October 10 “Global Rally For Humanity”

bendigosea

A month or two ago, October 10 was declared by US anti-Muslim activist Jon Ritzheimer to be the date of a ‘Global Rally For Humanity’. Several small rallies were held in the US and one was organised by the English Defence League in the town of Aylesbury, but among those who quickly jumped on board the hate train was the Australian fascist groupuscule ‘United Patriots Front’ (UPF), which organised an anti-Mulsim rally in the Victorian town of Bendigo on Saturday. That rally attracted hundreds in support and was almost certainly the largest anti-Muslim rally on the day. Elsewhere in the country, very small rallies were held in Canberra and Hobart (and Brisbane and Perth), but the great majority of anti-Muslim activists traveled to Bendigo for the occasion. The national mobilisation by the UPF managed to attract perhaps as many as 500 supporters — and a slightly smaller number was organised in opposition to the UPF by the Bendigo Action Coalition.

not

See : Bendigo mosque: Anti-mosque protesters face off with counter activists, ABC, October 10, 2015 | Bendigo mosque protests: Anti-racism demonstrators face off with nationalists, Chris Vedelago, The Age, October 10, 2015 | Pro-diversity and anti-mosque protesters rally in Bendigo, The Guardian (AAP), October 10, 2015.

The bestest coverage of the Bendigo rally came by way of Paul Anderson and Andrew Jefferson (Pro- and anti-Islamic groups protest as Bendigo mosque rages, Herald Sun, October 11, 2015), in which True Australian Patriots were pitted against pirates, environmentalists, clown wigs, masked vigilantes and militant skinheads:

heraldsun

Previously, on October 9, Nick Folkes’ Party For Freedom held a very small anti-Muslim rally at Parramatta mosque. Among the very few who joined him was Australian Defence League Grand Poobah Ralph Cerminara. The previous weekend on his (since deleted) Facebook page, Cerminara called upon his followers to launch ‘lone wolf’ attacks upon mosques and imams. (Cerminara was also in Bendigo on October 10.) The callout received some attention from media but seemingly none from police.

Ralphski

See : Tiny turnout to anti-Muslim protest in Sydney’s west, ABC (AM), October 10, 2015 | Police outnumber demonstrators outside Parramatta mosque, Anne Davies and Eryk Bagshaw, The Sydney Morning Herald, October 9, 2015.

Posted in Anti-fascism, Media, State / Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

antifa notes (october 4, 2015) : #UPF /// #GD /// #43Group +

United Patriots Front /// Bendigo

Fascists, racists and various species of bigot — organised by fascist grouplet the United Patriots Front (UPF) — will once again descend on Bendigo next weekend (October 10) to put on a public display of stoopid (pissing and moaning about the construction of Bendigo’s mosque); once again there will be opposition. In this context of organised public expressions of Islamophobia and xenophobia, you can read moar about the feelings of some local Muslims in this (October 1) ABC report. The rally also comes on the heels of the successful disruption by anti-Muslim activists of a Bendigo council meeting of September 16 and the consequent cancellation of a meeting scheduled for this week.

Since their first rally (August 29) in Bendigo, the UPF — having already alienated Monika Evers (Reclaim Australia/Stop the Mosque in Bendigo) — appears to have lost the support of Bendigo local Julie Hoskin, the principal spokesperson for the anti-Muslim group ‘Rights For Bendigo Residents’. Judging by this report in The Australian (Bendigo’s anti-mosque leader fights lawyers for loan costs, Rachel Baxendale, October 1, 2015), Hoskin has enough on her plate and is a bit too busy to play second fiddle to some fascists from Melbourne. Of course, on the other hand, the shooting in Sydney on Friday will presumably inspire a few more UPF followers to take to the streets …

As for Reclaim Australia, it continues to be active online. And while it has notably won the fulsome support of maverick Queensland MP George Christensen, it remains a touchy subject for the government, as Government Spokesperson For Multicultural Affairs Declines To Criticise Reclaim Australia (Max Chalmers, New Matilda, October 2, 2015). And oh yeah : ‘In an effort to boost its coffers the anti-Islamic movement has started marketing a bizarre line of products’ (see : For The Racist Who Has Everything: Reclaim Australia Releases Clothing Line, Coffee Mugs, And Tote Bags, Max Chalmers, New Matilda, September 30, 2015). Note also : Geert Wilders’ Dutch anti-Muslim party forced to reveal US donor, The Electronic Intifada, September 29, 2015.

