Tag Archives: Graham Partner

2015/05/05

Flogging a dead horse : far right election candidates

By East Midlands Anti-Fascists

This is a really bad time for the electoral ambitions of the far right.  In the run-up to the most unpredictable General Election for many years, the far right are nowhere.  With their own little parties in disarray, and most of their thunder stolen by the rise of UKIP (more on that later), only three candidates in the East Midlands are stepping up to lose their deposits on Thursday.  In Lincolnshire, the ludicrous pretend vicar Robert West is standing for the BNP in Boston & Skegness, whilst Cathy Duffy is the BNP candidate for Charnwood in Leicestershire.  The English Democrat’s one candidate in the region is the party’s National Secretary Derek Hilling, standing in Kettering, Northants; the ED were hoping to contest at least three seats in the county, but have decided not to spread their meagre resources too thinly, and are going all out behind Derek.  Hmm….

Rabbit in the headlights….Derek Hilling

 

There are more far-right candidates in the local council elections, also to be held on Thursday.

The BNP have Cathy Duffy (again) standing in Charnwood.  Duffy is an endangered species, being one of only two BNP councillors in the whole country, and the only one in the East Midlands.  We’ll see if she manages political survival on Thursday.  Meanwhile, the Derbyshire Blackshirt Paul Hilliard is standing, as usual, in Derby; and Marc Whitestone is standing in East Northamptonshire.

The English Democrats have two candidates, Oliver Healey and David Haslett, in Leicester.

The British Democratic Party, an Andrew Brons-inspired BNP breakaway, are standing five candidates in Leicestershire, which they regard as their stronghold – Kevan Stafford, Chris Canham, Julia Green and Paul Newman in Charnwood, and virulent muslim-hater Graham Partner in North-West Leics.

Comments Off on Flogging a dead horse : far right election candidates   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire

2013/04/07

Fascist candidates for Leicestershire elections

By East Midlands Anti-Fascists

Leicestershire is the only East Midlands county to have announced the candidates for next month’s County Council elections so far. There are 9 fascists who fancy their luck – the BNP have 7 candidates and new-fash-on-the-block the British Democrats have 2. All of the BNP’s candidates are standing in the Charnwood division, covering the area north of Leicester, meaning that they are not even contesting their former stronghold of North West Leicestershire. Whilst 7 may sound like a lot it is tiny compared to the 48 candidates fielded in the last elections in 2009. Despite having trumpeted about how much money they’ve been conning their elderly supporters into donating to them recently, the BNP is clearly in disarray and it looks like the party will have a poor showing at the polls.

The BNP’s candidates are as follows:

  • Glenfields – Peter Cheeseman
  • Birstall – Ken Tilson
  • Bradgate – Jim Taylor
  • Sileby and the Wolds – Maurice Oatley
  • Syston Fosse – Cathy Duffy
  • Syston Ridgeway – Stephen Denham
  • Thurmaston – Robin Derrick
Derbyshire BNP organiser, Paul Hilliard and Charnwood organiser Peter Cheeseman: Who's pimping who?

Derbyshire BNP organiser, Paul Hilliard and Charnwood organiser Peter Cheeseman: Who’s pimping who?

Steve Denham

Steve Denham

East Goscote BNP councillor Cathy Duffy

East Goscote BNP councillor Cathy Duffy

The British Democrats are yet another breakaway from the BNP, headed by Andrew Brons and launched at a meeting in Queniborough village hall in Leicestershire in February. Despite talking up their status as a rival to the BNP they are only fielding 3 candidates in these elections across the entire country. Former BNP councillor Graham Partner will be trying to hold onto his Coalville seat under the new Brit Dems banner and former Charnwood BNP organiser Kevan Stafford will be standing in Loughborough South. Looks like another BNP splinter group that is rapidly sinking without trace.

Kevan Stafford

Kevan Stafford

Comments Off on Fascist candidates for Leicestershire elections   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Leicestershire

2013/03/10

Tories forming alliance with fascists in NW Leics?

By East Midlands Anti-Fascists

There are local elections afoot in many parts of the East Midlands in May and the party machines are grinding into life. Sensing major defeats to Labour in North West Leicestershire, the Tories are looking for every desperate trick in the book to hang onto power… including courting the “independent nationalist” (i.e. fascist who no longer likes Nick Griffin), Councillor Graham Partner, if his blog is to be believed.

Partner was elected BNP County Councillor for the Coalville ward in 2007  but soon joined Sadie Graham’s anti-Griffin faction, bouncing in and out of the party before finally resigning the party whip in 2010 to become an “independent nationalist” (fascist without a home). Last year he was censured by the County Council for a virulently islamophobic leaflet he sent to voters, which was described as “causing harassment to people of Nigerian origin, Third World origin, Palestinian origin, Pakistani origin, any non-Christian beliefs as well as those of a liberal Christian belief”.

According to Partner’s blog:

In anticipation of those prospects [losses to Labour in a number of wards] and the Coalville defeat of the former BNP councillor, the Tories had the cheek to ask for help from Graham and his associates to fend off the Labour revival and ensure Tory victories.

We definitely take this with a pinch of salt, given the source, but it wouldn’t be unthinkable. The “anti-fascist” credentials of mainstream politicians are always secondary to their desire to hang onto power by any means necessary. If this turns out to be true, it is further proof that you cannot trust mainstream politicians to fight the fascists. The only way they will be beaten is through grassroots anti-fascist direct action.

