12 Rules For WHAT

Veteran guest Dave Renton joins the show to discuss the long history of the Socialist Workers Party and antifascism in the UK. We discuss the sexual assault crisis of 2013, its ongoing fallout, how the SWP has such influence over UK antifascism and more. Support episodes via our patreon, patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

Today we are joined by writer Richard Seymour to discuss last Saturday's Unite the Kingdom rally, the largest far right rally in British history. We disucss why it was so big, the anti migrant racism of the mainstream, the yankification of the British far right, Tommy Robinson, how we can oppose his movement and more. Support the show: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Check out Richard's book here: https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/3147-disaster-nationalism Read Richard's take on the rally: https://www.patreon.com/posts/i-heard-you-want-138879347

Recently, the protest group Palestine Action was proscribed by the Labour government under counter terror legislation putting the group in the same category as Al Quaida, ISIS and National Action. This is stunning attack on the right to protest and will have wider implications for the palestine solidarity movement, and other movements that sometimes break the law in pursuing their political goals – which we should remember has a long history in UK protest movements. On the surface this seems to be outside the remit of this podcast, so why are we covering this? For one thing the British state has used the proscription of far right and fascist groups to give a veneer of acceptability this action. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, proscribed two far right groups alongside Palestine Action. But also there is a more fundamental issue here. We cannot divorce the actions and policies of far right governments from those of their liberal democratic counter parts. The British state continues to send fighter jet parts to the Israeli regime, which is committing a genocide. It is also running surveillance missions over Gaza from its base in Cyprus. In addition, Labour has chased Reform in its policy and rhetoric towards migrants. It was only a few months ago that Starmer echoed Enoch Powell in his island of strangers speech. Far right governments usually use existing laws and powers to push an authoritarian agenda. You can see this particularly in the United States of America, where Trump cites hundreds year old insurrection laws and alien enemies acts in order to further his mass deportation campaign. It is not hard to see a far right government in this country to use the proscription of PA to go after climate justice or civil rights movements. With that being said, today I'm talking to Iida Kayhko about proscription, counter terror and more, on with the show! Support the show on patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Iida's article in Race and Class: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/03063968251323166

Kier Starmer's Powelite rhetoric last week shocked many in his party and on the left. Yet it fitrs into a long history of labour racism and racist border policies. Writer Michael Richmond joins the show to discuss all of this, the function of state race relations iniatives, the echoes of the August racist riots and more. Michael Richmond is the co author of two books: Fractured: Race, Class, Gender and the Hatred of Idenity Politics and Fascism and the Women's Cause. Support the show on Patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

Author and historian Pádraig Ó Ruairc joins the show to discuss his new book, Burn Them Out: A History of Fascism and the Far Right in Ireland. We discuss Ireland's complicated political situation post war of independence, the rise of the Blueshirts and their leader Eoin O'Duffy, how FIne Gael reckons (or doesn't reckon) with its fascist origins and much more! Buy Pádraig's book from your local independent bookshop or buy directly from the publisher here: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/burn-them-out-9781035915279/ Support the show on Patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

This week Alex is joined by author Lois Shearing to discuss their new book Pink Pilled: Women and the Far Right. We discuss women's precarious positions within online fascists spaces, how gender motivates far right politics today, how the emptiness of liberal feminism can be exploited and more. The interview was conducted before Pink Pilled came out, you can now buy it via University of Manchester Press or bookshops everywhere. Support the show on Patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Red Flare fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-antifascist-investigations-in-britain

Sam (now known by his real name, Youtube personality Richard Hames) comes back on the show to mark the the release of a new Spanish edition of The Rise of Ecofascism. We cover some of the things in the new preface of the book, reflect on the state of the world in the age of Musk and speculate about where all this is heading. Support the show: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Check out Richard's course: https://crudefutures.substack.com/p/im-teaching-an-online-course-on-collapse Spanish edition of the book here: https://levantafuego.com/producto/baterias-bombas-y-fronteras/

We round up the key far right stories in 2024, discussing Tommy Robinson's incarceration, the fortunes of Homeland and PA and the absolute and total shutdown of the Traditional Britain Group xmas social. Final news, in early 2025 we will be moving to be hosted by anti-fascist researchers Red Flare! Look out soon for details of where you can find our content

For our 100th episode (!) we are joined by two member of the It's Going Down collective to discuss Trunp and the American election. We discuss the racist lies of the Trump campaign, why American fascism goes unchallenged during the Biden presidency, prospects for future resistance and more.

