#RoyalBaby

another

Posted in !nataS | 3 Comments

#ReclaimAustralia ~versus~ RALLY AGAINST RACISM (#Melbourne, Saturday, July 18)

• After a sparkling debut on April 4, Reclaim Australia is returning to Melbourne on Saturday, July 18 (coincidentally, the 79th anniversary of the Spanish civil war and revolution).

Neo-Nazis (Nationalist Republican Guard & Co.) are once again at the heart of organising and promoting the event, along with a range of other fascists, white nationalists and a liquorice all-sorts of folks who just plain hate Muslims (and leftists).

As was the case with April 4, the Reclaim event in Melbourne is being opposed by a coalition of groups and individuals. See : RALLY AGAINST RACISM – Stop #ReclaimAustralia – Melbourne Saturday July 18 [Facebook]. See also : Reclaiming reality, Andy Fleming, overland, April 23, 2015.

unhappychris

• As an aside John Oliver, a member of the anti-Muslim group Patriots Defence League Australia (an Australian Defence League splinter), claims to have has established some kinda fund to hunt me down. Ho hum.

ndptoo

• There’s a new kid on the fascist bloc: the ‘National Democratic Party of Australia’. Inspired by Reclaim Australia and the bRanes-child of a local (Melbourne) white nationalist, Blair Cottrell, the party got off to a rocky start when it was discovered that in order to produce fascist agitprop the group had ripped off a designer contracted by the RSL in WA to re-brand ANZAC Day. Further, the NDP has entered into what is already a fairly crowded far-right field so I don’t expect it’ll get very far even if it produces 1,000 stickers.

chrisoheartshitler

Posted in Anti-fascism, State / Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

May Day 2015

    Sounds of Songlines: Benefit gig for Warriors of Aboriginal Resistance
    8pm, Saturday, April 25

    In support of WAR, a collective of young Aboriginal people committed to the cause of decolonization and the philosophy of Aboriginal nationalism, resistance and revival. Performances by Brett Lee Music, The Monica Weigthman Band & DJ Sadge. Spoken word performances and guest speakers will also be there on the night. $10. Doors open 8pm. Bella Union, Trades Hall, Lygon St, Carlton South.

May Day is next Friday (May 1), so I thought I may as well draw up a list of things that are happening …

April 30

6.30pm, Trades Hall : May Day Multicultural Celebration

May Day (Melbourne)

11.30am, Fed Square : Melbourne May 1st Midday Murdoch’s Minion
Noon, 8 Hour Monument : MAYDAY International Workers’ Day
4pm, Melbourne Town Hall : MELBOURNE – rally and march against the forced closures of Aboriginal communities
*5.30pm, State Library : May Day Solidarity Rally 2015 – Melbourne, Australia
7pm, The New International Bookshop : Palikari: Louis Tikas and the Ludlow Massacre

May 2

rAdelaide : May Day March 2015
Sydney : Anti Racism 5-a-side Tournament Sydney

May 3

Fremantle : May Day 2015
Melbourne : Rally + march, 1pm, Trades Hall
Sydney : May Day March 2015

Posted in Anarchism, History, Media, Music, Poetry, State / Politics, That's Capitalism! | Tagged | 1 Comment

Some writings + some radios

reclaiming
I wrote an article for overland on Reclaim Australia. You can read it here.

nm20
I also answered some curly questions for New Matilda. You can read that here.

On tomorrow’s episode of Floating Anarchy (The SUWA Show, Friday, 5.30pm, 855AM, livestreaming on 3CR), Dr Cam & I chat with playwright and Grauniad columnist Van Badham about Reclaim Australia and fascism.

Posted in Anti-fascism, History, Media, State / Politics, That's Capitalism!, War on Terror | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

#ReclaimAustralia “Burn the national flag = death by gang rape” ~ Dean Luland

nazivd00d

Above : Iconic img of confrontation between a neo-Nazi skinhead and a counter-protester at Reclaim Australia rally in Melbourne.

On Facebook, one Reclaim Australia supporter has opined that the appropriate punishment for burning the Australian flag is death by gang rape:

burnflagdeathbyrape

FWIW, Dean Luland works @ Period Home Brick Restoration [Facebook page], so if you live in Sydney and would like to hire someone to restore your house, it may be worthwhile taking your business elsewhere.

