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Anti-fascism has long been one of the most active and dynamic areas of radical protest and direct action. Yet it is an area of struggle and popular resistance that remains largely unexplored by historians, sociologists and political scientists.
Fully revised and updated from its earlier edition, this book continues to provide the definitive account of anti-fascism in Britain from its roots in the 1930s opposition to Oswald Mosley and the British Union of Fascists, to the street demonstrations and online campaigns of the twenty-first century. The author draws on an impressive range of sources including official government, police and security services records, the writings and recollections of activists themselves, and the publications and propaganda of anti-fascist groups and their opponents.
The book traces the ideological, tactical and organisational evolution of anti-fascist groups and explores their often complicated relationships with the mainstream and radical left, as well as assessing their effectiveness in combating the extreme right.
List of contents
Introduction
1. Origins and Development of Anti-Fascism 1923-35
2. Opposition to British Fascism 1936-45
3. 'Never Again!': Anti-Fascism 1946-66
4. 'The National Front is a Nazi Front!': Opposition to the National
Front 1967-79
5. Fighting Fascism in the Eighties and Nineties
6. Opposing Fascism in the Twenty-First Century
Conclusion
About the author
Nigel Copsey is Professor of Modern History at Teesside University, UK and co-director of the Centre for Fascist, Anti-Fascist and Post-Fascist Studies. His major publications are Anti-Fascism in Britain (2000) and Contemporary British Fascism: The British National Party and the Quest for Legitimacy (2004; 2008).
Summary
Fully revised and updated from its earlier edition, this book continues to provide the definitive account of anti-fascism in Britain.
Report
Nigel Copsey has led the way in opening up the field of British anti-fascism studies, defining the empirical and conceptual parameters for the elucidation of protest and resistance to extremism over the course of the twentieth century. This lucidly written and meticulously researched second edition of his ground breaking study is very welcome and timely. - Dr Julie V. Gottlieb, University of Sheffield, UK
Anti-Fascism in Britain is an important book, widening our understanding of a subject that remains pertinent today. - Matthew Worley, Professor of Modern History, University of Reading, UK
