uncarved.org blog

I’m grateful to my old mucker Merrick for dropping by with his thoughts on the election. We’ve argued the toss about politics for well over 15 years now and I’m pleased that it looks like continuing until we are shouty old men.

I’m sure that Merrick is correct that, nationally. people avoided the Greens and Independents in many areas because they were voting tactically against the Conservatives.

But as Matt Sellwood (Green candidate for Hackney North and Stoke Newington) has pointed out, this doesn’t apply in Labour safe seats. Indeed it looks like large numbers of the electorate here were either not persuaded by the Greens, or irrationally voted for Labour because they wanted to send a strong message to the Tories (who stand ZERO chance of being elected here).

Whilst we can all take some comfort about the British National Party’s absence from Barking and Dagenham Council, I’m not at all convinced that this means they will now run off with their tails between their legs. My friend Glyn Rhys has dug into the numbers a little and come up with some rather more troubling conclusions.

Perhaps the most obvious of these is that the BNP now have 563,000 people prepared to vote for them. And that this support is despite an unprecedented campaign pointing out how horrible and “Nazi” the BNP is. Either these voters are fine with voting for alleged Nazis or they simply don’t believe it.

Merrick is correct to compare the current state of play with the National Front’s vote in the 1979 election. He is also right to say that there is probably a “ceiling” which far right (and far left, but that’s another sorry story) groups can reach in UK elections. Indeed, the main threat that far right parties pose is not seizing power and implementing their policies, but by acting as pressure groups on mainstream political parties.

The BNP now have double the votes the NF achieved and seem to be able to successfully spread out into new areas, which the NF failed to do. With electoral reform right at the top of the political agenda for the first time I can remember, those 563,00 votes may count for a great deal more next time around.

Parliament’s main priority in its next term will be to address the massive debt incurred whilst bailing out the banks. This means savage cuts, job losses and even harsher times for those at the sharp end. There are going to be a lot of pissed off people around looking for alternatives to whatever combination of Lib/Con/Lab ends up in charge. Call me cynical but I’m not sure that they’re all going to flock to the Green Party or the remnants of the left…

Previously on uncarved.

Today

UNITED COLORS OF BLAGGERS ITA – RE-RELEASE – Blaggers ITA’s MySpace Blog

Classic album now available again with bonus tracks.

Blaggers ITA on uncarved.org

Transpontine: Brockley’s most famous fascist.

It’s not often I bother with the adolescent antics of satan-bothering metallers, but a press release from convicted murderer Varg Vikernes recently caught my eye. Prison hasn’t made Varg any less of a nazi, but now he’s at large once again he’s been shocked to find that black metal is a haven for people who:

“‘get loaded,’ ‘get high,’ and in all other manners too behave like the stereotypical Negro; they will probably continue to get foreign tribal tattoos, dress, walk, talk, look and act like homosexuals, and so forth.”

All of which makes black metal sound like a lot more fun than it actually is.

Unfortunately Varg’s spluttering outrage is slightly undermined by his press release promoting what can only be described as One Of The Gayest Album Covers Ever:

The election of two BNP MEPs in the European elections has propelled the party onto the national stage and initiated a debate about why they’re achieving historically unprecedented results (or in some cases, even whether they are doing so), what is driving their recent performances and crucially, how they may be stopped and what the lefts role is in this – in a nutshell what our relation to anti-fascism is and should be in today’s conditions.

There is one question that is not being asked though – is anti-fascism the answer to the BNP?

via butchersapron – MatBlog.

After my posts on the Police Bill and Blair Peach, I was flabbergasted to find that UK toymakers Matchbox used to manufacture little Special Patrol Group vans.

How weird is that? Did kids in the 80s really set up little re-enactments of police brutality and riots in their bedrooms?

1) crowbar, small metal cosh, whip handle, whip, brass handle.

2) US type truncheon, two knives.

3) wooden truncheon.

4) bayonets, swords, a cosh and Nazi memorabilia*.

OK, so that isn’t my shopping list. It is a list of items which were found during a search of the lockers (*and home) of four police officers of the Special Patrol Group who were named in connection with the killing of Blair Peach. None of them were ever charged or (as far as we know) reprimanded. Calls for a public enquiry at the time were rejected. 

The investigation into the killing has never been released in full. 30 years later, The Friends of Blair Peach are still demanding that it be released.

The Institute of Race Relations has posted two very interesting articles during the anniversary:

The Political Legacy of Blair Peach

- on the ensuing political struggles, memorials and calls to disband the SPG. Also the setting up of INQUEST, a group dedicated to “helping families get justice through the coroner’s courts – especially when someone has died in custody or at the hands of the police”

Remembering Blair Peach 30 Years On

- about Blair Peach the man, which I think is an important way of rehumanising him, if that makes sense? All the column inches and lyrics tend to obscure the fact that he was a bloke, a teacher, someone’s friend, someone’s neighbour.

I’ve also been reading Tony Ward’s Death and Disorder, which was published by INQUEST in 1985. The pamphlet deals with the deaths of Blair Peach, Kevin Gately (who was killed during a demonstration against an NF meeting in Conway Hall in 1974) and Cynthia Jarrett (who was killed during a police raid on her home in Tottenham in 1985 – one of the contributory factors to the riots in Broadwater Farm). Death and Disorder is still available from INQUEST for two quid + p&p.

All this has reminded me that 20 years ago me and my friend Gerry trogged off to Southall for the 10 year anniversary march of Blair Peach’s death. I can’t remember much about the day, but I guess it shows I’m consistent.

History is made at night: Southall 1979.

On Blair Peach (who was killed by the police during anti-fascist demonstration 30 years ago today).

I’ve previously written about the Special Patrol Group here and also covered Southall as part of my writing (and mix) about UK reggae and the National Front.