City hailed for blocking bid to stage far-right parade

CONFRONTATION: Police control an SDL march on the Royal Mile last year

Councillors have been praised for their decision to ban a planned far-right parade through Edinburgh amid fears it would create a "flashpoint" of violence.

The Scottish Defence League's rally would have seen around 200 people take to the streets on the day before the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in New York. The controversial march attracted a flurry of objections over the group's "racist and homophobic" views, with Justice Secretary Kenny McAskill claiming it "could pose a threat to public safety". The council's licensing committee voted unanimously to throw out the plans yesterday.

Aamer Anwar, a human rights lawyer and organiser of Scotland United, said: "We welcome the council's decision to ban the SDL march. Neo-Nazis masquerading under the flag of Scotland will never be welcome in our capital city."

During the meeting yesterday, Councillor Joanna Mowat said she feared the parade could turn violent.

"Given the tension there is in the UK, along with what has happened in England, I think this could be a flashpoint. There could very well be a risk to public safety."

Asked to explain the views shared by SDL members, regional organiser Paul O' Donnell told councillors: "The main issue is the rise of militant Islam in the UK and how we feel the Government is not doing anything about it. We feel that when peoples' lives are being put at risk because of Islamic extremists, we've got to stand up."

Fellow organiser Graham Fleming added: "The EDL have members who are BNP members, we ourselves are trying to get these people out. We do offer moderate Islams the chance to stand beside us."

But the pair were grilled over photographs of an SDL event in Irvine, which showed participants carrying banners proclaiming "No more mosques".

Mr Fleming insisted the people carrying the banners had no connection with the SDL, but Councillor Louise Lang said: "The concern I have is over the lack of proactive action over those placards. I would not be comfortable in supporting this on the basis of public order."

Lothian and Borders Police did not object to the bid, but Superintendent David Carradice said in a statement: "If previous experience in February 2010 is anything to go by, any opposition rally is likely to be significant in size with some of the opposition wanting to find themselves near to SDL with a view to registering their concerns at the views being expressed."

Asked whether the SDL would appeal the decision, Mr Fleming said: "We will need to sit down and work out what is the approach now for the SDL."

Scotsman

It's THAT placard...

Click on image to see it full-size

For all the people who have been in touch to ask if we've got a copy of Peter Tatchell's anti-Griffin placard from Pride last week, yes, we have, and here it is.

BNP shows its true colours at Cleveleys

Four potential new members turned away, one driven off by overt racism and a Griffinless meeting that never really started

The BNP meeting held at the Frank Townend Community Centre at Cleveleys last night has all the hallmarks of legend. Not because it was well-attended because it wasn't - only thirty to thirty-five turned up at most. In fact, all we anti-fascist protestors saw from our clear view of the door was the usual old guard of the local BNP - local being all the members the local groups could muster up from as far afield as Carlisle and Penrith.

The only potential new member we spotted was a boy of about seven who was being dragged along by someone we can only hope was his father. This poor little sod was hauled past us twice, presumably in the hope that someone on our side would go insane and hit him with a brick but despite the obvious provocation Dad was disappointed and eventually scowled his way back into the Community Centre. Junior's probably the BNP's newest recruit now.

Despite the short notice around sixty anti-fascists turned out to protest against the BNP being allowed to use the Centre to spread their fascist views around. Many of you will know that we attempted to have the meeting cancelled on the grounds that the BNP is racist and divisive, but we were hindered by the actions of the Chief Executive of Wyre Borough Council Jim Corry, who ignored any complaints, stating that the BNP is a registered political party and must therefore have access to all the facilities that are provided to the other parties. Mr Corry might care to check out the regulations regarding the hire of public facilities to political parties because one of the rules is that;

'the meeting must be open to all members of the public, and not restricted to ticket holders or members only'

This rule is pretty easy to understand - even for the BNP - so it came as something of a shock to a small group of people when they were refused admittance on the grounds that they were not members of the party. When they very politely offered to join the BNP on the spot, they were informed that there were no membership forms on the premises and turned away. Strangely, they were not asked for their names or contact numbers. But then, they were Asian.

Similarly, a young man who came over for a chat with us, also attempted to attend the meeting but was stopped at the door. There was no messing about asking for membership forms in his case - he was just told repeatedly that he couldn't go in until he gave up and left. Oh yes, he was black.