Speaking of firing up the troops, one tricksy patriot (I suspect someone involved in the Patriots Defence League of Australia) has produced a poster (below), with an unusual emphasis upon f*cking. The reaction to it is as could be imagined, so props, I guess, to the patriotik yoof what done it: Mission Accomplished.

weird

One of the other legacies of the August 29 rally is a $1200 fine being imposed upon an anti-fascist for burning an Australian flag. An appeal has been launched to help them pay the fine here. Finally, on a lighter note, True Australian Patriots mining racism for comedy gold (ABC Radio National, September 30, 2015).

See also : How an anti-mosque campaign in Bendigo became a battle ground, Cameron Stewart, The Australian, September 26, 2015.

“Global Rally Against Muslims”

The UPF’s Bendigo rally on October 10 is one of several (Hobart, Perth and possibly Canberra) expected to take place in Australia as part of a ‘global’ (read: Australia and the United States) movement. For further details on the US protests, see : Anti-Muslim protests—some armed—planned for at least 20 sites across the country, Kalia Abiade, Imagine2050, September 29, 2015. Jon Ritzheimer, the bloke responsible for promoting the concept, is featured in Arizona militiaman howls in rage after Oath Keepers back away from his possibly illegal plot to ‘arrest’ senator, Travis Gettys, RawStory, September 25, 2015.

Golden Dawn /// Athens

Greek neo-Nazis Golden Dawn, whom the UPF regard as political allies, are on trial in Athens at the moment and a few days ago the mother of murdered rapper Pavlos Fyssas (Killah P) gave testimony [via Damian Mac Con Uladh /// GoldenDawnWatch]:

Pavlos was not in any political party. For years had been involved in music. His music was antifascist & antiracist. [Judge:] Did that get him into conflict with anyone? [Mom:] Pavlos’s girlfriend said there was no argument in place where they’d gone to watch a football match. Near place where they watched match, 20-strong group in black sweatshirts holding weapons gathered. Motorcycle police unit nearby. Pavlos and friends could see Golden Dawn one side & police the other. Intermediary came over and said don’t worry, I’ll sort it out. Pavlos: I’m not afraid, it’s my ‘hood. The 20 Golden Dawn who were already there were then joined by the Nikea hit squad. A car pulls up and a guy asks Pavlos and friends “where’s Kefalinias St?” We later learned that he [the guy in the car] was the murderer. Pavlos answered [guy in car]: This is it [the street] and the guy turned there. Then the whole gang of them, 50 in total, started approaching Pavlos and friends. They started to run and chase them. Pavlos told his friends to run. But Pavlos didn’t run. He was surrounded by 2-3 people so killer could come and stab him. I was told that he [killer] got out of the car and stabbed Pavlos twice in the heart. During incident Pavlos’ gf went to police at corner. They said: “We cannot intervene”. Police told Pavlos’ girlfiend that “nothing will happen, after two punches they’ll leave”. When two cops finally came over, it was already too late.

See also : Mother of Golden Dawn Murder Victim: ‘This Organization Trains Murderers’, Katerina Papathanasiou, Greek Reporter, October 2, 2015 | Slain rapper’s mother gives testimony at Golden Dawn trial, ekathimerini, October 2, 2015.

Swastikas

Some bloke in Ballarat was selling swastika merch at a market. In Melbourne, Ek Militaria in Essendon is a top place for Nazi memorabilia. As for Hitler, he liked to take drugs. Lots of them.

