The police chief watchdog says officers acted appropriately when two opposing protest groups clashed in Bristol. Avon and Somerset's Police and Crime Commissioner, Mark Shelford, confirmed he's received a number of emails since the demonstrations on Sunday.
Trans activist group Bristol Against Hate staged a counter-protest alongside women's group Standing For Women - who have been accused of being transphobic - as they held a demonstration in the city centre on Sunday afternoon (June 19). Approximately 150 protesters across the two groups gathered on College Green where the counter protesters were heard booing speeches from the women's rights group and chanting 'trans rights are human rights'.
At one point, officers were required to form a line between protestors in order to keep them apart and maintain order. Tensions between the two groups became so strained that police reportedly closed the Slug and Lettuce bar after the counter-demonstrators "followed" the women's group.