There was even worse in store for the BNP. Not only did Nick Griffin (and apparently another speaker) cancel on them, delaying the beginning of the meeting (due to start at 7pm) until around 7.45pm, but the only would-be attendee we spoke with was a man who came for a chat with us before heading inside. He had obviously given the BNP some thought and was intending to go to the meeting just to hear what was said. On his way in, he was stuck behind the black guy who was bluntly refused entry. He stopped for a chat with him, both of them then watching the fiasco with the three Asian people who wanted to attend. Disgusted at the clear racism that he had witnessed for himself, he came over to us, explained why he was going and left, getting a round of applause from us for being a man with principles.

Annoyed at all this, Clive Jefferson, the BNP's North West Regional Organiser (the one with the dodgy number-plates on his car), took loads of photographs of us then complained to the police that we were taking photographs of him, before stomping back into the Centre in a huff, barging through Blackpool's idiot-in-chief Roy Goodwin en route.

All in all a productive and interesting demo, with people attending from Lancaster, Barrow and Blackpool, as well as loads of Cleveleys' folk and a lot of youngsters who eventually joined in (and told us where the nearest decent pub was, tut-tut).

We'll leave the last word to Clive Grunshaw, the Labour group leader on Wyre Borough Council and Labour's prospective Parliamentary candidate for Lancaster and Fleetwood.

'It is extremely disappointing that Wyre Council sanctioned a political rally by the BNP at a community centre that will be used as the main polling station in a Council by-election to be held on 22nd October. The excuse that the BNP is a legitimate political party and should be treated the same as any other political party is, at best, dubious.

Wyre Council was under no obligation to permit the rally to take place and indeed had they consulted their own policies on equality and diversity it would be hard to see how they square with a political party that espouses racist and homophobic hatred and intolerance?

The BNP claim that they have a democratic right to freedom of expression. However with the right to free speech comes responsibility. They should not be allowed to incite hatred and violence against other members of our community - they too have rights!

I was however heartened by a marvellous turnout of demonstrators from the UAF, Blackpool Trades Council and the local community who certainly made their voices heard! The demonstration was organised at very short notice and was a credit to all concerned.'

Thank you, Clive, and bravo to all who were able to turn out at hardly any notice. :-)

Cameron's unsavoury European ally

The Polish MEP Michał Kamiński is an antisemite, homophobe and nationalist. But David Cameron is courting him

Michał Kamiński, the Polish MEP and leader of the European Conservative and Reformist grouping in the European parliament, has been invited to attend the Conservative party conference. His opposition to the Lisbon treaty has led British Conservative MEPs to view him, and the Law and Order Party (PiS) that he represents, as natural allies.

But the picture is far from simple. In eastern Europe the road from communism to democracy has been a difficult one. While it has brought freedom, that freedom has at times meant the freedom to hate. Kamiński has impeccable anti-communist credentials. He has experience both as a parliamentarian and adviser to the Polish president. He has an equally strong record as an antisemite, homophobe and Polish nationalist. His politics fit as easily into the Polish as they do into the European context. He is at ease with both constituencies.

In the last years of communism in the 1980s, Kamiński belonged to the Narodowe Odrodzenie Polski (National Rebirth of Poland – NOP), a youth nationalist organisation that took as its inspiration the ideology of Roman Dmowski. At the same time, NOP declared its ideological proximity to the Falanga, a fascist youth organisation established under the umbrella of the National Democratic movement in the late 1930s. Dmowski and the Falanga were committed to a Polish state on racial principles, where the Jewish community would not have a place.

During the first years after the fall of communism, NOP openly proclaimed its determination to establish a national state. In its fight against the perceived evils of western influence, NOP mobilised skinhead groups that became notorious for attacking leftwing parties and the opposition. In the 1990s Kamiński moved on to became a deputy for the Nationalist Christian ZChN party. More recently, he has assumed the role of presidential advisor, since he is believed to be a smooth and well-connected operator in the Polish and European political scenes.

Fortunately for those who are trying to understand the man, he has left a good record of his political activism. A consistent element of his pronouncements has been his desire to defend Poland's interests against its enemies and critics. In 2001, when the leftwing president Aleksander Kwaśniewski made an official apology for atrocities committed by Poles against Jews in the town of Jedwabne in 1941, Kamiński made a public declaration in defence of those who felt that Poles had nothing to feel ashamed of. Likewise, his electoral call for "Poland for Poles" could have only one meaning in the Polish context: that non-Catholics had no place in post-communist Poland. In 2005, Kamiński publicly used a particularly vulgar phrase to describe homosexuals when interviewed on television about the then mayor of Warsaw's refusal to give permission for a gay pride march.