Finally, a new TV show is being produced based on the exciting anti-fascist adventures of The 43 Group, established in post-WWII E-E-England “with the unvarnished intent of, quite literally, beating British anti-semitic activists into submission. Among these soldiers, sailors and airmen would be a teenage former British Army private who was serving an apprenticeship as a hairdresser and went by the name of Vidal Sassoon.”

See also : The Darkness Before the Right, Park MacDougald, The Awl, September 28, 2015: “A right-wing politics for the coming century is taking shape. And it’s not slowing down.” | Mouthbreathing Machiavellis Dream of a Silicon Reich, Corey Pein, The Baffler, May 19, 2014.

Posted in Anti-fascism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Q. Did Trotsky ‘invent’ the term ‘racist’ in 1927?

Over the last few months, Shermon Burgess — a/k/a ‘The Great Aussie Patriot’ — has begun to increasingly indulge in the perpetuation of a range of radical right-wing memes, not only about Islam and the left but multiculturalism, the United Nations (Agenda 21) and allied topics. One of my favourite memes is the one about Trotsky inventing the term ‘racist’.

GAPTrotsky

Short answer:

No.

Long answer:

[Source : The ‘Trotsky Invented The Concept Of Racism’ Myth, One Million United, January 1, 2010.]

The Myth

Nick Griffin [BNP leader]: No it’s because people like the BBC have demonised the word racist and have set about demonising us.
Gavin Esler: Demonised the word racist? There is somehow a good side to racism is there?
Nick Griffin: Ah, it’s a canned term. There’s no good side to racism. If you mean hating people, you’re doing it now. You’re not letting me explain for a start. Racism was a concept invented by Leon Trotsky, a Communist mass-murderer to demonise his opponents and stop people talking about certain issues.

Nick Griffin on BBC’s ‘Newsnight’ 25th May 2007.

The Truth

The concept of scientific racial supremacy was invented by Gobineau before Trotsky was born. Trotsky used the term racism to describe it, but racism only became an epithet to describe racial prejudice after he died.

This is a very popular myth with neo-Nazis and other White Nationalists, who especially enjoy pointing out that Trotsky was born into a Jewish family. According to them a Judeo-Communist conspiracy is trying to destroy Western civilization and the white race, etc, etc, etc and invented that word to silence people… yawn. Funny that Nick Griffin should use a staple argument used by anti-Semites isn’t it? It can be found all over the Internet and Griffin was obviously defending his right to be racist by the looks of things. His argument, which is the general one, is that the concept of racism was invented by a Communist to stifle opposition and freedom of speech. But where did Trotsky use the word? There are two alleged sources, the first one is ‘What Is National Socialism?’, published on June 10th 1933.

The theory of race, specially created, it seems, for some pretentious self-educated individual seeking a universal key to all the secrets of life, appears particularly melancholy in the light of the history of ideas. In order to create the religion of pure German blood, Hitler was obliged to borrow at second hand the ideas of racism from a Frenchman, Count Gobineau, a diplomat and a literary dilettante. Hitler found the political methodology ready-made in Italy, where Mussolini had borrowed largely from the Marxist theory of the class struggle. Marxism itself is the fruit of union among German philosophy, French history, and British economics. To investigate retrospectively the genealogy of ideas, even those most reactionary and muddleheaded, is to leave not a trace of racism standing.

On the plane of politics, racism is a vapid and bombastic variety of chauvinism in alliance with phrenology. As the ruined nobility sought solace in the gentility of its blood, so the pauperized petty bourgeoisie befuddles itself with fairy tales concerning the special superiorities of its race. Worthy of attention is the fact that the leaders of National Socialism are not native Germans but interlopers from Austria, like Hitler himself, from the former Baltic provinces of the Czar’s empire, like Rosenberg; and from colonial countries, like Hess, who is Hitler’s present alternate for the party leadership. A barbarous din of nationalisms on the frontiers of civilization was required in order to instill into its ‘leaders’ those ideas which later found response in the hearts of the most barbarous classes in Germany.