Its been quite a month in the UK. This episode I cover the UK race riots, featuring an interview I did with US podcast It's Going Down. Discussing the post organisational nature of the UK far right, how the EDL doesn't exist, the state's response to the riots and more. This show is part of the channel zerio network. Listen to all the shows at channelzeronetwork.com Support the show at patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

Aurhor and researcher Spencer Sunshine joins the show to discuss all things Seige. We discuss James Mason's obsession with Charlies Manson, how fringe art scenes championed his work, the rebirth of Seige on nazi Telegram channels and have some out of date takes on the Trump assassination attempt. Support the show: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Support Spencer's work:https://www.patreon.com/spencersunshine

Today journalist and activist Dmitry Okrest joins the show to discuss a new book on Russian antifascist Socrates. We talk about Socrate's political activism, the repression he experienced from the Russian State, the Network and Tyumen cases and much more. Support the show: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Link to the book: https://www.activedistributionshop.org/product/socrates-the-skinhead-the-life-of-a-russian-anarchist-preorder/ The Tyumen case: https://libcom.org/article/what-known-about-new-terrorism-case-against-antifascists-tyumen Link to RTP Books: https://linktr.ee/rtpbooks Dmitry's podcast:https://www.instagram.com/publicincitement/

We're back and joined by researcher and activist Adrien Wilkins to discuss the history of antifascism in Norway. We discuss the tactics of both fascists and anti-fascists, the pitfalls of counter-extremism, why bomb throwing was such a big thing for the Norwegian fascist movement and much more. Support us on Patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

In the late 1980s millitant anti-fascists started a cultural project, Cable Street Beat, to counter the rise of a violent fascist music scene which was attacking left wing gigs and attempting to attract a disaffected youth. For this episode reseacher Alex Cater joins to show to discuss the effort. Support the show on Patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat If you were involved in CSB or other cultural anti-fascist projects Alex would like to hear from you. Get in touch with the show or via his article in The Conversation. Conversation article: https://theconversation.com/through-cable-street-beat-music-became-a-potent-antifascist-weapon-against-the-far-right-221060

We are joined by author David Renton to discuss the far right in Israel, we cover the Israeli government's links to the international far right, the influence of the Kahanist movement, how Israel's government has conducted the assault on Gaza and more. Support us on patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat We are part of the Channel Zero network of anarchist podcasts, check out other shows at channelzeronetwork.com

Today we are joined by Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin, activist for People Before Profit in North Dublin to discuss November's race riots, the far right in Ireland and how the anti-fascist Irish left are fighting back and supporting migrant solidarity efforts. Follow us on instagram @12rulesforwhat Support us on Patreon at patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Eoghan is also a musician, check him out on spotify or other platforms, he's good!

Today we are joined by writer and researcher Anthony Faramelli to discuss his work on the concept of microfascism and the nature of fascist desire. We discuss how algorithmic structures feed radicalisation, how we can intervene if someone is radicalised online, the anti-fascism of the Zapatistas and much more!

In the aftermath of the far right violence seen on armistice day, in which mob fought with police and carried out attacks on the massive Palestine demonstration we discuss what it could mean, analyse where the movement comes from, assess its potential and discuss policing on the day. Support us on patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Follow us on Instagram and twitter: @12rulesforwhat

Today historian and activist Louise Hann joins the show to discuss the reprint of a new edition of Physical Resistance: 100 years of antifascism by Dave Hann. We talk about what physical resistance really means, the use of history for antifascists today. Dave Hann's process for writing the book and more! To support the show, and get some extra bonus content for this episode, subscribe at patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

