Student protest DayX2 30th Nov

The 3rd Student march – DayX2 yesterday passed off with minimal violence unlike the previous ones. Protesters and Police both seemed prepared for what was seen at the previous demonstrations. The protesters were in smaller numbers than before, possibly due to the weather as well as apprehension of violence and kettling. It seemed as though there wasn’t much planning by the protesters in terms of route, or it was because of the heavy Police presence that the march kept moving, sometimes erratically, changing direction and looping at points.

Originating in Trafalgar sq, it went right down to Victoria, Strand, Hyde Park, then down Oxford St and Tottenham Court road and eventually to the Bank of England, then towards London bridge where it dissipated. There wasn’t violence or vandalism anywhere near the scale of the last marches, possibly due to numbers, but also the Police were out in force. There were a couple of scuffles; one on Regents street (pictured) when protestors tried to break through a weak Police line. Another incident involved happened when a man trying to drive down Piccadilly was surrounded by protesters and eventually needed a human Police escort to continue his journey.

What was noticeable was the presence of school age protesters from varied backgrounds, hopefully they were out because it’s the start of them having an interest in politics and for reasons of social change, rather than to cause mayhem on the streets.