As the 70s drew to a close, a growing issue was spreading across the country - a rise in fascism and the popularity of the political party known as the National Front.
Here in Glasgow, it was no different. As the far-right party reached its peak in the mid 1970s, it briefly became England’s fourth-largest party in terms of vote share - with their fair share of support in the north.
In response to their rising popularity, Britain’s left fought back by publicising the neo-Nazi past of senior National Front (NF) members - including images of the party leader John Tyndall wearing a Nazi uniform.
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In 1975, a meeting of just 13 members of the National Front at Kingston Halls saw Glasgow policemen tied up at the meeting - an issue which was brought up in Parliament the following week.
With socialists and trade unionists protesting outside the meeting, Glasgow police were accused of ‘attacking’ people. A report from the time claimed members of the protesting group were ‘arrested and beaten’.
Glasgow City Councillor Andy McMahon said: “I saw the most savage brutality by the police, something I’ve never seen before. I saw a woman kicked onto the ground and punched in the face and members of the Sikh community with their turbans ripped off.”
Over the next few years, several events took place in Glasgow with growing animosity between the NF and their opposition.
In 1979, there was just one National Front candidate in all of Scotland - and 15 loyal NF supporters turned up to one of Glasgow’s primary schools to hear the candidate speak. Whilst almost 600 anti-National Front protestors chanted outside the building, a tenth of Scotland’s police force were on hand - waiting for any situations that may arise.
40 police dogs and 20 horses were also at the scene, though many of the protestors dispersed before the end of the meeting.
By April 1980, a planned NF demonstration was banned in Glasgow after pressure from anti-fascists and the Labour movement. Over 100 loyal NFL supporters attempted to march, and a Labour social club and bookshop were burned down by the NF in revenge.
After Tyndall resigned as party leader in 1980, it was the beginning of the end for the NF. Following a decline in vote share, the party had effectively abandoned interest in electoral participation.
Though they continued to gain members, the NF was eclipsed by 1990 by the British National Party as Britain’s foremost far-right movement.
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