National March Against the Badger Cull in London

Nation March Against the Badger Cull, London, 1st June 2013

With the mounting criticism of the government's policy of culling badgers to combat TB, it was only a matter of time before a huge demonstration took place in London.

A large group of badger activists set off from Bristol on a coach, stopping near Bath to collect members of Bath Against the Badger Cull, and headed up to London for the day. The atmosphere on the coach was vibrant as people got to know each other, and a team set about painting people's faces with black and white facepaint. Almost every was dressed appropriately for the day in black and white, with many "Stop the Cull" t-shirts and badger masks on board.

Arriving at the start of the demonstration outside Tate Britain, we were greeted warmly by a crowd of around 2000 people dressed as badgers. As some one put it - "There's never been so many badgers in London!". A range speakers from various organisations addressed the crowd, including Queen guitarist Brian May. See the video below for some of these speeches and footage of the march.

The march then set off with banners and placards raised, good spirits and lots of chanting, as well as sound system on wheels with a painted wooden badger on top.

The march was diverted at the end, and so we didn't go past parliament, due to a BNP demonstration taking place at the same time. Following the march, many headed to St James's Park for a picnic, while others, including Bath and Bristol activist, went on to picket the DEFRA office. On the way, we passed the pitifully small BNP demonstration, and some dressed as badgers chased a few of the fascists hanging around nearby.

For more on the badger cull, see: The Badger Cull - What You Need to Know