A brief account of Anti Fascist Action trashing a neo-nazi Blood and Honour gig in London in 1989. They did so by occupying the redirection point for the venue.
In 1989 Blood and Honour arranged another large neo-nazi music gig in London. They didn’t dare publicise the actual venue partly because it would be targeted by anti-fascists and partly because they normally booked venues using pseudonyms to avoid the management cancelling the gig. So they publicised a meeting-point for their followers to be re-directed from. In this case it was Marble Arch tube station.
The date coincided with the 3-day DAM National Conference in Wiltshire, but a minibus load of us came back to London for the day. It was another one of those occasions when most of us were convinced we were going to be massacred! Everyone knew that Blood and Honour could muster several hundred or even a thousand bodies. If it was left to me I would probably have suggested that we all go home and have a nice cup of tea. But fortunately the ‘movers and shakers’ within AFA are more daring than me! After we met Red Action and various other anti-fascists we headed down to Marble Arch about 100 strong, and considerably more confident. And what a success it turned out to be!
All afternoon fascists arrived in the area. Sometimes on their own, in groups and even a coachload. And each time they got kicked to shit! It was brilliant. My favourite incident was when three of us ‘regulars’ and a fellow who at the time dressed as a hippy followed a nazi into a back street and battered him until he was begging. Afterwards the hippy-looking fellow confided to me that he was going to have a haircut and start wearing proper shoes instead of sandals because he really enjoyed this anti-fascist stuff!
A DAM comrade got arrested that day for chucking a rubbish bin through a fascist coach window, but luckily got the case dropped because the police are so incompetent. Phew. But while he was in the cells I phoned his dad to say he had been arrested, and he gave me a right bollocking ie “He always gets in trouble when he goes out with you lot, etc. etc.” There’s gratitude for you!
Another DAM comrade was also arrested that day. He has as much contempt for the British judicial system as for the fascists, so he showed up in court wearing shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt which only said “Millwall Away – Nuff Said”. Luckily he got off with a fine, which the DAM paid.
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