A disturbing banner flown over the Etihad on Sunday afternoon has been linked to a far-right nationalist group.
During the enthralling Premier League game between Manchester City and Liverpool - which finished 2-2 - a banner with the words "British to be minority by 2066" was spotted flying over the ground. The purpose of the stunt was not clear at the time.
But a nationalist group named Patriotic Alternative is believed to be behind the incident. The far-right organisation - which is led by Mark Collett, a former member of the British National Party - has claimed responsibility for posting leaflets with a similar message through the letterboxes of residents in Greater Manchester.
No one connected to Patriotic Alternative has claimed responsibility for flying the banner over the Etihad. The group's deputy leader Laura Towler has referenced the incident in an article posted on social media platform Telegram.
A video of the incident has also been retweeted by supporters of the group. "The front of the leaflet was very similar to what it said on that banner over the Etihad," a woman who received the group's leaflet at her Burnley address told the Manchester Evening News.
"It's a very weird and specific date and its shows an image of people from different ethnic backgrounds on the front of it. On the back it said that the country can’t cope with the rising number of migrants and that we are overcrowded.
"They talked about nobody being able to access social housing anymore and that it was ruining our beautiful countryside. It said immigration was affecting wages and increasing the cost of living. I got angry and actually ripped it up into pieces.
"There were bits of it that were really quite scary to read. We were concerned that other people might not have got this and that we were specifically targeted as my partner just moved to the area but then we saw the story about the plane over the football game."
The anonymous woman added: "He's [my partner] just moved here and it's not the most welcoming feeling if you go and pick that up from your front door. We are having a baby and thinking about the world they are going to be born into is worrying.
"We are going to have a non white child so it makes me upset and angry to see. We are in a scary world as it is right now. There are vulnerable people around here who might read that flyer and really take that information on board and that is a real concern."
Patriotic Alternative's website contains a countdown to the year 2066. Their projection is based on an alleged study by a university professor, which claims "White British" will be a minority demographic by that date based on "immigration and fertility rate trends". This projection is unverified.
The Manchester Evening News have approached Patriotic Alternative for comment. A spokesperson for the group told the newspaper they "consider it our aim to raise awareness" about their claims.
