Searchlight Critical Bibliography
1975

 


Political Language and Oratory in Traditional Society, Edited by Maurice Bloch, published by Academic Press, London, (1975). 240 pages. Index.


Ambiguity in Political Discourse: (“A sociolinguistic investigation into a corpus of French political tracts of May ’68”), by Gill Seidel, is CHAPTER TEN, pages 205-31 of Political Language and Oratory..., (see above).


A critical Reply to Ian Macdonald’s “Some Thoughts on Fascism Today”, by Maurice Ludmer, published in RACE & CLASS, April 1975, Volume XVI, Number 4, pages 418-21.

Ludmer complains that the word fascist is hurled around with gay abandon. (But not enough in his case.)


Hitler birthday party uncovered, by Peter Gladstone Smith, published in the Daily Telegraph, April 6, 1975, page 3.


Riddle of Hitler festival in West, by Michael Macklin, published in the Western Daily Press, April 7, 1975, page 1.

This report in the Western Daily Press, and the two below, for April 29 & 30, appear to be the basis for the Searchlight May 1975 Column 88 exposé. This first one reports that the police may investigate a “Führer Festival” which is believed to have been held the previous year in Wiltshire. Salisbury police said no investigation was being made into the Stonehenge party. The party started at Swindon and moved on to Stonehenge. One of those present is believed to have said he was the nephew of Martin Borman. Talk about being non-commital. This referred to the previous year, ie with Roberts.


Lid stays on, published in the Guardian, April 21, 1975, page 1, London edition only.

UNION JACKS fluttered over Warninglid, Sussex, yesterday as the village prepared itself for a Nazi invasion. But the only people who turned up were hopeful tourists, armed with German phrase books. The Special Branch had intercepted letters inviting members of a Nazi organisation to Warninglid to celebrate Hitler’s birthday. But the local police said: “If the Nazis have arrived, we know nothing about it.”


New riddle of Nazis’ camp on West farm, by Michael Macklin, published in the Western Daily Press, April 29, 1975, pages 1 & 7.

This reports a phone call from a Wiltshire member of Column 88 who did not identify himself. The paper had obviously been briefed by Roberts – or his manipulators – it had also received two letters stamped by the so-called Security Department of Column 88. An intelligent guess would suggest that this call was made by Les Vaughan. However, the letter/press release is headed with a swastika, which was not the logo of Column 88. A copy of Did Six Million Really Die? was also received. Martin Bormann’s nephew was said to have attended a Column 88 camp – or perhaps it was Napoleon! The letters were passed on to the police.

The writer and the caller – the same person? – managed to impart the following information: “We are not a dreadful sinister organisation. We don’t plant bombs or anything like that.” There would also be an international camp held near Chippenham the following June.


Special Branch sees Hitler letters, by Michael Macklin, published in the Western Daily Press, April 30, 1975, page 5.

A follow up on the previous day’s article. Nothing new here.


NATIONAL FRONT: A growing menace, by Maurice Ludmer, published in VOICE OF THE UNIONS, May 1975, page 2.

At Colindale, this publication is bound with JEWISH REVIEW: The voice of Religious Zionism. Nuff said!


COLUMN 88: This is a scan from Searchlight, May 1975, page 6. This reference to the organisation being a slowly growing cancer is consistent with the claim made by Gable in 1991, but in the April 1993 issue of Searchlight it became “a honey-trap organisation controlled by British intelligence”.


Marshalling the forces, published under TRADE UNION NEWS in Searchlight, August 1975, issue 6, page 18.

This article refers to Ralph Steven Marshall aka John Green, a hyper-cautious and very secret individual who was said to have made a none too polite racial remark at a meeting in East Anglia a couple of years ago: “WE have more than our fair share of Blacks in the urban Industrial areas, now if we had enough tree’s [sic] they could swing on them to their hearts [sic] content.”

Ralph Marshall was actually the magazine’s agent provocateur Dave Roberts, so obviously Searchlight and not the far right must take the credit (and blame) for this remark, and any other offensive remarks and actions of its undercover operatives.

Note too the claim at the bottom of the page that a Sheffield trade unionist had criticismed the police for failing to take action over “alleged racialist posters” appearing in the city. Racism is fine for some, but not others, it would seem.

Click here and here for more on Dave Roberts.


The Nation Wreckers, by Sandra Ross, published by Britain First Press, Croydon, (October 1975).

A 24 page pamphlet edited by Richard Lawson, who may also have written it. The current writer was informed that Sandra Ross is a pseudonym. This pamphlet is based on a series of articles which appeared in the National Front magazine Britain First between May and August of 1975. The theme is that the Jews are behind race-mixing. At page 9, it names Gable as a former member of the 62 Group.


The resolution of conflict: Constructive and destructive processes, is a lengthy book review (of this title) by Michael Billig, published in European Journal of Social Psychology, 1975, Vol 5-3, pages 409-14.

Pages 415-8 is A reply to Billig by author Morton Deutsch.

Deutsch takes issue with the reviewer and accuses him of polemicising. As if Billig would do that!


The London Gazette, 3rd October, 1975, page 12416.

The Searchlight Association Limited was wound up by notice in the above.


Posters no infringement of election law, the Times, November 4, 1975, page 7.

This is a report of Director of Public Prosecutions v Luft and Another.

Mr Another was Graeme Atkinson. Luft, Atkinson and one Neil Duffield had distributed anti-National Front leaflets in the run up to the General Election the previous October, ie 1974, in the Manchester and Bolton areas.


NF thugs batter liberties meeting, by Jim Arnison, published in the Morning Star, December 1, 1975, page 1.

Reports that Atkinson was hit in the face with a bottle at a meeting. See also Morning Star report for December 2 below.


FRONT ATTACK “WELL PLANNED”, by Jim Arnison, published in the Morning Star, December 2, 1975, page 3.

This is a report of an attack by National Front supporters on a meeting of a pro-IRA nature. The report includes a photograph of Graeme Atkinson sporting 19 stitches, apparently from a bottle in the face. Another man, Malcolm Peach, was even more brutally attacked. The NCCL criticised press coverage of the attack.


Nat Front’s Violence, published in the Jewish Telegraph, page 1, continued on page 3 as NAT FRONT VIOLENCE AT MEETING, published in December 5, 1975.

This contains a gorey photo of Atkinson with 19 stitches, attacked by NF supporters at a “North West Council of Civil Liberties meeting” on Sunday. Atkinson is described as a 27 year old Stockport teacher; five injured, 29 NF members arrested. This was said to have been an Anti-Terrorism Act meeting; Jews and blacks said to be the main target of the NF.


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