat feast pizza

          Bella Italia launches new menu

          Ukrainian necklace

          Ukrainian Cultural Heritage: jewellery, accessories and some morale boosting art

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          Leek and mushroom bake

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            Friends Action North East

            Friends Action North East: supporting people’s lives

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            Reflections on Söke and lessons to learn

            Visitors in the former Holy Trinity Church, Sunderland

            Seventeen Nineteen: Hidden Stories in Sunderland church

            Refugee week

            Sing up for refugee week in Newcastle!

            Lachlan and Ryan

            Top sports stars step in to help male suicide charity

            Older person enjoying TikTok

            Go glammas! How older people are turning to TikTok to dispel myths about ageing

            A group of volunteers in high vis jackets, with their backs to the camera, operate a table giving out food distributions.

            Charity helps feed communities amidst the cost of living crisis

            young people talking

            Counselling support for young refugees in the North East

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            Russia’s quasi-colonial dependence on China

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              Seventeen Nineteen: Hidden Stories in Sunderland church

              Nigel Todd

              Nigel Todd remembered: a socialist legacy

              Three boys stand in front of a man. All three of them are stood in front of a fire engine.

              Firefighting Uncle helping to raise £260,000 for nephew with rare cancer

              Kennedy and Rhind

              Kennedy and Rhind: more time to enjoy a North East favourite

              Campaigning for Samuel in Loftus Market Place, 1906 - "More Boots - less Beer."

              Opposition to the first immigration bill

              dead fish

              Defra on the defensive over toxic dumping in Tees Bay

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              empty purse

              Cost of living crisis could put thousands more North East families into deeper poverty

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                The 110th anniversary of the Titanic’s departure

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                There is an England

                Prime Minister Boris Johnson signs the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union"

                The parody of disinformation: Boris Johnson on Ukraine and Brexit

                Boris Johnson’s comments on Ukraine and Brexit are an insult

                TV Agency staff jumping in the air

                The TV Agency celebrates 10th anniversary with global success

                North East of County Dublin

                North East of England and North East of County Dublin: Compare and contrast

                North Sea oil rig

                Copping out of COP: Ukraine, fossil fuels and nuclear fusion

                Placard with Boris Johnson as a clown

                Dictators, media and mobility: erosion of identity, sustenance and safety

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              Steve Bray, campaigner: first protest and what’s next

              “This government has stripped away my rights, your rights, everybody’s rights."

              Yvonne WanckebyYvonne Wancke
              14-06-2021 07:00
              in Co. Durham, North East, Northumberland, Politics, Region, Teesside, Tyneside, UK, UK News, Wearside
              Steve Bray

              Steve Bray outside parliament Photo by Sylvia Zamperini

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              Today I was honoured to interview Steve Bray, campaigner and activist. You may know Steve from his protests outside of parliament over the last few years, and from managing to get onto many TV news programmes with his flags, placards and megaphone. His latest campaign is against Tory lies with a ‘We Demand Better’ message.

              Are you still campaigning?

              Steve Bray is famously known as Mr Stop Brexit. I asked him now that Brexit has happened is he still campaigning and if so what about?

              Steve is very definite about this: “Yes, the campaign absolutely is still going. Halfway through the Brexit campaign it became clear that there was more to it. It’s about this government.”

              He went on to explain that he is from Port Talbot, one of the poorest communities in Britain. People there mainly voted to leave the EU in the referendum. This was based on a promise of a better life from the government.

              “They were cheated. They were deceived. Our campaign now is to get this government out. It’s to get a fairer representation for people up and down this country. For every one of us.”

              He also says that it is critical that we work towards being part of the single market and the customs union.

              Protest and pandemics

              My next question was about protest and pandemics. Some people have been critical of protests going on during the pandemic. What do Steve and other protestors do to keep people safe?

              Steve explained that he completely understands people’s worries on this issue. During lockdown much of the protest happened online. He then went on to talk about a particular day.

              “I’ll give you an example. 24 December [2020] for instance. We were in a lockdown but people still had a right to protest. I was at Downing Street…this was when Boris Johnson announced his Christmas gift to the United Kingdom. Now we all knew it wasn’t going to be a gift – it was going to be a disaster. But somebody had to be there. I didn’t call for anyone else to join me. I drove to parliament on my own, in my car and didn’t travel on the tube…”

              Steve talked about that day on his own, outside parliament with the world press there. He said that the police presented him with a £200 fine for “breaching Covid regulations”. At the time this was reported in The New European.

              First protest

              Steve has clearly shown a huge commitment to his protests. I wondered if he had always been involved in politics?

              “Funny you should ask because this is my first ever protest. It just never seems to end. I felt so strongly about what was going on.”

              Steve said that ideally he just wanted a quiet life, to keep his head down and enjoy himself but that

              “This government has stripped away my rights, your rights, everybody’s rights. They have divided this nation…they’ve lied, they’ve cheated and nothing about this government is honest…In a modern day democracy that is frightening and we have to do everything we can to oppose it. “

              I went on to ask Steve if there were any particular memorable moments throughout his campaign. His reply was poignant and moving.

              It was all about the people. Thousands of them. The people who came from all over the UK to jpin SODEM (Stand of Defiance European Movement) at parliament.

              “Everybody is unique, Everybody who has come down has made an effort. They’ve stood and wanted to be heard…they’ve wanted the world to know that what is happening here…the majority of Britons do not support what this government is doing.”

              New campaigns

              This brings us on to the new planned campaigns. There are to be a series of events happening in various locations around the country. The key message is ‘We demand better’ and there will be a local focus at different events. To date the events are confirmed in London. Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Nottingham.

              The London event will take place on 23 June at Westminster. This runs from 11am to 7pm and everyone is welcome to attend.

              The Newcastle event is on Saturday 26 June at 1pm at Grey’s Monument. Speakers included Newcastle Central MP, Chi Onwhurah, ex-MEP. Julie Ward and Tyneside Irish representative, Bill Corcoran. There will also be performance poetry from Harry Gallagher.

              Steve Bray does not want to just wait four years for an election. He sees protest as something that must continue. He mentioned the immense change brought about by the Suffragette Movement and how we must not give up.

              Steve is passionate and positive about the people in our country. He says:

              “It is down to all of you. All of you make up the United Kingdom. If you live in the EU and you are a British citizen or if you are are EU citizen living in the UK. You all make up this diverse and wonderful United Kingdom.“

              And

              “For us to sit back and do nothing is not an option.”

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              Yvonne Wancke

              Yvonne Wancke

              Yvonne Wancke is a maths teacher in Newcastle and also editor of North East Bylines.

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