… In the sphere of modern economy, international in its ties and anonymous in its methods, the principle of race seems unearthed from a medieval graveyard. The Nazis set out with concessions beforehand; the purity of race, which must be certified in the kingdom of the spirit by a passport must be demonstrated in the sphere of economy chiefly by efficiency. Under contemporary conditions this means competitive capacity. Through the back door, racism returns to economic liberalism, freed from political liberties.

The second reference is from The History of the Russian Revolution, written in 1930 and translated and published in 1932. In here the word ‘racism’ does not appear, but ‘racist’ does.

Slavophilism, the messianism of backwardness, has based its philosophy upon the assumption that the Russian people and their church are democratic through and through, whereas official Russia is a German bureaucracy imposed upon them by Peter the Great. Marx remarked upon this theme: ‘In the same way the Teutonic jackasses blamed the despotism of Frederick the Second upon the French, as though backward slaves were not always in need of civilised slaves to train them.’ This brief comment completely finishes off not only the old philosophy of the Slavophiles, but also the latest revelations of the ‘Racists’.

So what did Trotsky mean by racism and racist? In the first quotation Trotsky says, “In order to create the religion of pure German blood, Hitler was obliged to borrow at second hand the ideas of from a Frenchman, Count Gobineau”. Who was Gobineau and what were his ideas? Arthur de Gobineau (1816 – 1882) wrote a book entitled An Essay on the Inequality of the Human Races in which he proposes that the ‘white race’ is superior and that the Aryan branch of it in Northern Europe was the ‘Master Race’. He also believed race-mixing led to chaos. I bet you thought the Nazis invented all that didn’t you? Anyway, so Trotsky said Hitler created a ideology based on a pure German race and nicked ideas from Gobineau… err, well he did! Trotsky said the Nazis were practising an ideology based on race, which goes without saying is true. He was not trying to stop the Nazis talking about certain issues, he was criticising the concept of their race-based ideology. So if Griffin disagrees with Trotsky presumably he believes the Nazis didn’t have a racial ideology, or Trotsky was wrong to even mention it.

In the second quotation Trotsky says the Slavophiles believe Russians to be inherently democratic, an idea that he rubbishes. He says that also finishes off the claims of the racists. But again he is attacking the idea of racial differences not accusing the Slavophiles of saying racist things.

In both cases Trotsky is commenting on an existing ideology of racial superiority/difference, so he therefore did not invent the concept of racism. No more than the person who invented the word ‘cat’ was the inventor of cats!

Therefore what was the context Trotsky was using those words in, if he only is attacking the idea of inherent racial differences? In the 1930s the word ‘racism’ meant according to the Oxford English Dictionary, “[t]he theory that distinctive human characteristics and abilities are determined by race”. Which sounds exactly like the way Trotsky was using it. No doubt that applies to his earlier usage of ‘racist’ too.

In fact in the 1930s, also according to the OED, the word ‘racialism’ (dating from 1907) meant “belief in the superiority of a particular race; prejudice based on this”.

The current meaning of racism, that of prejudice, has only been attached to it since World War II. Prior to World War II it meant the difference between races. Conversely, ‘racialism’ no longer means racial superiority or prejudice. By the 1960s it had been made redundant as ‘racism’ had replaced it, but William Du Bois redefined it to mean the belief that differences exist between human races. In other words what ‘racism’ meant before World War II when Trotsky was using the word in his writing. A complete reversal.

Therefore the current accusations of racism directed at the Far Right do not mean the same thing as racism did in Trotsky’s writings. The concept of racial superiority itself goes back before Trotsky was even born and he didn’t coin ‘racialism’, which meant in the 1930s what ‘racism’ does today. Just as if Trotsky mentioned ‘gay’ in his writings he’d have meant happy or colourful, not a homosexual.

The International League against Racism and Anti-Semitism was founded as the The League Against Pogroms in 1927, [it] later became the International League against Anti-Semitism and in 1932 it acquired its present name. Magnus Hirschfeld wrote his book Racism in 1933 (trans. into English in 1938) and is generally credited with inventing the word itself. As he was a gay Jew he isn’t too popular with the Far Right either. So there is doubt as to whether Trotsky did originate the word, but even if he did he was using it to describe something that no-one would dispute: that Nazi Germany had an ideology based on the racial differences between Germans and others.

