Posters use swastika in fight against racism

A Union Flag has been changed into a swastika to promote a campaign by students against racism. The image, with the words "racism tears Britain apart", is part of a poster campaign to crack down on racism in colleges and university campuses.

The National Union of Students (NUS) and Union of Jewish Students enlisted the help of one of Britain's biggest advertising agencies, Bartle Bogle Hegarty, to produce the poster.

The idea is to warn students against allowing right-wing groups to hijack the image of the Union Flag to promote their arguments. Posters will be displayed on sites in London and Manchester and in lecture rooms, bars and campuses throughout the UK. The image has also been printed on beer mats.

The NUS said it had launched the campaign because far-right and extremist organisations were selecting university campuses to peddle racism.

Mandy Telford, president of the NUS, said: "The rise in racism and intolerance should be the primary concern for society and the student movement, and I hope that students will take the lead in combating prejudice, intolerance and hatred."

Nicola Mendelsohn, business director of Bartle Bogle Hegarty, said: "Our approach has been to create a simple iconic image that could work across different media relevant to students around the UK.

"The resulting creative idea works from posters right down to beer mats in the union."

The initiative is being backed by Lord Filkin, a parliamentary under secretary at the Home Office, whose responsibilities include race equality.