When Kamiński wants to be seen as a European statesman, his earlier pronouncements are quoted against him. His response has been to refuse to engage with his critics. The reason for this disdain lies in his confidence that what he has said – and the values to which he very likely still subscribes – cannot injure his political base in Poland. In a country where no politician, clergyman or activist has been prosecuted for antisemitic pronouncements, even though these are neither few nor discreet, what Kamiński has to say on the Jewish question is widely condoned. To the horror of those Poles who had hoped for a process of reconciliation between Jews and non-Jews after the debates on Jedwabne, an attempt was made last year to prosecute Jan Gross, the author of a book about Jedwabne and a more recent book on antisemitism after the war, for slandering Poland.

Tolerance of sexual diversity, meanwhile, is not something most Poles understand or want to understand. Since sexuality is seen through the prism of the Polish woman's duty to bear children for the nation, the rights of individuals and pleas for tolerance fall on deaf ears. Kamiński's contempt for homosexuals is matched by the contempt of the ruling Polish centre-right for women and their right to assert control over their bodies.

If Kamiński is made to feel politically comfortable in Strasbourg and at the Conservative party conference, it will confirm his conviction that good use can be made of him and the Polish PiS grouping because of their opposition to the Lisbon treaty. Kamiński's friends have previously threatened to refuse to co-operate with other conservatives when Kamiński was not elected as vice-president of the European parliament for the Conservative and Reformist bloc. If they withdrew now, the bloc would be very close to dissolution, because parliamentary rules require a grouping to bring together MEPs from 7 countries.

Kamiński's previous visit to the United Kingdom was in 1999, when he led a delegation to comfort General Pinochet, pending his extradition to Spain. Kamiński gave the ailing general a replica of the Black Madonna icon. Both men were apparently deeply moved and Kamiński declared this to be the most uplifting moment of his entire life. One wonders if his meeting with David Cameron will have the same impact.

Comment is free

We should be exposing and ridiculing the BNP, not banning it

Much fuss has been made about whether we should ban the British National Party from appearing on Question Time and the Trades Union Congress now wants to bar anyone who is a member of the party from working in the public sector.

The party is undoubtedly racist, homophobic and sexist but the TUC's proposal is deeply disturbing. Firstly it suggests that anyone holding undesirable or unpleasant views should be denied access to the right to work. Most of us don't particularly want to work next to someone who thinks some people should be "sent home" but almost as damaging to democracy is the idea of censuring unpopular or unpleasant political views.

Secondly, instead of challenging these views head-on, it means we push them (and their advocates) out of sight. It smacks of "If we close our eyes, it'll go away." It also suggests we don't have enough conviction in our own views, as if these are not strong enough to stand up against hate.

Let's look at some of the weirder views held by the party: legal director Lee Barnes has a particular hatred of flat-chested women and describes those with dwarfism as "pitiful products of the flaws in nature".

Or what about the disgusting views of Nick Eriksen, the BNP candidate who said women would be more upset if their handbag was stolen then if they were raped. This charming specimen added that some women were "like gongs. They need to be struck regularly". Another example is the party's bizarre grasp of British history, something any A-level history student should be able to dismantle quite easily.

All these examples show that letting them have their say is the way forward. Let the BNP speak, sprout nonsense, tie itself up in semantic knots. To shy away from rubbishing such confused, unpleasant and sometimes downright mad sentiments is ridiculous and even cowardly. You can't stop people from voting in a certain way, but you can at least give extremist parties such as this ample rope to hang themselves and expose their views for what they really are.

People often say that it is useless to attempt to engage the party in rational debate but this is a strange way of thinking. Of course general opinion on issues such as immigration varies, but most of us do not want "voluntary repatriation" of people with dark skin or any other of the party's hateful policies and have quite enough arguments to throw back. In fact, many of these policies are so irrational, a brief gust of logical debate should blow them away.

Mainstream politicians need to stop creating a legend of fear around the BNP. It's unnecessary. This is not a powerful party by any means. It is facing a costly court battle over its membership policies, a fight which has the potential to close it down. In addition, it is unlikely to be hiring the best political minds in the business, due to the stigma of association and the issue of money.