This week I'm joined by legal observer Andy Meinke of : court support group Activist Court Aid Brigade to discuss new restrictions in UK protest law, the vagaries of conspiracy, the difficulties of legal observing a antifascist protest and much more. Support the show on patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Follow the instagram and twitter @12rulesforwhat Check out the Green and Black Cross https://greenandblackcross.org/

Today researcher and writer Timo Koch joins the show to discuss National Conservatism, a far right populist ideology focussed on influencing high level policy. We cover Natcon's history, the influence of Orban, its reactionary idea of the family and much more. Support the show on patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

This week I am joined by Milica Svabic of the migrant solidarity and border monitoring organisation Kilkaktiv to discuss border violence and the far right in Serbia. We talk about the practical work of supporting people on the move in Serbia, how smuggling gangs have become stronger because of increased border security, the far right's use of the migrant crisis in Serbia and much more! Support the show on Patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Find out more about Kilkaktiv's work here: https://klikaktiv.org/

Antifascist activist Pavel joins the show to discuss the trial of Lina E, an antifascist from Germany facing a prison sentence for alleged attacks on neo Nazis. We cover the details of the trial, the repression of the left within Germany, the prospects of the far right AFD, the rise of the Reischburger movement and the December 2022 coup plot. If you would like to support the show then donate to our patreon at patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

Today Annie and Elena from the Border Violence Monitoring Network join the show to discuss their work on the borders of the European Union. We discuss the criminalisation of solidarity work, how people on the move are treated by the racist border regime, the impact of climate on the border regime and much more! If you want to support the show and get it sent direct to your phone a few days early than the public release then support us on Patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Some useful BVMN links: BVMN website: https://borderviolence.eu/ Pushback database on the website: https://borderviolence.eu/testimonies/ Monthly reports on the database: https://borderviolence.eu/databases/monthly-reports/ Here you can learn how you can get involved with BVMN: https://borderviolence.eu/get-involved/work-with-us/ Link to our twitter: https://twitter.com/border_violence Link to our facebook: https://www.facebook.com/borderviolencemonitoring/ Criminalisation toolkit (practical guide to legal means and advocacy tools for criminalised Human Rights Defenders in Europe): https://borderviolence.eu/reports/in-defence-of-defenders/ Report on incidents of criminalisation happening to BVMN, it's member organisations and people carrying out BVMN work in 2021: https://borderviolence.eu/reports/criminalisation-report-accused-of-solidarity/

Today the podcast is joined by long time contributor Allan Jones of Red Flare to discuss the latest happenings on the UK ethnonationalist scene. We cover Patriotic Alternative's rocky few months, two significant spits from PA, the increasing counter terror repression of the far right and more! Support the show on patreon at patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Find Red Flare at redflare.info

The podcast is back from hiatus with a critical discussion on antifascist self defence, building a working class sports culture and sobriety. I disucss these issues and more with writer and activist Solan, basing our coversation on the writings of inter-war Austrian marxist Julius Deutsch. We cover the historical period in which Deutsch was writing, the failings and successes of the Republican Schutzbund, lessons we can draw for today and more! Support more interviews on our patreon here: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Get the book from PM Press here: https://pmpress.org.uk/product/antifascism-sports-sobriety-forging-a-militant-working-class-culture/

Today we are joined by the co-author of We Go Where They Go: The Story of Anti-Racist Action Shannon Clay. We discuss ARA's beginnings in Minnesota, the reason why reproductive justice became a part of organising, the state of the US far rights of the time and much more! You can buy We Go Where They go via PM Press or from your nearest independent bookshop. If you want to support more interviews make sure to subscribe to the patreon, patreaon.com/12rulesforwhat

A familiar voice joins the show to discuss the latest leader of the loser men, Andrew Tate. We discuss Tate's link to the political far right, the nature of his conception of masculinity, the crisis of young men online and much more! If you want to support the show you can subscribe to our patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

Today I'm joined by Max Kaiser, author of the new book Jewish Anti-fascism and the False Promise of Settler Colonialism to discuss a forgotten history of Jews in Australia. We discuss the complexities of Holocaust memorialisation, the importance of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising to Jewish anti-fascists, the position of Jewish migrants in Australian society and much more! If you want to support the show then you can subscribe to the patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

For our first episode of 2023 we are joined by Mike from the It's Going Down Collective to discuss all things US antifascism. We discuss the presence of firearms on demonstrations, the aftermath of January 6th, how US colonialism influences the far right and much more! **This episode was recorded before allegations of sexual coercion were made against Andrew Callaghan** If you want to support the show subscribe to our Patreon! Its at patreon.com/12rulesforwhat We will be launching our latest book club next week, on Michael Richmond and Alex Charnley's Fractured. Get in touch if you want to talk part!

