Everyone at Searchlight was deeply saddened to learn of the death of Sir Geoffrey Bindman, who passed away on 4 November. Geoffrey was a towering figure in British legal and human rights circles. Over a career spanning more than six decades, he championed civil liberties, racial equality, and justice for the marginalised, leaving an indelible […]
Anti-fascism
Mike Cohen: The anti-fascist whose camera was his gun
Mike Cohen was one of Britain’s great Jewish anti-fascists, whose significant contribution to the movement came through his camera lens. He passed away in October 2002 at the age of 67, and with the passage of time I often think of Mike, convinced that he deserves to be remembered. Mike came from a time when […]
Epping sets anti-racists a challenge we cannot shirk
In Epping, organised fascists and their racist supporters have scored a notable victory over the last couple of weeks. The situation was not turned around by yesterday’s creditable anti-racist turnout but maybe a line has been drawn, and a moment signalled when the real, hard work of winning hearts and changing minds in that divided […]
Epping this Sunday – anti-racists must nip far-right violence in the bud
On 7 August last year, in response to direct fascist threats of violence against organisations helping migrants and asylum seekers, tens of thousands of anti-racists turned out to physically protect those organisations. It was a phenomenal show of strength and helped put an end to a week of horrendous racist violence. Searchlight wrote at the […]
Fanning the flames – far right aims to whip up summer of race riots
Let’s be under no illusions about the significance of this week’s events in Epping – this is simply the first chapter in determined efforts by the far right this summer to engineer a repeat of last year’s post-Southport race riots, using whatever pretext presents itself. This week the pretext was three alleged sexual assaults on […]
Labin 1921: miners lead Europe’s first anti-fascist revolt
The Labin Uprising of 1921, often heralded as the first anti-fascist revolt and workers’ republic in Europe, is a landmark in miners’ history. Taking place in the Istrian town of Labin, now Croatia, then under Italian rule, this often-overlooked miners’ uprising showcased the power of workers’ solidarity and foreshadowed the anti-fascist struggles that would engulf […]