http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703399204574508093782965558.html
a.. NOVEMBER 2, 2009, 4:13 P.M. ET The Demonstration That Didn't Happen Islamist extremists are absurd, but ignoring them makes their work easier. By ANNE JOLIS Walthamstow, Greater London On Saturday, Islam4UK staged a demonstration calling for Sharia law in Britain. One hundred supporters showed up. Banners spanning 10 feet heralded a sweep for Allah's word; tents were erected as bearded men and veiled women distributed leaflets bearing Islam's message of hope for a world beaten down by capitalism. The vision for a Britain under Islamic fundamentalism was unveiled for all to see. Democracy was duly warned. So imagine when al-Muhajiroun, the Islamist organization for which Islam4UK serves as a platform, perused the ensuing headlines only to discover that their rallying cries had been erased from the pages of British history. "Islam Demo Axed," cried the News of the World; "Demonstrators Call Off Pro-Sharia Protest," said the U.K. Press Association. The Metropolitan Police confirmed that the planned march through Westminster had been canceled. The Islamic Society of Britain-already a treacherously accommodationist bunch according to al-Muhajiroun's supporters-went so far as to insinuate an about-face, its spokesman announcing that "Pressure from all sections of the community, including Muslims, has resulted in the Muhajiroun and the hot-heads rethinking their position." View Full Image Getty Images Anjem Choudary Anjem Choudary, who heads al-Muhajiroun, would like to set the record straight: "If our objective is to bring Sharia to the public, to let people see there's an alternative to freedom and democracy, we have been very successful." True, the demonstration did not travel from the House of Commons to Trafalgar Square to Downing Street as originally advertised by al-Muhajiroun's public relations team. (The reason for this remains a question-al-Muhajiroun say they received too many violent threats to go through with the extravaganza. One has to wonder though if the real fear wasn't of embarrassment from being outnumbered by the approximately 200 motorcyclists also in Westminster on Saturday to protest a parking tax.) Instead, it decamped roughly 11 miles northeast, to Walthamstow town square. And yes, Waltham Forest does already host London's third-largest Muslim community, with 15.1% of its residents professing the faith according to the 2001 census. So bringing a pro-Sharia message to that outer-edge borough was a far cry from marching it down the streets of central London, even if not everyone in the square was thrilled that al-Muhajiroun had co-opted it for the afternoon. One distraught passerby could be overheard on the phone-presumably to the local constabulary-repeating: "I just want to know if they have a permit-I'm not saying they shouldn't be here, but have they got permission?" Still, most of the Saturday shoppers-Muslim and otherwise-passing by Walthamstow Town Square knew to keep any displeasure to themselves. "It's a very hard line they're taking, isn't it? We're used to it though," said a blonde, 31-year-old sales manager who declined to give her name. "I live here. I have to come home to this. It's not worth it to shout it down." The absurdity of bypassing sinful, secular Westminster to go preach to the resigned, if not already converted, is obvious. But consider that the Waltham Forests of Britain let al-Muhajiroun do what they could not have done in central London: That is to calmly-without having to trade spittle flecks with hecklers crying "Islamofascist"-make their case. Mr. Choudary certainly thought he was making an important stand. There are, he said, several realistic paths to establishing Sharia in Britain, from winning enough converts to overthrow the government, to taking power after a military coup or a civil war perhaps, to simply waiting for another country under Islamic law to invade Britain. "I really don't mind which one it is. As long as Sharia's established, I'm happy," he said. Note that none of these options requires convincing a majority of Londoners or anyone else-popular support isn't the point. Perhaps the press has forgotten just how influential al-Muhajiroun is in shaping homegrown hard-liners. It was deemed influential enough that it disbanded itself (before the government could outlaw it) in 2004, only to re-form this summer. On whether his group inspired the 7/7 bombings, Mr. Choudary offers but faint denial: "I challenge you to name one member of al-Muhajiroun who was ever-while a member of al-Muhajiroun-ever convicted of any kind of military or criminal offense." The group broadcasts lectures by founder Omar Bakri Mohammed, giving him a platform in Britain despite his being banned from entering the U.K. It's tempting to laugh off the abandoned march through the heart of London, and to note that among Britain's Muslims, al-Muhajiroun is a fringe group. But does that prove Mr. Choudary's dog-and-pony show a failure? The police were out in force in Westminster to keep order, but paid no attention, for all this observer could tell, to the re-formed demonstration on the periphery. Sharia seemed a distant prospect in Trafalgar Square last Saturday. But out in Waltham Forest, with the authorities nowhere to be seen and Britons hurrying past and keeping their heads down, Mr. Choudary's agenda seemed less fanciful. There is reassurance in that, but also danger. Ms. Jolis is an editorial writer for The Wall Street Journal Europe.
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