Lewisham

Short article with comment on anti-social behaviour, ASBOs, government policy and class in the London Borough of Lewisham.

On August 13 1977, the fascist National Front (NF) tried to march through the multi-racial working class area of Lewisham in South East London. It was a national mobilisation with local NF branches coming from all over Britain. However, a large anti-racist mobilisation turned out to oppose them in what was to become the biggest street battle against the fascists since Cable Street in 1936.

Albert Meltzer first met Kate Sharpley on the day of the Lewisham anti-National Front riot in 1977 when he got into an altercation with some racists on the train home. One of the passengers was a frail lady in her eighties, going up to Guy's & St.