Trotsky did not invent the concept of racism, it was Gobineau the grandfather of Nazi racial politics!

One last little thought: why would people like the BNP, who aren’t apparently racist, object to the very existence of the word? If they weren’t racist and neo-Nazis, why would they say the word has no legitimacy because a Communist invented it? If you did away with the words ‘racist’ and ‘racism’ that would significantly reduce the stigma of such behaviour. So why would the BNP want that if they aren’t racist? Presumably for the same reasons they want to abolish the Race Discrimination Act: they want to be able to be as racist as they like, with no legal or moral impediments.

See also : The Ugly, Fascinating History Of The Word ‘Racism’, Gene Demby, NPR, January 6, 2014 | “Race suicide” (January 1, 2011) | Dialectic of Counter-Enlightenment: The Frankfurt School as Scapegoat of the Lunatic Fringe (March 9, 2012).

Posted in Anti-fascism, History, Media, State / Politics, Trot Guide | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

“Michael Schmidt is a white nationalist trying to infiltrate the anarchist movement.”

Update (September 29) : The Institute for Anarchist Theory and History (IATH) (Instituto de Teoria e História Anarquista (ITHA)) — of which Michael Schmidt is a member — have published a ‘Statement on AK Press versus Michael Schmidt Case / Declaração sobre o caso AK Press versus Michael Schmidt’ | (September 30) : Statement from Anarkismo on the AK Press accusations against Michael Schmidt.

Briefly:

Anarchist publisher + distributor AK Press has issued a public statement on the subject of Michael Schmidt, among other things the co-author of Black Flame: The Revolutionary Class Politics of Anarchism and Syndicalism (AK Press, 2009). According to AK Press, Schmidt, while posing as a revolutionary anarchist, is in reality “an undercover fascist” and “a white nationalist trying to infiltrate the anarchist movement.”

importantunpleasant

As I see it, until such time as AK Press publishes its evidence — and Schmidt is given an opportunity to respond — it’s very difficult, if not impossible, to make a reasonable assessment of the situation. Nevertheless, some discussion has floated the possibility that Schmidt was moonlighting as a ‘national anarchist’. If so, this would be a case of ‘deep entrism’.

In any event, in Australia at least — and despite the best efforts of its chief promoter, Sydney-based businessman Welf Herfurth — ‘national anarchism’ appears to have been a largely abortive political project. Thus, other than arrange a handful of media stunts (see : When White nationalists attack! New Right @ Gaza solidarity rally, Sydney, November 24, December 7, 2012), ‘national anarchism’ has failed to establish itself as even a minor grouping on the far right. Indeed, one of Herfurth’s former acolytes, Scott Harrison, after taking a detour thru Creativity, eventually wound up as a Young Liberal (much to former Victorian premier Dennis Napthine’s embarrassment).

Obviously, there’s much more to come, but in the meantime note that ‘national anarchists’ are organising a conference to take place somewhere in Europe in 2017, at which Herfurth along with Troy Southgate, Keith Preston et al are scheduled to speak.

namcon

See also : ‘Co-opting the Counter Culture: Troy Southgate and the National Revolutionary Faction’ by Graham D. Macklin (May 30, 2009) | Rebranding Fascism: National-Anarchists, Spencer Sunshine, PublicEye.org, 2008 | Rising Above the Herd: Keith Preston’s Authoritarian Anti-Statism, Matthew N. Lyons, New Politics, April 29, 2011.

Posted in !nataS, Anarchism, Anti-fascism, State / Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Australian rock legend #RossHannaford needs yr support …

Legendary Australian guitarist Ross Hannaford is in dire straits and in need of some financial aid. To that end, SMART STREET FILMS (producers of ASIO: Persons Of Interest) has produced a DVD featuring a lengthy interview with Ross about his life and work. All proceeds from the sale of the DVD will be forwarded Ross to assist him fight a serious illness.