In other news, a Melbourne man by the name of Rod Mathers has vowed that he and his mates will be attending the rally to ‘Stop the forced closures of Aboriginal communities’ on Friday in order to assault members of the Socialist Alliance, a group he holds responsible for an alleged assault upon a Reclaim Australia supporter on Saturday:

hotrodrally2

It’s obviously unknown how srs Mr Mathers is, but those attending the rally should prolly keep an eye out for ‘patriots’ intent on attacking the rally and march …

MELBOURNE Stop the forced closures of Aboriginal communities
5.30pm, Friday, April 10
Flinders Street Station

Posted in Anti-fascism, Broken Windows, State / Politics, Trot Guide | Tagged , , , , , , | 27 Comments

Neo-Nazis @ #ReclaimAustralia in Melbourne

I thought I may as well feature here a few of the neo-Nazis who attended the Reclaim Australia (RA) rally in Melbourne yesterday. First, Shermon Burgess’s #BFF Neil Erikson (far right w camera and orange vest) of ‘Nationalist Republican Guard’:

neilra

The bonehead in the centre of the above photo, Joey Edwards, was very active on the day. The man standing in front of Erikson with his hand on his comrade’s shoulder, Linden Watson, was also very active. He and Erikson later helped launch the ‘United Patriots Front’ (UPF).

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bonehead
RAbonehead

Both Joey and Neil attended the 2010 (2011?) Ian Stuart Donaldson memorial gig organised by local neo-Nazi groups Blood & Honour and the Southern Cross Hammerskins and can be seen below grappling/dancing with one another:

isd2011

The bonehead was accompanied by a few other nazis, including some bloke sporting a ‘Full Blooded Skips’ (FBS) hoodie (L) and on the (R), Moody McCann, who is now (2016) a member of the ‘Soldiers of Odin’:

FBS

TBH, I’d forgotten the FBS existed. In brief, it was one of several tiny gangs formed around the same time as and in the wake of the emergence of the ‘Southern Cross Soldiers’, a short-lived yoof gang. Otherwise, the FBS forms part of a loose network of neo-Nazis and white supremacists based in the northern suburbs. At least one member of FBS, Dan Newman (AKA Danny Krieger), also fancies himself a member of another neo-Nazi micro-sect called ‘Combat 18’:

FBSBBQ
B&H

Another nazi to throw his weight around on the day was Glenn Anderson (AKA Glenn Androvski):

anotherRAbonehead

Also present on the day as a small organised group distributing leaflets was Nationalist Alternative. Below is the group’s leader Mark Hootsen:

markra

Another NAlt member, Fergus Hunt (from the nu-metal band Art Of Wor):

nataltfbs
NAlt

And here is an old photo of one the other members of the group present on the day:

NAltRA

The boys of NAlt were joined by the Cottrells: Christopher (left) and Blair (right):

cottrellsra

I’ll probably add moar photos during the week as they’re made available.

Dani the neo-Nazi goth:

spidernazi

[Update : Daniel Jones posted the following on my Facebook page, denying any neo-Nazi association …]

dannotnazi

Beardy neo-Nazi:

beardynazi3

Golden Dawn supporter @ RA:

gdra
GDDegani1

Finally, in a rather humourous development, an organisation known as the Australian Jewish Communal Lobby (no, I hadn’t heard of it either), has offered to pay court costs for any RA supporter who was arrested at the rallies:

AJCL

A pity that the AJCL was not available to provide legal support to Neil Erikson when he was convicted of harassing a rabbi in Melbourne last year.

Posted in Anti-fascism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

#ReclaimAustralia #Melbourne : Aftermath …

RAMEL1488

Briefly: police quarantined maybe 100-150 Reclaim Australia (RA) supporters on the concourse above the square. They were then surrounded on both sides by police. Anti-racists formed picket lines around this assembly and prevented many (but not all) other Reclaimers from joining their racist brethren above (police did manage to force a way thru the picket on the Flinders St side to allow several dozen Reclaimers thru). There was then a stand-off with occasional unsuccessful attempts by Reclaimers to break the picket and a small amount of argy-bargy. After an hour or two of this the Reclaimers above moved to stand in front of Chocolate Buddha — again surrounded by a large number of police. Some time later, police decided to move the Reclaimers out of the square by way of the steps to the Yarra. The hundred or more racists then milled about alongside the Yarra and slow progress (with police escort) was then made to Flinders St station where things basically came to a halt and most dispersed.

Initial verdict: a partial victory for anti-racists, with the racist RA supporters outnumbered, isolated and unable to control the square — and eventually forced to leave. Otherwise: RA attracted many more supporters than the last time (2011) racists tried to rally at Fed Square — a warning signal to the left, I guess, that hatred of Muslims has significant support among the wider population and wrapping this phobia in the Australian flag (one example of which was burnt at the rally by Indigenous activists) will likely draw some small degree of support … but also attract, at least in Melbourne, significant opposition (even without the support of the unions).

And oh yeah: the Reclaim Australia Twitter account was hacked … LOL.

