ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the 'battle of Cable Street' as an effort to transform and perhaps qualify the democratic process in Britain. It examines the role of certain British ruling-class circles, which generally supported the former idea. By their eclectic mixture of liberalism and radical nationalism, the latter played an important role in the rise of anti-alien practices. However, neither the economic crisis nor the anti-Semitism alone would have provoked the battle of Cable Street if the political system had not created the conditions for this struggle. Both the communist party and anti-fascist groups, such as the Jewish people's council, shared two attributes that would prove influential in shaping the bloc against the British Union of Fascists (BUF): first, a clear anti-fascist stance and, second, popular support in the East end. The battle of Cable Street must be seen as a prime example of a liberal democracy in contest.