HANNA – In A Nutshell – Trailer from Smart Street Films on Vimeo.

Posted in Art, Cats, Film, History, Media, Music, Poetry | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

antifa notes (september 16, 2015)

Briefly:

• Joshua Goldberg eh? Unmasking a troll: Aussie ‘jihadist’ Australi Witness a 20-year-old American nerd, The Age, Elise Potaka and Luke McMahon, September 12, 2015 | FBI says ‘Australian IS jihadist’ is actually a Jewish American troll named Joshua Ryne Goldberg, Elise Potaka and Luke McMahon, The Age, September 12, 2015 | Joshua Goldberg, the fake Aussie jihadist, had a hand in every online fight, Elise Potaka, Luke McMahon and Michael Bachelard, The Age, September 13, 2015. See also : The Goldberg Variations: A 9/11 bomb plot exposes a “hate speech” hoax., James Taranto, The Wall Street Journal, September 14, 2015.

Note that Goldberg posted as ‘Michael Slay’ on US neo-Nazi website ‘Daily Stormer’ and was prolific on reddit as ‘European88’.

Like a large number of other neo-Nazis, fascists, White supremacists and other l00ns, Goldberg had a particular obsession with Australia and Australian politics, supposedly on the basis of laws considered to be overly-restrictive on ‘freedom of speech’ but just as likely because of its history as a White colonial-settler state. Joining him in batshit analysis of Australian conditions is Sydney-based Australia First Party member ‘Nathan Sykes’ (as ‘Hamish Patton’). Sykes/Patton’s latest series of contributions to the site include ‘Government Dumps Tony Abbott for Self-Described “Jew” Prime Minister’, ‘Jew York Times Jews Out on Oz’s ‘Stop the Boats’ Policy’, ‘Jews Again: Australian PM Compares ISIS to Nazis, Kikes Go Mental’, ‘Jews Cry “Double Holocaust” After Courtesy Mist Showers Installed at Auschwitz’, ‘Science Un-Racists White Babies in New White Genocide Program’ and ‘White Women Support Self-Genocide via Jew Programming’.

*rolls eyes*

As well as contributing to Daily Stormer, Sykes/Patton was one of X number of neo-Nazis present at Reclaim Australia rallies in Sydney this year. Speaking of which …

• The United Patriots Front (UPF) has declared that it will be forming a political party.

Maybe.

greataussiepornstar

Like UPF leader ‘The Great Aussie Patriot’ (Shermon Burgess) and his promise to make a pornographic film to fund his movement, it’s far from certain how seriously the endeavour should be taken, but if it goes ahead then the UPF will be entering a fairly crowded market, one including the (deregistered) neo-fascist Australia First Party, the Q Society’s Australian Liberty Alliance, Nick Folkes’ (unregistered) Party For Freedom (PfF), Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and moar.

See : Far-right group UPF plans to run for Senate and campaign on right to ‘bare arms’, Bianca Hall, The Age, September 11, 2015.

• Speaking of Folkes’ and his Freedom, the PfF have organised an event in Cronulla to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Cronulla riots.

cronulla10

• In general, the far right is not. happy. that Tony Abbott has been junked by the Liberals for Malcolm Turnbull, widely understood to be a ‘communist’ , ‘left-wing’ and (hence) a ‘traitor’ to The Nation.

See : After Abbott: anti-Islam right-wingers confused about who to vote for, Michael Bachelard, The Age, September 15, 2015.

malcolmfelicity

One local neo-Nazi who may be happy at Turnbull’s elevation to Prime Minister is Felicity Sharpe, here pictured with Turnbull at a function earlier this year. Sharpe featured in a blog post I done back in June: Felicity Sharpe, neo-Nazism, United Patriots Front … and xyz.net.au (June 22, 2015). I took it down at her request … only to witness her re-appear at the UPF rally in Melbourne on July 18.

