ABSTRACT
After Lewisham, much of the press coverage was hostile to the anti-fascists, some voices were raised in the protesters’ defence. While the main response of the SWP to Lewisham was the decision to launch the Anti-Nazi League, other and quite different plans were also canvassed. The libertarian Marxists of Big Flame distrusted the Anti-Nazi League, fearing both the top-down instincts of the Labour MPs and the prospect of the group’s domination by the SWP. From the perspective of the Labour Party, one of the attractions of the Anti-Nazi League was that it was a central source of anti-fascist knowledge which could be drawn on at election time. Dozens of Anti-Nazi League groups were set up, including Aardvarks Against the Nazis, Skateboarders Against the Nazis, Vegetarians Against the Nazis and more. The presence of the pro-Palestinian SWP within the Anti-Nazi League was a particular source of tension with the Board of Deputies.