Get rid of 'no platform' and forget trying to sack BNP members. Hell, let them sit next to David Dimbleby if needs be. Instead of pretending they're not there and allowing them a kind of perverse matyrdom, seek them out, challenge them and drown out their voices in a sea of reasoned, logical debate.

Pink News

BNP refutes allegations of homophobia and sexism as unions vote to ban its members

The British National Party has denied being homophobic and sexist, following a Trades Union Congress decision to recognise it as such

Delegates at the TUC's annual conference also decided to campaign for a ban on BNP members working in the public sector in professions such as teaching and the civil service.

The party bars black and Asian people from becoming members, although it is currently debating whether to lift this ban in the face of costly legal action. Along with its views on race, the party also believes homosexuality should be kept behind closed doors and should not be "promoted".

Last weekend, the TUC annual conference approved a motion which called for the encouragement of affiliate groups to point out that the BNP is "homophobic and sexist" in any literature about the party. It also pledged to work with Unite Against Fascism, Searchlight and other organisations to "expose BNP homophobia and sexism".

Speaking to PinkNews.co.uk, BNP spokesman Simon Darby denied the party was anti-gay. He said: "That's not true, we're not homophobic. We couldn't care less about people's sexuality, it's a private matter. If people are over 18 years old it's a private matter what they get up to in their bedrooms. But young children should not be exposed to [teaching about] homosexuality. We don't think it's something that five-year-olds should learn about it, which they currently are."

On the accusations of sexism, Darby said: "We do believe in the concept of being a good mother and although young women are encouraged to go and have careers, they are not encouraged to be good mothers. I suppose the one thing where people could accuse us of sexism is that we don't really agree with sending women into the frontlines of battle. It's not a sign of a civilised society when you have women fighting your wars."

Darby also set out the party's views on gay adoption and the legal recognition of gay relationships. On gay adoption, he said: "We believe we have natural views, rather than conservative ones, on parenting. We believe a healthy childhood should have a mother and a father. He added: "There is scope for longstanding [gay] partners to be recognised, so long as it doesn't undermine the sanctity of marriage."

Darby also claimed that activists such as Peter Tatchell were doing gays "a great disservice" and said the gay community was more concerned about the "spread of Islam" than BNP policies.

In May, PinkNews.co.uk exclusively reported that the BNP had drawn up a list of politicians from all three main parties describing a number of gay MPs as "buggers" and "criminals", grouping them with convicted paedophiles.

Pink News

Open Letter to Doncaster Mayor Peter Davies

This open letter is currently being circulated amongst trade unionists and citizens of Doncaster, as a response to the actions of the Doncaster Mayor Peter Davies. The petition below will be added to the physical petition and presented to the Mayor at the Mansion House.

Petition: Open Letter to Peter Davies

Mayor Davies,

STOP ATTACKING EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

Since your election you have denied many times that you are racist, homophobic and sexist. You argue that you are against something called ‘political correctness’, and say you will get rid of ‘non-jobs’ in Doncaster. We the undersigned believe that your attack on ‘political correctness’ is nothing more than a smoke screen to undermine the equalities agenda that enables people who suffer discrimination to effectively challenge it. We totally disagree with your claim that your elimination of groups dedicated to helping those who suffer discrimination such as the Multi Racial Partnership will bring social cohesion. Your policies will trivialise discrimination and allow intolerance and bigotry to grow.

You proudly boast that you will axe translation services in Doncaster, as if this service is unnecessary and ‘politically correct’. You fail to understand that people in Doncaster who do not have English as a first language must have some help if they are to integrate into the community, find work, housing, learn about British law and become citizens. Scrapping translation services isolates the people who are most likely to suffer discrimination, increases and institutionalises intolerance and increases division, not cohesion. Your decision to withdraw funding from Doncaster Pride merely comforted homophobic bigots and gave offense to the LGBT community. What is wrong with saying that Doncaster actively celebrates diversity? We demand that you commit to the funding of Doncaster Pride and thereby commit to promoting tolerance and diversity.

You argue that women and ethnic minorities do not need special groups to defend their rights because we all have equal entitlement to our rights already. You fail to understand that the various bodies you attack were brought into existence because these groups were being denied their rights. The denial of rights based on racist, sexist or homophobic prejudice divides our community and destroys social cohesion. That is precisely why the Multi Racial Partnership was set up. You have said we do not need special groups because the police are there to deal with illegal racist acts, but the police themselves say they are too busy to deal with this on their own.