• Finally, some news from other islands, in this case Dover in England, where neo-Nazis held a li’l rally against all them foreigners …

Neo-Nazi mob riots at anti-immigration protest, libcom, September 13, 2015 | We Watched Nazis Fight Anti-Fascists in Dover on Saturday, Simon Childs, Vice, September 14, 2015.

Posted in Anti-fascism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

antifa notes (september 7, 2015)

Briefly:

• The ‘United Patriots Front’ (UPF) has declared that it will be rallying in Bendigo again on October 10, the date having previously been nominated by US anti-Muslim activist Jon Ritzheimer as a ‘global’ day of protest. Ritzheimer, who came to prominence after organising two anti-Muslim rallies earlier in the year, “has asked Americans to bring guns to the protests”. See also : BAD CREW – Bendigo Agents of Diversity | Bendigo Action Coalition | Islamic State Calls for Lone-Wolf Attack on Arizona Man Planning Muslim Protest, David Francis, Foreign Policy, May 29, 2015.

oathkeepers1010

• On The Oathkeepers and The Three Percenters see : Meet the ‘Patriots’ (Southern Poverty Law Centre).

• Ralph Cerminara’s ‘Australian Defence League’ (ADL) — which has declared itself to be in alliance with the UPF — is at WAR! with another anti-Muslim mob called the ‘Patriots Defence League of Australia’ (PDLA). According to Cerminara, the PDLA (and some bloke called Steven Skinner) are traitorous dogs, and he’s published a Facebook page — titled, fittingly enough, ‘Patriot Traitors & Dogs’ — outlining why he has beef with these other patriotik folk.

• Sometime last week, a cheeky monkey put some posters up at Doherty’s gym in Frankston, alerting gym-goers to the fact that UPF leader Blair Cottrell enjoys flexing his Aryan muscles there. Curiously, Cottrell responded by commenting Lol why don’t you just come to my house you little bitches? It’s only down the road from this gym you vandalized. Yawn before posting a photo of himself with a supportive staff member standing next to the posters. Presumably, this means Doherty’s is happy to have neo-Nazis train at their facilities.

*shrugs*

mywillmyhouse
blairdoherty2

Posted in Anti-fascism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

#Facebook : Y U No Like David Pope Cartoons?

Last night Facebook removed this cartoon — by award-winning Australian cartoonist David Pope — from my blog page on the basis that it is against ‘community standards’.

chord

It had reached about 250,000 users and been shared almost 2,000 times.

David Pope : at The Canberra Times | on Facebook | at National Museum of Australia | on Scratch! Media.

Posted in !nataS, Media, State / Politics | Tagged , | 1 Comment

#Bendigo, mosques and protest …

siegbendigo
Above : One of a small number of patriotik boneheads at the rally.

Fascist groupuscule the United Patriots Front organised an anti-Muslim rally in Bendigo yesterday which attracted approximately 2-300 supporters, a large crowd of onlookers, and a rally in opposition of approximately the same size (if somewhat smaller). In both cases, many attending were from outside Bendigo.

There were several clashes on the day, with media accounts paying particular attention to an attempt by the UPF to break the police lines which had been established in order to separate the two mobs. (The largely unsuccessful attempt to do so appears to have been prompted by vision of a bloke up a pole trying to set fire to the Australian flag.) Police deployed capsicum spray in order to subdue the UPF and several of its members, including neo-Nazi spokesperson Blair Cottrell, were affected. (Note: ‘Patriots’ received a dose of the half-strength direct aerosol spray and not the full-strength chemical foam deployed against anti-racists on July 18.)

Otherwise: according to VicPol they made no arrests (though several folks were temporarily detained); they also stated that yesterday’s events involved the biggest operation VicPol has staged outside the Melbourne CBD; one lone ‘patriot’ pulled a knife on counter-protesters ‪after the main demonstration had dispersed and as folks were moving from Town Hall to Trades Hall. (He was told to shoo — one of a handful of such incidents.)

