Brighton fascists try to fake respectability, whilst hiding the extreme violent reality

Brighton stood up against far-right intimidation on 13 June 2026 as thousands of anti-fascists massively outnumbered a South East Patriots march. The Carnival Against Fascism mobilisation was stunning to see, and blocked the racist scumbags at every single turn.

Wandering around with the far-right, I observed an obvious disconnect between the far-right’s public branding and the unfiltered racism of its members. In short, brighton proved its resilience and commitment to standing up to hate.

The performance of innocence

The South East Patriots tried so hard to project a respectable public image for the cameras. I struggled to get myself into their crowd, as policemen had blocked off the four main streets. But they didn’t cover the tiny side streets. Wandering into a street packed with leering men, a sea of flags, and empty beer cans was nothing new. But the banner “Calling people racist when they don’t agree with you is getting really boring” was.

Sh*t like that reeks of desperation. Away from the cameras, the language quickly became that of the most disgusting white supremacy. Let’s be honest, fascists love throwing out slurs and the crowd in Brighton was no different. But watching a young teen calling someone a “sand rat” whilst laughing with his dad hit home.

The dehumanisation of Black and Brown people permeates the entire movement. They can claim what they want through their banners. However, the language these thugs dispense daily, in person, confirms their deep-seated racial hatred towards people they don’t even know.

When Black and Brown people consistently warn us that these marches threaten their entire existence, we need to listen, because it’s getting worse in Brighton especially.

Under the lying banners

The aggression is never just verbal. Speaking to one of them, he took a sip of his Peroni, looked me dead in the eye, and said something that shocked me so much, it nearly blew my cover. He pointed across the police line at the thousands of anti-fascists stood in opposition, picked one lad stood at the front and said:

“I swear, if I had cancer, I’d take a gun and shoot every one of them on the other side, starting with that Black c**t”

This is the very real danger of the modern far-right. They don’t want a political debate. They want a war and view that anyone who isn’t white is a target for eradication.

The crowd also actively weaponised the teeny space they occupied. One woman openly boasted about carrying a large supply of stink bombs. She dropped a bunch of them whilst wandering through the Antifa crowd, handing them out for people to throw over the police line. It was silly of her to offer me over half as they got binned.

“Hyper-masculinity” and hostility

The demographic makeup of the fascist assembly was, unsurprisingly, overwhelmingly male. You know, the typical lads, above the age of thirty with bald heads and shit lion tattoos. Out of around 300 fash there, I saw less than 30 women. This gender imbalance matches wider research by Hope Not Hate which shows far-right spaces rely on this weird hyper-masculine posturing. Aggression, dominance and an inability to listen, you know the type. Clearly, brighton’s experience reflects disturbing national trends.

During the violent far-right riots in Ballymena, 36% of the men arrested had previously been reported for domestic abuse. And 41% of those nicked during wider riots had prior domestic abuse records. So if they’re willing to beat their partners, what the hell can they do to people they don’t know?

The few women present in Brighton were paraded at the front. One woman draped in a flag shouted into a megaphone to lead the chants at one point. The far-right use their women as a shield to appear less threatening, even while the males around them project intense physical aggression.

This aggression targets anyone who doesn’t play ball. The amount of times they screamed at me to take off my mask got boring. They completely fail to see those protecting their health or privacy through face coverings. They view masks as nothing more a marker of infiltration.

Ruined march exposes two-tier policing

Their weird street posturing quickly broke down as Antifa blockades derailed their schedule. We turned their march into a slow, sluggish crawl as they were rightly cut off at every turn. Must have been upsetting, listening to FatBoy Slim play a secret DJ set, whilst being trapped under a bridge.

But whilst our community stalled the thugs, the police response exposed a dark double-standard. Officers handled the far-right with kid gloves, matching their aggression with little more than shouting and the occasional shove.

But anti-racism protesters were met with outright aggression. After being rumbled by Nick Tenconi’s security team, I was forced to leg-it and rejoin our side for safety.

At one point, me and a friend were walking casually towards a police line when the copper instantly withdrew his baton. This heavy handed approach from the state made one thing very clear — the police reserve their violent intimidation tactics for people opposing fascism.

Brighton, you did everyone proud on Saturday. The incredible show of love and solidarity was one of the most stunning I have seen. But the far-right demonstration showed me that this love isn’t enough.

As the far-right grow more desperate, we must be prepared and equipped to prevent this behaviour from spiralling.

Featured images via AntifaBot

By Antifabot

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