In a recent debate about crime in Doncaster the police officer on the panel emphasised the value of breaking down the perception of the police as a racist institution so that those who suffer attacks will feel more confident about coming forward. The police, it would appear, are being ‘politically correct’ to the advantage of their work and Doncaster.

You have also claimed that you will be ‘looking to see if Doncaster council bans the use of any specific words by staff’ (Daily Mail, 10/08/09). There have to be some limits as to the language DMBC staff will use – what will they be? Will people be able to use words regardless of whether others find them offensive? The Macpherson Report (1999) that called the Metropolitan Police ‘institutionally racist’ showed clearly that officers with racist attitudes used racist language. Words like ‘paki’ and ‘nigger’ were common. The same police force failed to find the killers of Black student Stephen Lawrence. Offensive language should be prohibited and the victims should be supported by DMBC, not trivialised as ‘politically correct’.

You fail to understand that once we start changing the equalities agenda that the overwhelming majority of professionals support, it will be difficult to stop. The racist, homophobic and sexist bigots have already started to interpret your policies as an endorsement of their repugnant views. Prejudice can lead to violence. Do you want innocent blood on your hands?

You say you are not a bigot, but your policies and comments are encouraging bigotry. You have company. The fascist British National Party and the National Front are also keen on attacking ‘political correctness’. You have to acknowledge that at some point the attack on political correctness does become racist, homophobic and sexist. It seems to us that you want to court popularity by going for the politically correct phantoms of the gutter press, with their stories about banning the use of ‘manholes’ and ‘blackboards’. But the equalities agenda is a vital part of the fabric of our public services and we will not see it destroyed. The jobs you want to axe will increase the unemployment blighting our town, and increase racism, sexism, homophobia and social division.

Sign the petition

Tatchell urges pink voters to stop BNP

Human Rights campaigner Peter Tatchell and Unite Against Fascism, the national campaign against the British National Party, is urging all people, including lesbian, gay and bisexuals, to utilise their votes at the European Election on 4 June.

The UAF are extremely concerned about the threat of the BNP targeting voters in the North West of England. As a result, the Manchester arm of the organisation is urging everyone to vote against extreme-right political groups.

A spokesperson for UAF spoke of the threat of the BNP, saying: “Recently we have seen the election of the BNP to the London Assembly and currently this fascist party has 55 councillors across the country. Several BNP members have convictions for possession of bomb-making materials. Their leader, Nick Griffin, has a criminal conviction for denying the Holocaust. David Copeland, jailed for bombings in London, said he wanted to start a ‘race war’, with ‘all the white people going out to vote BNP’. They must be stopped, otherwise the progression we have made in recent years could be u-turned.”

Tatchell added: "As we all know, the BNP is a racist and homophobic party. It refuses to allow non-white people to be members and wants to pressure black people to leave the UK. As well as supporting a policy of de facto 'ethnic cleansing,' the BNP has fought previous general elections on a pledge to outlaw homosexuality. It has described Aids as "nature taking revenge" on gay men. It opposed the repeal of Section 28 and the equalisation of the age of consent."

DIVA

Prince mocks gays and Asians in secret video

Prince Harry - racist, homophobic, ignorant and inbred. A BNP candidate if ever I saw one.

'Paki' jibe set to infuriate army chiefs aiming to recruit Muslims into forces

A secret video showing Prince Harry making racist remarks and mocking his late grandmother has been discovered.

The prince, who is third in line to the throne, made the comments in footage shot while training as an officer at the Sandhurst military academy in 2006, a year after being forced to make a public apology for wearing a Nazi swastika at a fancy dress party.

In the film, the 24-year-old prince calls an officer from the Pakistani army, who was on the course with him, "our little Paki friend" and, when he sees another officer cadet wearing a camouflage veil, exclaims: "Fuck me, you look like a raghead." He also mocks the Queen - the commander-in-chief of the British army - during a pretend mobile phone call to the late Queen Mother.

Last night, St James's Palace issued an apology for Harry's behaviour in the film, obtained by the News of the World. A Ministry of Defence spokesman said last night: "This sort of language is not acceptable in a modern army."

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has demanded a formal inquiry into Harry's behaviour, and Muslim groups and leading MPs have warned the comments could increase tensions with Islamic groups in the UK.