For the final episode of the year, Alex and guest host Mark talk to Michael Colborne of Bellingcat Monitoring on investigating hate online, the expose of Rob Rundo, Azov, Putin's Russia and more.

I chat to independent journalist Murray Kemp about his recent article on the far right in MMA, and the anti-fascist red gyms challenging it. We discuss the importance of anti-fascists training combat sports, how the UFC allows the right to flourish and ask just how good a fighter Andrew Tate actually was. Support the show on patreon! patreon.com/12rulesforwhat Read Murray's article here: https://freedomnews.org.uk/2022/09/13/the-leftists-breaking-the-rights-chokehold-on-mma/

Writer and actovist Armadeep Dhillon joins the podcast to discuss the the impact of far right Hindu nationalism in the UK, in India and on the internet. We discuss the recent unrest in Leicester, how Hindutva is promoted around the world, its origins in India, colonialism and the legacy of the British Empire and much more!

In the past weeks Fratelli d'Italia, a party who can trace a lineage to Mussolini's regime, was elected as the leader of a far right coalition that will take power in Italy. Today David Broder, Jacobin European editor and author of upcoming book Mussolini's Grandchildren: Fascism in Contemporary Italy, joins the podcast to discuss the election, Fratelli d'Italia's bad gender politics, its links to the non electoral far right and more. Pre order the book from Pluto here: https://www.plutobooks.com/9780745348025/mussolinis-grandchildren/ Support the show and get access to episodes early: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

Independent scholar and writer Matthew Lyons joins the podcast to discuss the historical development of the far right in the USA, the problems with common analyses of fascism, the effect of gun culture in the US and the relevance of the three way fight for anti-fascists today. Matthew is the author of Insurgent Supremacists: the US Far Right's Challenge to State and Empire and is a contributor to a new anti-fascsist anthology, No Pasaran Buy Insurgent Supremacists from PM Press here: https://pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=924 Read the Three Way Fight blog here: http://threewayfight.blogspot.com/

Today Michael Richmond and Alex Charnley, the authors of Fractured: Race, Class, Gender and the Hatred of Identity Politics, join the podcast to discuss how reactionary forms of identity politics operate, both in the world today and historically. We discuss why the working class has never been united, how black feminists used concepts of identity in theory and organising, the statue defender protests of 2020 and much more! Support the show on patreon and get to listen to episodes early: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

This week I am joined by lecturer and political theorist Kai Heron and first generation farmer and writer on agroecology Alex Heffron to discuss the far right influences in the farmer protests currently sweeping the Netherlands, far right representations of rural life, the politics of food production and much more! Check out Kai and Alex's work: http://newsocialist.org.uk/transmissions/renewing-land-question-against-greengrabbing-and-green-colonialism/ https://spectrejournal.com/let-a-thousand-fiefdoms-bloom/ Support the show on patreon: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

Today I am joined by antifascist researcher Allan Jones to discuss all things fascist fitness culture and combat sports. We cover a recent expose of Patriotic Alternative's fitness clubs, self improvement threads on 4chan, the far right subculture in MMA and much more! Support the show on Patreon patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

I am joined by journalist Io Dodds to discuss the latest in the world in Qanon, Tanon and the rising tide of transphobia in the US. Read Io's article on the topic here: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/transgender-far-right-qanon-violence-b2108235.html Support the show and join in on our summer book club here: patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

