http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2052630/St-Pauls-cancel-Remembrance-Sunday-service-Occupy-London-protests.htmlSt Paul's may have to cancel Remembrance Sunday service because of 'Occupy London' protests
St Paul’s Cathedral, which stood as a symbol of hope during the Blitz, may have to cancel its Remembrance Sunday service because of anti-capitalism protesters.
Officials closed the cathedral for the first time since the war after the number of demonstrators camped in front of it doubled to around 300 in a week.
With the protesters refusing to move, there are fears it could remain shut during the planned Remembrance service on November 13.
The service always has special poignancy because the cathedral’s survival against seemingly impossible odds during the Luftwaffe bombing raids of the Second World War came to represent the nation’s Blitz spirit.
City of London councillor Matthew Richardson said: ‘This is a great concern. It is very important that people are allowed to pay their respects to those who lost their lives in the conflict.
‘Allowing peaceful protest is important, but it is a question of priorities.’
There are even fears that Christmas services could be threatened.
A cathedral spokesman said: ‘A lot of independent traders are being affected and that whole part of London is not easily accessible.
‘This is no longer just about St Paul’s and it is not something we can deal with on our own.’ A retired doctor who turns 90 this week broke down yesterday as she pleaded with protesters to leave the cathedral.
Marjorie Foyle told them: ‘I completely believe in your right to protest, but this is the wrong place to do it. You are stopping people from worshipping God. It is meant to be a public place for all people, not just for one group.’
Miss Foyle said she vividly recalled going to St Paul’s after a night of heavy bombing when she was a medical student in her early twenties. ‘I stood at the bottom of Fleet Street just as the sun was rising. It was a sight I will never forget.
‘St Paul’s was glowing pink, reflecting the flames of all the burning buildings around.
‘There was complete destruction and smoke all around the cathedral, but somehow it was almost completely untouched. It was as if the hand of God had been on it.
‘I was with my brother and we both said a prayer.’
Miss Foyle worked as a doctor in India for most of her life and now lives in West London.
Protest organisers said they cleared the steps of St Paul’s during the times of services yesterday to allow access to the cathedral, which is losing around £16,000 a day in tourist income.
Demonstrators discussed plans to dig up the paving stones around the cathedral and start growing vegetables.
Some were accused of defacing a nearby memorial to firemen who died during the Blitz after the letters reading ‘CAC’ – apparently standing for Campaign Against Capitalism – were scrawled in white chalk on it. City of London Police said there was no criminal investigation because the graffiti was quickly washed off.
The protests are part of a series across Europe inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York, which aimed to highlight inequalities caused by mismanagement of the economy.
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