The film will infuriate army chiefs, who are actively trying to recruit Muslims as intelligence officers and translators for the campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. Staff officers have insisted the Army's policy must be "zero tolerance to all forms of discrimination". But the casual use of racist terms by Harry, who was promoted to lieutenant last year, appears to add weight to recent claims by a Jamaican-born soldier that he faced regular racist abuse from non-commissioned and senior officers.

In September, three army instructors were suspended after an undercover BBC investigation into the Infantry Training Centre at Catterick, in Yorkshire. During the programme, one recruit was secretly filmed yelling "Paki" as he plunged his bayonet into a target dummy.

The video begins as the prince joins other cadets gathering at an airport for their flight to Cyprus. Harry is behind the camcorder, panning over snoozing soldiers when he zooms in on the face of a Pakistani soldier. "Ah, our little Paki friend ... Ahmed," he whispers.

The second remark comes after arriving in Cyprus. Harry is again filming his comrades when one puts what appears to be some camouflage over his head. Harry says: "It's Dan the Man ... Fuck me, you look like a raghead."

Later, Harry is filmed pretending to finish a call to the Queen. "I've got to go, got to go. Send my love to the corgis. Send my love to the corgis and Grandpa. God Save You... yeah, that's great."

In another piece of footage, Harry gives orders to his comrades on an upcoming exercise. When he asks if there are any questions, one says: "Are your pubes ginger too?" Harry replies: "Yes, they are," to laughter from the rest.

Later Harry, again wielding the camera, asks another member of the squad to talk through the exercise they have just done. He asks for "your ups and downs in the exercise. Highs and lows ... Good points, bad points." Off camera, he adds: "How do you feel? Gay? Queer on the side?"

Observer

Church leader ‘stupid’ to sign up to the BNP

A former council chairman and church leader who joined the British National Party as a local organiser has dramatically turned his back on the far-right party.

The Rev John Stanton, who was Lib Dem chairman of Rochford District Council in 1997, admitted he was "stupid" for not knowing what the BNP really stood for when he signed up to the party about a year ago.

In yesterday's Echo, Mr Stanton, 75, who was the BNP organiser for Rochford District, said he joined the party because he agreed with their positions on Europe and immigration. But he has now said: "I have ended my involvement with the BNP after finding out more about them at the weekend. It was very stupid of me, but I only read what they said about themselves, which I agreed with. Friends have contacted me to say: Those people are nasty.' My daughter rang me sobbing and said: What have you done?'"

Mr Stanton, who also heads the Rock Dene Christian Fellowship, a house church at his home in Leicester Avenue, Rochford, said it was the BNP's views on race that turned him off.

He said: "I had no idea party leader Nick Griffin has been convicted of inciting racial hatred. I also discovered the party was anti-Semitic and homophobic. I was misled by what they said about themselves. The impression I got when they joined was that it was just a very British, Christian organisation. Now, I don't really trust anything that they say. If a West African came here and adopted British values and customs, the impression I got was he would be welcome, but according to the BNP he wouldn't be."

Mr Stanton, who spent four years as a Lib Dem councillor in Rochford in the 1990s and five years as a Conservative in the 1970s, said he intended to formally finish with the party by writing letters to the BNP's hierarchy.

No one from the BNP, which plans to field a candidate in Hullbridge in next month's election, was available for comment.

Hope not Hate

Hatewatch for the week of July 11th 2007

Christian Reconstructionists flock to 'Worldview Super Conference'
Several hundred Religious Right activists attended a four-day conference sponsored by American Vision, a radical ministry promoting a Christian theocracy that includes the death penalty for homosexuals, fornicators and those who spread "false religions."

Hate crime victim commits suicide
David Ritcheson, who was beaten unconscious and sodomized with a patio umbrella pole during a racially motivated 2006 attack that sparked widespread outrage, jumped to his death from a cruise ship...

'Cool Church' spreads anti-gay myths
Leaders of the Tucson Community Church, which promotes itself as hip and intellectually curious, are telling parishioners that homosexuality reduces life spans by 30 years, among other homophobic falsehoods...

KKK items discovered with bomb materials
Bounty hunters found KKK and neo-Nazi paraphernalia along with guns, ammunition and bomb-making materials in a storage unit rented by fugitive Christopher Reindeau...

Fox News hypes flimsy report on lesbian gangs
A "national underground network" of lesbians toting pink-colored pistols is terrorizing America, according to a recent segment on the popular Fox News Channel "The O'Reilly Factor."