RAtwfail1
RAtwfail2

I may write a more complete account and some analysis later. In the meantime:

‘Aboriginals Are Dickheads’: Reclaiming Australia, One Racist Video Rant At A Time, New Matilda, April 4, 2015
Reclaim Australia rallies: protesters clash in Melbourne and Sydney, Michael Safi, The Guardian, April 4, 2015
So this is Easter: Melbourne faces off at anti-Islam rally as police on horseback hold factions apart, John Elder, The Age, April 4, 2015
Reclaim Australia clashes with opposing groups at rallies around the country over extremism and tolerance, ABC, April 4, 2015
Reclaim Australia Twitter account hacked as rallies staged around Australia, The Sydney Morning Herald, April 4, 2015
Reclaim Australia and No Room for Racism rallies clash across Australia, news.com.au, April 4, 2015

Posted in Anti-fascism | Tagged , , , , , | 28 Comments

#ReclaimAustralia : disrupt, dismantle, decolonise

Update : A quick guide to staying safe and being effective: all out against ‘Reclaim Australia’!, Anarchist Affinity, April 3, 2015.

From Cronulla December 2005 to Reclaim Australia April 2015 …

rlly

The Reclaim Australia (RA) rallies are taking place tomorrow in (almost) every capital city — Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart, Perth, Melbourne and Sydney — and a number of regional and rural centres — Albury (NSW), Broken Hill (NSW), Cairns (QLD), Esperance (WA), Gold Coast (QLD), Hervey Bay (WA), Mackay (QLD), Newcastle (NSW), Rockhampton (QLD), Sunshine Coast (QLD) and Toowoomba (QLD). Note that, outside of the capitals, it’s unclear if all the planned rallies will take place — a product of the ad hoc nature of the rallies and some bickering among the various rally organisers. Meanwhile in Toowoomba, the hard-pressed patriots have been instructed not to bring along any ‘swastikers’ to their BBQ …

AAV

Michael Safi @ Teh Grauniad has written about the rallies here: Anti-Islamic group Reclaim Australia plans 16 rallies across the country (April 3, 2015). Shermon Burgess aka ‘The Great Aussie Patriot’ and face of RA has form as an Australian Defence League (ADL) member. As well as singing songs about killing Muslims and burning down mosques, he even boasts of having participated in the Cronulla pogrom in December 2005:

burgesscronulla

Joining Burgess will be a range of other groups and individuals on the far right, including Mike Holt of Restore Australia (Newcastle), Danny Nalliah of Rise Up Australia (Melbourne), members of the ADL, Australia First Party, Patriots Defence League Australia, neo-Nazis and White supremacists responding to the call-out by US-based neo-Nazi site The Daily Stormer.

There have been actions organised to oppose RA tomorrow:

Adelaide
Reclaim Adelaide from the Racists
Saturday April 4 10am @ Festival Plaza
Facebook event: Reclaim Adelaide from the Racists

Brisbane
Rally Against Racism & Bigotry
Saturday April 4 10:30am @ King George Square
Facebook event: Rally Against Racism & Bigotry /// Brisbane Counter-Protest to the neonazi-led “Reclaim Australia”

Canberra
Stand Against Islamophobia! (Canberra’s Reclaim Australia Counter Protest)
Saturday April 4 11am @ National Library
Facebook event: Stand Against Islamophobia! (Canberra’s Reclaim Australia Counter Protest)

Gold Coast
Reclaim Australia Counter Rally
Saturday April 4 10am @ Evandale Park
Facebook event: Reclaim Australia Counter Rally

Hobart
Anti-Rally Solidarity
Saturday April 4 11:30am @ Parliament Lawns
Facebook event: Anti Rally- SOLIDARITY!!

Melbourne
Rally Against Racism
Saturday April 4 midday @ Federation Square
Facebook event: Rally Against Racism

Perth
Rally Against Racism
Saturday April 4 11am @ Solidarity Park
Facebook event: Rally Against Racism

Sydney
Anti-Racist Counter-Rally – Stop Islamophobia
Saturday April 4 10:30 am @ Martin Place
Facebook event: Anti-Racist Counter-Rally

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

#ReclaimAustralia : Refugees are welcome — racists are not!

nrfr1
nrfr2

The following leaflet was distributed at the Palm Sunday rally in Melbourne today. See : Thousands march in Melbourne on Palm Sunday to protest asylum seeker policies, Alana Schetzer, The Age, March 29, 2015.

PDF of leaflet: standuptoracism.

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#ReclaimAustralia (minus one week + counting …)

It’s one week until neo-Nazis, white nationalists, evangelical Xtians, patriotic suburbanites and folks from regional and rural NSW, QLD and WA descend on Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Esperance (WA), Gold Coast, Hervey Bay (QLD), Hobart, Mackay (QLD), Melbourne, Newcastle, Perth and Sydney in order to inform Australian Muslims that they should f*ck off. (Rallies may/not also be held in Broken Hill, Bunbury, Bundaberg, Canberra, Sunshine Coast, Rockhampton and Toowoomba.)

Counter-rallies are being held in Brisbane, on the Gold Coast and in Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.

Below is some agitprop.

meanwhile melbourne

PDF version of above poster3_MELB(3) | PDF version of ‘Fuck Fascism’ poster (Melbourne) poster2_MELB(1).

ReclaimPerth

Posted in Anti-fascism | Tagged , | 7 Comments