Searchlight (magazine)

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Searchlight

Editor	Nick Lowles
Categories	Politics
Frequency	Monthly
First issue	1975
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Website	http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/

Searchlight is a British anti-fascist magazine, founded in 1975, which publishes exposés about racism, antisemitism, and fascism in the UK.

Searchlight's main focus is on the British National Party (BNP), Combat 18, and other sections of the far right. The magazine is published by political activist Gerry Gable and edited by Nick Lowles, and was founded by the late Maurice Ludmer, a lifelong socialist and longstanding anti-racist and anti-fascist.

Contents 1 Early history 2 Criticism 2.1 State Links 2.2 Anarchist Distrust 2.3 Veracity 2.4 Charitable status 3 Relations with other anti-fascist groups 4 Informants 5 Campaigns 6 See also 7 Further reading 8 References 9 External links 9.1 Public statements 9.2 Anti-fascist criticism of Searchlight 9.3 Right-wing criticism of Searchlight

[edit] Early history

The current Searchlight magazine was preceded in the early 1960s by a magazine of the same name, edited by left-wing Labour Party Members of Parliament Reg Freeson and Joan Lestor with Gerry Gable as "research director". It ceased publication in 1967, but Gable, Ludmer and others stayed together as Searchlight Associates before re-launching a regular journal. The pilot issue of the new Searchlight appeared in February 1975, with Maurice Ludmer as its editor.^[1]

Ludmer and Gable were also amongst the first sponsors of the Anti-Nazi League, with Ludmer sitting on its first steering group.^[2]

In the Ludmer years, Searchlight had a close relationship with CARF, the Campaign Against Racism and Fascism, whose magazine was published as an insert from 1979.

After Ludmer's early death in 1981, British academic Vron Ware briefly took over the editorial role until 1983.^[3]

[edit] Criticism

[edit] State Links

Publisher Gerry Gable is known to have links with MI5. His leaked 1977 London Weekend Television Memo stated that he had "given names I have acquired to be checked out by British/French security services".^[4] A 1987 profile referred to Gable's "wide range of contacts, including people in the secret services."^[5]

[edit] Anarchist Distrust

The most consistent and in-depth left-wing critic of the Searchlight organisation is the veteran anarchist Larry O’Hara, publisher/editor of Notes From the Borderland.^[6] As well as numerous articles in the Notes From the Borderland magazine ^[7] he also published a booklet Searchlight for Beginners in 1996.^[8]

The British anarchist website libcom.org has a number of articles alleging that Searchlight pursues an anti-left-wing agenda.^[9][10]

[edit] Veracity

The veracity of some of Searchlight’s claims has been called into question in court, occasionally resulting in legal damages, most notably in the cases involving libertarian writer Alexander Baron.^[11][12]

[edit] Charitable status

At the insistence of the British National Party, Searchlight and the associated Searchlight Educational Trust were investigated by the British Charity Commission of England and Wales as a result of a complaint that claimed that the Educational Trust had been engaging in political activity incompatible with its charitable status.

The Commission's report stated that, in its opinion, the Searchlight Educational Trust had gone beyond the Commission's guidelines on political activities, and found there was a need for a greater distinction between the public activities of Searchlight Magazine and the educational trust. No action was taken as the charity agreed to follow the Commission's recommendations.^[13] Searchlight is now divided into three main bodies; Searchlight magazine, the monthly anti-fascist and anti-racist magazine, Searchlight Information Services, a research and investigatory body which briefs governments, politicians, journalists and the police, and finally Searchlight Educational Trust, a charity devoted to teaching the dangers of racism and fascism.^[14]

[edit] Relations with other anti-fascist groups

The magazine has hostile relations with some other anti-fascist groups in Britain. The magazine group was original part of the steering committee of Unite Against Fascism, but resigned their position after differences over tactics.^[15]

Despite this however, Searchlight magazine maintains friendly relationships with other groups, such as Australia's FightDemBack and some other groups.

[edit] Informants

Searchlight relies for its material on those involved in the far-right. This includes a range of infiltrators, defectors and casual informers.

Its most famous defectors have been Ray Hill^[16] and Sonia Hochfelder. Infiltrators have included Peter Rushton.^[17] Most of its material, however, comes from informers,for example Alan Harvey,^[18] who do so because of feuds with their fellow right-wingers and not from any conviction of Searchlight's cause.

[edit] Campaigns

This section requires expansion.

In the early years of the 21st century, Searchlight launched two interlinked anti-BNP and anti-racism campaigns, Stop the BNP and Hope not Hate. Hope not Hate has received endorsement and national publicity from the Daily Mirror newspaper, and revolves around an annual two week bus tour in the run-up to local elections.^[19][20]

[edit] See also

• Anti-racism
• Anti-Defamation League
• Southern Poverty Law Center

[edit] Further reading

• White Noise by Nick Lowles, 96 pages (November 13, 1998), Publisher: Searchlight Magazine Ltd. ISBN 0-9522038-3-9.
• Searchlight for Beginners by Larry O'Hara, 30 pages (June 1996), Publisher: Phoenix Press. ISBN 0-948984-33-3.
• From Cable Street to Oldham-70 Years of Community Resistance edited by Nick Lowles, 165 pages (October 2007), Publisher: Searchlight Magazine Ltd. ISBN 0-9522038-7-1.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Searchlight magazine website
• Trade Union Friends of Searchlight newsletter
• Searchlight Information Services Press Pack
• Stop the BNP Searchlight's anti-BNP website
• Operation Wedge: Protecting and educating youth against racism
• The fight against Racism:Searchlight Article on Searchlight by the Connections history project.

[edit] Public statements

• Select Committee on Religious Offences in England and Wales Written Evidence Submission from Searchlight Information Services by Gerry Gable, vice chair of the Independent Advisory Group to the Diversity Directorate of the Metropolitan Police Service at Scotland Yard.

[edit] Anti-fascist criticism of Searchlight

• An article critical of Searchlight from the magazine Green Anarchist
• Searchlight and the State, Anarchy 36, 1983 - the first article alleging Searchlight editor Gerry Gable's links with British intelligence (also reprinted in KSL Bulletin 28, 2001)
• Red Action comments on Searchlight
• Albert Meltzer "Two Fascisms; Anti-Fascist Fascism" in I Couldn't Paint Golden Angels, AK Press

[edit] Right-wing criticism of Searchlight

• When Charity is Criminal - Criticism of the Searchlight Educational Trust from the Final Conflict magazine
• http://www.searchlightexposed.com - far right anti-Searchlight website