SPLC

Fascism has no place in academic institutions

A joint statement from Bath trade unions on BNP leader's planned visit to University of Bath

Universities should be havens of learning and safety for students, academics and staff from all backgrounds. We oppose the Secretary of the University of Bath's decision to allow Nick Griffin, leader of the fascist British National Party to speak on campus.

Griffin is due to give a lecture at the University of Bath on 14 May at 7pm, at the request of one student.

The BNP is no ordinary political party: it poses a danger to students and staff alike. Griffin is a former member of the openly fascist National Front, and has a conviction for distributing literature likely to incite racial hatred, which denied the reality of the Nazi Holocaust. The BNP wants an "all-white Britain", which could only be possible through violence and an end to democracy. It has links with fascist groups across the world. Many of its leading members have convictions for violence and have been exposed as Hitler admirers. Wherever the BNP is active, racist attacks and other hate crimes increase.

The BNP’s racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, Islamophobic politics threatens the safety of Black, Jewish, Muslim, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students and academics and many others. These views, if given further legitimacy, provide the framework for physical attacks on a number of groups. It is unacceptable to expose students and staff at the University to the possibility of such attacks and to give a platform of academic respectability to the BNP by allowing Nick Griffin to give a lecture at the University.

The BNP has targeted campuses up and down the country, attempting to recruit students and young people to fascism. Allowing Nick Griffin a platform at University of Bath will aid the BNP’s aim to infiltrate academic institutions further.

Universities have a legal obligation to promote good race relations under the 2000 Race Relations (Amendment) Act, brought in as a direct result of the 1998 Lawrence Inquiry, following the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence. We believe that this invitation runs contradictory to the letter and spirit of this legislation. The University of Bath has a legal and moral obligation to promote good race relations and to work against discrimination. We believe that it is failing to live up to this obligation.

Called by University of Bath branches of Amicus, UNISON, UCU

Supported by UCU, NUS, & Unite Against Fascism

blink

Use your vote, stop the BNP

By attending your local polling station today you can help to prevent electoral gains in Britain by the far right.

The far right British National party (BNP) is fighting a record 800-plus seats in today's elections - fielding more than twice as many candidates as in previous votes. At stake are seats in the Scottish parliament, the Welsh assembly and local councils in most parts of England outside London.

The BNP is aiming to double its number of councillors. This is the biggest electoral push the party has ever mounted. There are widespread fears that the BNP will make significant electoral gains and strengthen its foothold in dozens of local authorities - unless voters turn out to block its advance.

The BNP tends to do well when there is a low turnout. Voter apathy allows its candidates to come through the middle and snatch seats.

That is why it is so important for you to vote today, if you live in a constituency where elections are being held. Make sure your family, friends and neighbours vote, too. A high turnout will reduce the BNP's share of the vote and lessen its chance of winning seats.

The BNP is, sadly, no longer entirely insignificant. Its recent growth in places like Barking and Dagenham, where it won 11 council seats last year, is a serious worry. There is no room for complacency. The BNP is a racist, anti-semitic, anti-Muslim and homophobic party. It is a threat to democracy and human rights - and needs to be stopped.

A disturbing number of past and present BNP members are on record as denying the holocaust. Some have criminal convictions, including for racist hatred, threats and violence.

Realising that this thuggery turns off the voters, the BNP is moderating its image. Its game-plan is to copy the tactics of successful European far right and neo-Nazi parties, such as the Front National in France, the Vlaams Blok in Belgium and the National Democratic Party in Germany.

In the last year or so, the BNP has undergone a major make-over in a bid to widen its popular appeal. Slick city suits have replaced the old bovver-boot image. Moving away from overt neo-Nazism, the BNP is attempting to reposition itself as a mainstream nationalist patriotic party, defending the rights and culture of what it calls the "indigenous" British people.

Ex-BNP activist turned anti-fascist campaigner Matthew Collins is a director of Searchlight's Operation Wedge. He says the new-look BNP is nearly all spin and PR. The party may have toned down its open racism and street violence, but behind the smiling face of its leader, Nick Griffin lurks a hateful Islamophobia, racism and homophobia. The BNP is a menace to democracy and to minority communities, posing a particular threat to the welfare and security of black, Asian, Jewish, Muslim and gay people.

