Seeking to fill a vacuum left by the declining British National Party (BNP) and the splintering English Defence League (EDL), Britain First has been found to be confrontational and dangerous.
Combining the immigrant-bashing rhetoric of the BNP with the intolerant hostility to Islam of the EDL, Britain First is attracting supporters from both due to its confrontational approach, stunts, and strategic marketing.
Recently, members – including the face of the political party Paul Goulding, a former BNP frontman – disrespectfully entered mosques harassing worshippers (mainly elders), distributing anti-Islam leaflets and Bibles.
According to Hope Not Hate, Britain First is in reality not led by Paul Goulding, but by Jim Dowson, who has been a religious antagonist and Protestant extremist since the early 1980s, when he was active in anti-abortion extremism in Scotland.
He also led an anti-abortion group named UK Life League, that was investigated by the National Extremism Tactical Coordination Unit.
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| Britain First's Jim Dowson |
For several years, he was a key fundraiser for the BNP, but after falling out with BNP leader Nick Griffin he set off alone and eventually formed a partnership with ex-BNP publicity officer, Paul Goulding.
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| Britain First's Paul Goulding |
And from then on Britain First was born.
Matthew Collins, director of research for HOPE Not Hate and a former member of the National Front (NF) and BNP said that the Britain First’s “confrontational style is attracting huge publicity and could potentially lead to a violent backlash. If nothing else, its provocative actions – such as distributing Bibles inside mosques and doorstepping Muslim community leaders in their homes – is generating a climate of fear.”
Britain First is using social media to generate interest by strategically marketing itself to people, particularly on Facebook.
Its online campaigns have shown support for the Armed Forces or against animal cruelty that people ‘Like’ and ‘Share’ (knowingly and unwillingly), which makes the post reach out to more people. It has also been claimed that many ‘Like’s have been bought.
On the ground, Britain First is creating a climate of fear amongst minority communities for its own political gain.
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