Today, 12th September 2016, marks the anniversary of the infamous battering of Blood and Honour (along with others) in and around Waterloo railway station in 1992.
This was one of the largest street clashes between fascists and anti-fascists since the Red Lion Square clash in 1974. The clash lasted for hours and forced closure of Charring Cross and Waterloo British Rail stations. At one point it also created traffic chaos around Waterloo as fighting spilled out from the platforms to the surrounding area.
Anti-Fascist Action (AFA) took on Blood and Honour and won leaving the fascists with dented pride and dozens of casualties. This was Blood and Honour‘s big come back, a chance for them to try and break out into the open and the mainstream but instead, they were forced back underground where they remain to this day.
For those of us one generation later, events such as the Battle of Waterloo and the AFA attack on the British National Party’s (BNP) Scottish conference, provides us with a solid framework and case studies of how the battle for the streets can be won.
(Note for the video above: The mobilisation at Waterloo was organised by Anti-Fascist Action NOT the Anti-Nazi League, who were in a different part of London that day)