The boys reflect on nearly 4 years of 12 rules as an anti-fascist project, assess the state of far right and anti-fascist movements and draw some concluding arguments and reccomendations from their output. Message from Sam: Doing 12 Rules for WHAT has been one of the most important and enlightening experiences of my life, but I am now moving on to new topics. You can follow my new writing project here: https://collapsology.substack.com/ Thanks to Alex for all the insight and fun and to you for listening and joining in. Alex will be carrying on with the project. There are interviews coming up on QAnon and transphobia, fascist fitness culture and a book club on Race to the Bottom, which you can access by signing up to our patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/12rulesforwhat

We talk all about the influential nazi book The Turner Diaries with Fritz and Boris of the podcast The Empire Never Ended. We discuss the author, William Luther Pierce, the unremitting bleakness of the book, the representation of women and much more. You can support them here: https://www.patreon.com/tenepod

Today we are joined by Ilyas Nagdee and Azfar Shafi, authors of the upcoming book Race to the Bottom, to discuss anti-racism from below, it's co-option and repression, the deficiencies of anti-racism from above and how we rebuild new grassroots movements. You can pre order the book via Pluto Press, the book comes out later in June!

We are joined by author Aurelien Mondon to discuss the recent election in France in the context of his co authored book Reactionary Democracy: How Racism and the Populist Far Right Became Mainstream https://www.versobooks.com/books/3173-reactionary-democracy

We discuss the dynamics of the Polish far right and the Polish government with Dywizjon 161. We discuss the ruling Law and Justice Party, the 2010 plane crash subject to far right conspiracies, the shifting positions on migration in the context of war in Ukraine, far right cooption of the independence day march and more! https://twitter.com/Dywizjon161

We are joined by author and activist Zack to discuss his article 'Building to Confront Fascism' and the problem of building robust antifascist organisations. We ask what building antifascist movements means in the age of the internet, the contemporary models for anti-fascist organising, anti-fascism's relationship to anti-racism and much more! Read Zack's article here: https://www.thelever.org.uk/blog/2018/9/18/building-to-confront-fascism What should we do about the design problem of anti-fascist organising?

We talk to spokesperson for Bristol Antifascists about the far right party For Britain, Tommy Robinson, and the upcoming opposition to FB's demonstration in favour of slave trader Edward Colston. The counter demo is happening on the 9th of April, 11 am at the empty plinth in Bristol. Bristol Defendants: https://twitter.com/bristoldefenda1?lang=en-GB

This week we hear from Sam and the launch of his new project series on the politics and theories of social collapse. In this first episode Sam introduces the project, sets out some terms and explains what we can expect in the weeks to come! 'The content will encompass collapsology, existential risk research, political theory, the politics and culture of collapse, information on practical movements for collective survival, climate systems breakdown, and the affirmation of an experimental attitude towards living and dying. If society is collapsing, what is to be done?' https://soundcloud.com/collapsepodcast https://collapsology.substack.com/

We are joined by Rona Lorimer to discuss the career of fascist French presidential candidate Eric Zemmour. We discuss how Zemmour was allowed a position on mainstream French media, his articulation of a militant anti-feminism, his capacity to shake off scandal and the prospects for opposition to rising reaction in France. The interview was recorded before Russia invaded Ukraine so we didn't get to talk about the backlash to Zemmour's Putin friendly statements. Read Rona's article on Zemmour here: https://conversationalist.org/2022/02/03/softbois-in-france-the-rise-of-eric-zemmour-from-a-feminist-perspective/ https://www.instagram.com/ronalorimer https://twitter.com/laserveuse2

We are joined by campaigner, researcher and activist Bjørn Ihler to discuss the newly launch European Anti-fascist Monitoring Project, a joint initiative between the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation and the Khalifer Ihler Institute. We discuss the necesscity of transnational research into the far right, the question of deradicalisation and much more! https://antifascist-europe.org

Alex and Sam talk about the future of ecofascism: how does it relate to the crises of capitalism and the environment in our future? And what can we do about it? This is our final book preview, back to regular episodes next week! If you want to hear the full show, subscribe to our patreon. Going forward subscribers will have early access to the shows patreon.com/12rulesforwhat https://politybooks.com/bookdetail/?isbn=9781509545377