The BNP held their “Red, White and Blue Festival” over the weekend and predictably it turned into an utter farce.
The BNP claim that they are not a racist party. They claim they have changed and are not a reincarnation of the Nazi Party. This weekend’s “festival”, however, shows us that what they say in public is very different to what they do in private.
From looking at pro-BNP blogs and websites this morning you can see photos from the weekend’s activities. Things that really stick out are the use of racist and unpatriotic symbols and flags, the Confederate flag and the symbol of Don Black’s website, Stormfront, “Odin’s Cross” (both situated in what the BNP blogger “TITVS ADVXAS” ironically calls the “patriots encampment”).
The Times also reported how the BNP are trying to groom children as young as 12 and 14 by encouraging them to join Griffin’s youth movement, “Young BNP”. The Times reported how a 12 year old child called “Peter” said that Young BNP was “cool” because they get to “play lots of sport and stuff.”
And finally, a word on Unite Against Fascism’s disruptive and obscene actions, which resulted in a total of 19 people being arrested.
This sort of behaviour is just what the BNP crave. It plays into their narrative of being nationalist warriors fighting against the “evil establishment” who are trying to shut them down. UAF’s actions are not only counterproductive, but also a waste of taxpayer’s money (policing of the event is estimated to have cost £500,000).
Furthermore, it distracts us from the main debate concerning the BNP. While they are doing their best impressions of “fighting fascism”, the BNP are cruising under the radar and into Europe with a mandate of a million votes. UAF’s brand of politics drives ordinary voters with BNP sympathies into the hands of a party with an obsession with race and a hatred of mainstream society.