For all these reasons, it is important that we make Nick Griffin a loser. Use your vote today.

While I would personally prefer you to vote Green, in this instance I don't care who you vote for, as long as you vote for a non-BNP party. In constituencies where the BNP is strong, vote tactically for the candidate most likely to defeat the BNP. Together, united, we can block the rise of the far right.

Comment is free

No BNP on the licence fee! - in Wales

• Pull the plug on the BNP Party Political Broadcast in Wales
• Emergency picket outside BBC Wales, 6pm-7pm, Tuesday 24th April
• Complain to broadcasters
Pickett 6-7pm Tuesday 24th April,
BBC Wales Offices,
Broadcasting House,
Llantrisant Rd
Llandaff,
CF5 2YQ

For more information contact Unite Against Fascism on:
07790 022 472 / 07734 032 314
supported by NUJ and BECTU


Please complain to the stations below:
BBC Wales (Broadcasting on BBC Wales 1 and 2 Tuesday 24 April)
08700 100 222 / Textphone: 08700 100 212
online complaint form:

ITV Wales (Broadcasting on Monday 23rd April):
02920 590590 /
Email: dutyoffice@itv.com

S4C (Broadcasting on Tuesday 24th April) :
0870 600 4141 / Textphone: 01766 514410 /
Email: hotline@s4c.co.uk


PULL THE PLUG ON THE BNP STATEMENT

The fascist British National Party (BNP) is fielding 20 candidates for all seats in the 5 regions for Welsh Assembly. It is scheduled to have a party political broadcast on ITV Wales on 23 April 2007 and on BBC Wales 1 and 2 and on S4C on 24 April 2007.

By standing this number of candidates the fascist BNP aims to gain access to public funds, free distribution of election materials and media broadcasts. Such a platform for the BNP will bring its politics of hatred into people's living rooms, encourage division and help them in their aim to legitimise their politics of hatred. Racist attacks increase in areas that the BNP have targeted. The BNP’s broadcast in Scotland featured anti-immigrant racism, in the week that an asylum seeker and her baby were victims of a vicious racist attack and sexual assault in Glasgow. The broadcast also included homophobic messages. We believe it is inappropriate, irresponsible and dangerous for broadcasters to allow the BNP, with its history of racist violence, a party political broadcast.

The BNP's politics "incite racial hatred", which is outlawed by the Public Order Act. The BNP should be barred from such free circulation of material because the right of everyone to live free from such incitement to hatred is fundamental and must be safeguarded.

There is no legal obligation on the television and radio companies to broadcast the views of any political party simply on the grounds it is fielding a certain number of candidates. See examples below of what happened previously; broadcasters can either choose not to show the election broadcast or demand changes to them if they are likely to break the Programme Code.

History shows that fascism threatens the democratic liberties of every person in this country, and particularly those whom the fascists choose to scapegoat: the black and Asian communities, Jewish people, Muslims, lesbian and gay people, those with disabilities, trade unionists, Roma people and many others. In 1999, the bombings in Brixton, Brick Lane and Soho showed where the politics of racism and hatred can lead. We believe all broadcasting channels, particularly those that are publicly funded, have a responsibility to ensure views such as those of the BNP that can incite hatred should not be given uncritical coverage.

There are precedents to pulling the plug on the BNP:

- In 1997, parties needed to stand 50 candidates in the general election for a broadcast. The BNP stood 57 candidates. The broadcasters did not reach a unanimous view of the BNP broadcast and two versions were transmitted; in addition, the BNP was unable to make all the changes required by Channel 4 in the time available, so it was not transmitted by C4.

- In 2004, Channel 5 refused to show BNP film in the form supplied and finally showed a blanked out version of the broadcast. Some changes were also required to be made to the version shown in Scotland. Comprehensive editing was insisted on by S4C for the Welsh language version. The BNP's editing of their Party Election Broadcast for broadcast on S4C rendered most of it incomprehensible.

We invite all those who uphold the principles of equality and oppose the politics of race hate and fascism to call on:

• The BBC and independent television companies not to give uncritical air-time to the racist and fascist views of the British National Party in the course of the elections this year.

• The government to propose an amendment to the Representation of the People Act so that explicitly racist parties cannot have their election literature circulated free of charge.

• The government to strengthen Part 3 of the Public Order Act of 1986 so that prosecutions for incitement to racial hatred will be easier to bring and more likely to succeed.

UAF