Comments Off on Tories forming alliance with fascists in NW Leics?   |  tags: , , | posted in Leicestershire

2012/06/28

Coalville ex-BNP councillor’s leaflet censured

By East Midlands Anti-Fascists

A leaflet written by former BNP councillor turned independent, Graham Partner, has been censured for an anti-Muslim leaflet he sent out to voters as a New Year message. Partner, who is now touting the English Democrats label, wrote a leaflet claiming that “victimhood comes easily” to Muslims accusing them of “terrorist atrocit[ies]” and “blood-soaked massacre[s]” “justified by reference to imagined grievances.”

Graham Partner: Bilious shitbag

A Leicestershire County Council standards committee found that Partner had undermined race relations, breached the council code of conduct by bringing the Council into disrepute and ruled that Partner should undertake equality training.

Partner’s leaflet was described as “causing harassment to people of Nigerian origin, Third World origin, Palestinian origin, Pakistani origin, any non-Christian beliefs as well as those of a liberal Christian belief” suggesting that there is almost no one in the world that Partner likes.

Standards sub-committee chair, Martin Caple, said “We have decided Coun Partner is censured in the strongest possible terms as this is a serious matter”, although it is not clear what consequences this has other than the slap on the wrist of equalities training.

Of course, Partner himself has decided that this is all a massive conspiracy claiming rather grandiosely that “it was seen as an opportunity to feign offence on [minorities’] behalf by political rivals who are incapable of defeating a single independent councillor by fair and proper means.” Partner seems to think that racism is all in the imagination of those who have to put up with over-entitled fucktards like him spouting such offensive rubbish day in and day out.

It’s a pity he didn’t get kicked out of his job.

Comments Off on Coalville ex-BNP councillor’s leaflet censured   |  tags: , , , | posted in Leicestershire

2012/05/05

BNP remnants

By East Midlands Anti-Fascists

The BNP did not have a good election. The party lost all the seats it was defending and failed to win any new seats. In many areas its vote was down, in some cases by as much as 50%. All good news for anti-fascists. Unfortunately, they’re not entirely gone. Not yet, anyway.

This week’s defeats follow a poor election last year and the number of BNP councillors has slumped from a high of 57 only three years ago to just three: Sharon Wilkinson on Lancashire County Councillor, Brian Parker in Pendle and – in our region – Catherine Duffy on Charnwood Borough Council in Leicester.

While other far-right parties have failed to capitalise on the BNP’s demise, there are also a handful of independents who are former members of the party, like Graham Partner on Leicestershire County Council. In some cases they will have repudiated their former politics, but it’s not as if politicians never lie. Recall that Partner was recently investigated for distributing an anti-Muslim leaflet.

Ongoing infighting will make it difficult for the few remaining BNP councillors to hold onto their seats when they are next up for re-election (in Duffy’s case in 2014). It is up to anti-fascists to ensure that they are stamped out entirely and that no other far-right group is able to take their place.

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2012/04/12

NW Leicestershire BNP defect to English Democrats

By East Midlands Anti-Fascists

North West Leicestershire BNP have had a rocky relationship with the party over the past few years, with former councillors Graham Partner and Ian Hammonds quitting the party to get beaten as independents last year. Now the North West Leicestershire “Community” blog has shunned the “pointless people pandering to Herr Griff.” and declared its allegiance to the English Democrats instead:

Nick Griffin turned out to be just another chancer with no real morals or conscience, happy to empty the coffers of those who have worked hard to achieve relative success in the very deceitful and corrupt sphere of politics today.

Nationalism is in a mess. Egotistical purists have gone off and formed their own various and miniscule parties with no hope of achieving anything.

Parties like the English Democrats, no? Not that we want to discourage them from wasting their efforts on a party that one of its members admits doesn’t have “the support or infrastructure in Leicestershire”.

Some supporters are pleased to be getting a glimmer of credibility praising the fact that “They do not need any redirection points, the do not need to keeps there meeting place a tip secret. There is no need to hide your intentions.” However, given that some are claiming that almost 43% of their candidates have recently been in the BNP that could all change very quickly. Indeed, it’s difficult to imagine a party wishing for a ‘cleaner’ nationalist image to embrace the likes of Graham Partner, who is currently under investigation for his virulently anti-Muslim views.

Comments Off on NW Leicestershire BNP defect to English Democrats   |  tags: , , , | posted in Leicestershire

2012/04/07

You can take the man out of the BNP, but you can’t take the BNP out of the man

By East Midlands Anti-Fascists

Leicestershire County Councillor Graham Partner who was formerly a member of the BNP, but quit to stand as an independent, is being investigated for distributing a leaflet criticising Muslims.

The leaflet claimed “narrative of victimhood comes easily to followers of Islam” and accused “Muslim hard-liners” of being “by far the greatest persecutors of other faiths.” Two county councillors and two parish councillors lodged a complaint, and the county council’s standards board is now investigating.

Partner claims the complaints are “politically motivated” and insists that the piece was actually written by Daily Express columnist Leo McKinstry. If true, it would be telling that nobody could tell the difference between the ramblings of a fascist and the output from a “mainstream” newspaper.

Anybody who has had the misfortune of witnessing any of the online exchanges between local BNPers and EDL members will realise that this is relatively tame. This isn’t to suggest it’s any good. Deliberately blurring the distinction between Islamic extremists and Islam as a whole is a recurring theme in the statements of far-right groups across Europe. By positing a homogeneous mass of reactionary (homophobic, sexist, terrorist) Muslims as a threat, the far-right can then present itself as “progressive” while pushing through a regressive agenda.

It goes without saying that the very real Muslim “hard-liners” that Partner claims to be concerned about will only be strengthened if Muslims as a whole perceive themselves to be a target.

Comments Off on You can take the man out of the BNP, but you can’t take the BNP out of the man   |  tags: , , , | posted in Leicestershire