YOUNG NAZI AND PROUD
The BNP is exploding becasue leader Nick Griffin is prepared to go to the wall, and jeopardise all their gains of the last few years to defend the position of self confessed proud Nazi, Mark Collett.
Rank and file BNP members simply cannot understand why Collett is considered indispensible. What information does Collett have on Griffin?
Here is the Channel Four Dispatches film that first exposed Collett:
Kirklees Unity Against the Far Right has great coverage.
They also have some brilliant You Tube clips of Russell Brand making Collett look a complete fool.
Maybe they’re in love. I look forward to their gay marriage. Surely this is enough to get me on to the funny Redwatch?
Comment by Tawfiq Chahboune — 16 December, 2007 @ 5:07 pm
Thanks for those links. For 2 years I’ve hated Russell Brand. That was until I saw a 6-minute clip of his stand-up comedy last week, where he was taking the piss out of The Sun newspaper and it was hilarious. This video of him with Collet has led to a further re-appraisal. I still think he’s generally annoying and overrated, but he’s certainly gone up in my estimation.
Comment by D.B. — 16 December, 2007 @ 7:54 pm
Ah yes, I felt much the same way about Mr Brand. Granted, when i found out he was something of an anti-capitalist protester in the past, he made me a little less hostile - but the piss-take of collett was just classic.
Comment by Charlie Marks — 16 December, 2007 @ 11:05 pm
At the risk of coming over as very staid and middlel aged, I never liked Brand until I saw him interviewed on Jonathan Ross recently, and I thought he came over really well.
But this interview with Collett is proceless, and it does show that the “No Platform” policy isn’t always right.
Debating Collett in a serious way would not be justfied, but setting him up to be made to look a complete pillock has got to be good value for money in anyone’s book.
Comment by Andy — 16 December, 2007 @ 11:22 pm
Brand is okay, but the most horrific thing I saw recently was a C4 prog on men who follow some ‘formula’ for picking up women. There was a Brand-alike involved… Now, as a John Cooper Clarke fan who once had the hair I bow to no-one in terms of long locks, but a bit of socio-political savvy goes with it, and this guy on the prog didn’t have it. Still if Brand is taking on BNPers that’s a good thing…
Comment by WorldbyStorm — 16 December, 2007 @ 11:38 pm
In reply to 4:
‘But this interview with Collett is proceless, and it does show that the “No Platform” policy isn’t always right.’
It shows no such thing, one of the strengths of anti-fascists having a no platform policy is that it increases the chance that where they do get a platform it is hostile.
Comment by JM — 17 December, 2007 @ 10:43 am
That argument is a bit too subtle for me JM.
Rusell brand interviewing Collett is a breach of the idea of No platform, so to also argue it is actually an application of the policy of No platform is stretching things for me.
Comment by Andy — 17 December, 2007 @ 11:02 am
#6 I’m not convinced that there’s actually any difference between your position and Andy’s in #4.
If Russell Brand had approached UAF before the programme was made, he would have been advised strongly that he shouldn’t go ahead with it. Fine.
But he didn’t do that. And, as it happens, he showed the kind of backbone and ingenuity that eludes all the liberal media commentators, and he made Collett look like the fool he is. Anyone watching that who might have been tempted to join the BNP is less likely to do so now. You agree with that, so does Andy. What’s the difference.
We argue no-platform on every occasion. That doesn’t mean that after the act we have to condemn the very rare exceptions when the Nazis are successfully made to look ridiculous.
Comment by babeuf — 17 December, 2007 @ 11:07 am
Exactly babeuf, and while the strategy is generally correct, there is a case for Collett to be given as much air time as possible, given his amazing ability to present the BNP in the worst possible light.
It would be nice to think that Collett is an MI5 asset, it woould make payng my taxes seem more worthwhile.
On the subject of which, it does seem highly likely that C18 was in some way connected to the security services given their amazing immunity from prosecution in the early years. BUt you have to hand it to Charlie Sergeant, when asked by the judge whether there was anything he wanted to say before sentancing, he said he wanted to clarify that he was a genuine nazi, and a follower of Adolf Hitler, which must have added a few more years ;o)
Incidently, I note Swindon’s favorite nazi, Danny Lake has been expelled from the BNP.
Comment by Andy — 17 December, 2007 @ 11:16 am
I don’t really see the connection between a ‘no platform’
policy and a ban on investigative journalism. The ‘no platform’
policy is about the right in the labour and student movement
to decide not to invite speakers they don’t want to invite
and not give them a platform. Its not about banning investigative journalists and to conflate the two is simply an attempt to make what
was a big historical gain for anti-fascists look silly.
Given that there is a right wing offensive to do precisely that within
student unions at the moment, this is a politically mistaken
argument.
Comment by johng — 17 December, 2007 @ 11:31 am
JOhn
Investigative journalism such as the “Young Nazi and proud” dispatches programme is a totally different and irrelevent question.
Russell Brand’s interview with Collett was not investigative journalism, it was an interview in which Collett hoped to promote the BNP. It makes I larff that you think Russell brand can be described as an investigative journalist.
As you well know, the No Platform policy is not just about labour movement and student union platforms, we have also sought to use it to prevent the BNP being treated as a mainstream political party in the press and broadcast media.
For example a few years ago, BBC Wiltshire wanted to host a debate between me and the BNP. I said i wouldn’t take part, and the BBC then said they would run the piece anyway with just the BNP. The BBc pulled th plug on the broadcast after I got our three local MPs (2 labour, 1 Tory) to write to them, along with hundreds of trade unionists and other activists. This is a correct use of the No platform policy. It had nothing to do with labour movement and student platforms.
It seems that you are so quick off the trigger with your rapid rebuttal of anything argued on this blog, that you have stopped thinking.
Comment by Andy — 17 December, 2007 @ 11:41 am