From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Far-right extremist group
The
Lads Society
is a
far-right
,
white nationalist
, Islamophobic extremist group founded by several former members of the
United Patriots Front
(UPF) in late 2017. It established club houses in Sydney and Melbourne.
[1]
[2]
The Lads Society came to national prominence after it staged a rally in
St Kilda, Victoria
, targeting the local
African Australian
community. Attendees were seen making the
Nazi salute
and one was photographed wearing an
SS
helmet.
[1]
In 2017, the group's leader, New Zealand-born
[3]
Thomas Sewell
asked Brenton Harrison Tarrant (who would later become the perpetrator of the 2019
Christchurch mosque shootings
) to join the Lads Society, but Tarrant refused.
[4]
The group's members and allies attempted to infiltrate the
Young Nationals
in
New South Wales
, and engaged in
branch stacking
at the May 2018 conference. Lads Society members attained leadership positions in the Young Nationals, but were later forced out of the party.
[5]
The Melbourne Chapter has since become the
National Socialist Network
.
History
[
edit
]
In 2017, members of the United Patriots Front,
Blair Cottrell
,
Neil Erikson
, Chris Shortis and former UPF lieutenant
Thomas Sewell
, along with Nathaniel Anderson and Jacob Hersant, members of the neo-Nazi
Antipodean Resistance
, were involved in the creation of the Lads Society, a private far-right men-only club, with a base in Melbourne.
A Sydney club followed in April 2018, and there were plans to expand into other states. The clubs include a boxing gym where weekly "fight nights" take place and a library.
[6]
[7]
In 2018, a local Sydney community group called Ashfield Community Action (ACA) formed in order to oppose the Lads Society. The group distributed posters that aimed to warn the suburb's residents about the group, stating that "The Sydney Branch is known to be led by committed Nazis", and that the organisation "has attracted the interest of hundreds of hard line far-right racists from around Australia". It accused the group of "training white men for racist violence" and called for it to be "shut down as soon as possible".
[6]
Lads Society members provided a security detail for far-right white nationalist
Lauren Southern
during her 2018 Australian tour. Photos from the event show members displaying the
white power symbol
hand sign
gang signal
.
[6]
In early January 2019, Erikson and Cottrell promised to unleash a
Cronulla-style race riot
on Melbourne. During the rally a significant number of participants were documented giving
Nazi salutes
.
[8]
[9]
[10]
Undated videos leaked to the press in November 2019 revealed Sewell's aim to attract and recruit members from mainstream society under the guise of a men's
fitness club
. His white supremacist agenda was clearly shown as he outlined plans which included the creation of
"Anglo-European" enclaves
in Australian cities, encouraging the "speed and ferocity of the decay" of society to help foment a "race war" by such tactics as exploiting the "African gangs" trope used by Home Affairs Minister
Peter Dutton
and other mainstream politicians.
[3]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
Campion, Kristy (April 2019).
"A "Lunatic Fringe"? The Persistence of Right Wing Extremism in Australia"
.
Perspectives on Terrorism
.
13
(2): 12?13
. Retrieved
4 May
2019
.
- ^
Kaye, Byron; Allard, Tom (4 April 2019).
"New clues emerge of accused New Zealand gunman Tarrant's ties to far right groups"
.
Reuters
. Retrieved
13 November
2023
.
- ^
a
b
McGowan, Michael (11 November 2019).
"Australian white nationalists reveal plans to recruit 'disgruntled, white male population'
"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
29 August
2020
.
- ^
Begley, Patrick (2 May 2019).
"Threats from white extremist group that 'tried to recruit Tarrant'
"
.
The Sydney Morning Herald
. Retrieved
7 May
2019
.
- ^
Koziol, Michael (31 October 2018).
"Nationals members resign en masse amid investigation into neo-Nazi ties"
.
The Sydney Morning Herald
. Retrieved
4 May
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
Graham, Ben (30 November 2018).
"Secret location of Aussie underground fight club leaks"
.
News.com
. New.com
. Retrieved
9 December
2018
.
- ^
Puddy, Rebecca (7 June 2018).
"Far right nationalists open private men-only clubs in Melbourne and Sydney"
.
ABC News
. Retrieved
9 December
2018
.
- ^
The new extremist threat in Australia: Right-wing groups who have ASIO's attention
- ^
"Opposing race protesters and police converge on St Kilda foreshore"
.
The Age
. 5 January 2019
. Retrieved
5 January
2019
.
- ^
Wroe, David (7 January 2019).
"Fake facts and normalising extremists: why it was right to jump all over Fraser Anning"
.
The Sydney Morning Herald
. Retrieved
21 January
2019
.
- ^
"Romper Stomper reboot is a compelling investigation into Australia's extremist politics"
. ABC News. 30 December 2017
. Retrieved
14 January
2018
.
Further reading
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Groups
| Extant
| Germany
and Austria
| |
---|
Europe
| |
---|
International
| |
---|
|
---|
Defunct
| Germany
and Austria
| |
---|
Europe
| |
---|
International
| |
---|
|
---|
|
---|
People
| |
---|
|