A few general comments:

• The Bendigo rally was the largest of the three events the UPF has organised, having debuted in Richmond on May 31 and joined with Reclaim Australia to rally in Melbourne on July 18;
• The UPF was able to build upon a small but significant anti-Muslim base in Bendigo and to attract a large number of non-locals to join with them in an expression of solidarity;
• Those addressing the anti-Muslim rally included Melbourne-based UPF leaders Cottrell and (fundamentalist Christian) Chris Shortis and Bendigo local Julie Hoskin. Local councillor Elise Chapman also put in an appearance, as did Sydney-based Ralph Cerminara (Australian Defence League) and Kim Vuga (Go Back To Where You Came From) and Brisbane resident Scott Moerland (Rise Up Australia Party);
• Danny Nalliah/Catch the Fire Ministries/Rise Up Australia Party seems not to have attended;
• Obviously, the mosque, having received council approval, will go ahead (see also : Muslims still feel welcome in Bendigo despite anti-Islam rally, says mayor, Patrick Hatch, The Age, August 30, 2015);
• A ‘global’ rally against Islam has been slated for October 10. Originally touted as involving anti-Muslim activists attending their local mosques, currently the main goal appears to be to assemble in Canberra.

Select media reportage:

Minor clashes at Mosque protest in Bendigo, skyNEWS, August 29, 2015 | Fights break out at Bendigo mosque protest, SBS (AAP), August 29, 2015 | Bendigo mosque protest: Anti-mosque and anti-racism protesters clash, Tom Cowie, The Age, August 29, 2015 | Mosque controversy drives rival protest groups to rally in Bendigo, ABC, August 29, 2015 | Australia: Anti-Racists Confront Anti-Islam Protest, TeleSur, August 29, 2015.

See also : #UnitedPatriotsFront ~versus~ Bendigo Mosque (cont.), August 23, 2015.

Posted in Anti-fascism, State / Politics, That's Capitalism!, War on Terror | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

#BorderForce or #BorderFarce : Operation Fortitude gets in the sea

BFFO

The Department of Incarceration & Bloody Policing Immigration & Border Protection organised a media event @ 2pm @ Flinders Street station in Melbourne today in order to celebrate the arrival of ‘Australian Border Force’.

Ka-POW!

But things didn’t go quite as they had planned …

How the Operation #BorderForce fiasco unfolded, Angus Holland, The Age, August 28, 2015.
Australian Border Force blames farcical events in Melbourne on ‘low level’ official – live, Paul Farrell, The Guardian, August 28, 2015.
Twitter tracked to downfall of Operation Fortitude one Simpsons meme at a time, Kate Aubusson, The Sydney Morning Herald, August 28, 2015.
A Solemn Recap Of That Time The Australian Border Force Nearly Invaded Melbourne, Meg Watson, Junkee, August 28, 2015.
Border Force: Operation Fortitude cancelled as protesters take to Melbourne’s CBD streets, Alana Schetzer and Tammy Mills, The Age, August 28, 2015.
Australian Border Force’s visa crackdown dumped after backlash, Anthony Dowsley, Alex White, Chanel Kinniburgh and AAP, Herald Sun, August 28, 2015.
‘Clumsy’ Operation Fortitude nothing to do with Minister’s office, ABF head says, Stephanie Anderson and Sacha Payne with AAP, SBS, August 28, 2015.

XBORDER : xclnt blog detailing nature of border policing in Australia : On-Water Operations /// Internment Industry Supply-Chains & Infrastructure /// Precarious Lives /// Global Problem, Global Links, Global Campaign /// Antiracism – Alerta, Antifa
Creation of a Racist State? My VISA is my Skin Colour #MyVisaIsMySkinColour, RISE, August 28, 2015.
Explainer: What is the Australian Border Force?, ABC, August 28, 2015.
If Border Force acts like this in Melbourne, what do they do offshore?, Jeff Sparrow, The Guardian, August 28, 2015.
Border Force operation reflects a disturbing attitude, Human Rights Law Centre, August 28, 2015.

Bonus lulz!

Posted in Anarchism, Anti-fascism, Media, State / Politics, That's Capitalism!, War on Terror | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments