Activists blockade London meeting of ‘secret Neo Nazi society’

Meeting of 'British alt-right' had been due to hear from an 'outspoken admirer of Adolf Hitler'

Anti-fascist demonstrators hold up placards at a central London anti-Jewish rally (AFP/Getty Images)

Around 80 protesters blockaded the entrance to a central London hotel that was due to host a meeting of prominent far-right voices.

On Saturday, The Kensington Holiday Inn was due to host a meeting of The London Forum, which London Anti-Fascists describe as a ‘neo Nazi, white supremacist’ organisation. Their previous meetingshosted notorious historian and Holocaust denier David Irving.

An exposé of one of their previous meetings reported speakers urging the audience to “identify, counter and break Jewish-Zionist domination".

When asked to respond to these allegations of anti-Semitism, the London Forum told The Independent,

"We abhor the criminalisation of opinions and defend the right of anyone to question the conventional narrative concerning any events that took place in any period of history; and we regard the nature of Zionism, the rôle of Israel in international affairs and the influence of the Jewish Diaspora upon culture and politics as being legitimate subjects for discussion. "

The group was due to hear from keynote speaker Jason Reza Jorjani, close associate of American white supremacist Richard Spencer, who shot to prominence when footage of his colleagues giving Nazi salutes following a speech went viral.

Also on the bill was Ian Millard, a former barrister who was barred from practising after expressing his admiration for Adolf Hitler.

However, activists told The Independent the meeting was cut short after they stopped attendees entering and leaving the building. Police were called to the Holiday Inn, but there was no confrontation between protesters and London Forum members.

A spokesperson for London Anti-Fascists told The Independent: “These meetings are a recruiting ground for organised fascists - the kind who are happy to make Nazi salutes in public as well as the more insidious.

"Nearly every neo-Nazi protest held in London over the past few years can be linked back to this series of meetings.

“The London Forum has been running since 2012 and has expanded across the country/There are regular meetings linked to it in the South West, Wales, Yorkshire and New York. The YouTube channel which they use to promote these events has clocked up more than 500,000 views."

“We need to take direct action to shut these meetings down and prevent a fascist movement from emerging.”

Stead Steadman, a member of London Forum, said, "The London Forum is a forum not a credally defined group. I would however say that an opposition to globalism, cultural and non-cultural Marxism, and a support for white ethnicity and its civilization, liberty of expression, and religious tradition, dominate its centre."

"We think it is time the tyranny of Orwellian political correctness were deposed by classically rooted yet progressive European values."

The Kensington Holiday Inn declined to comment on the incident.