Campaign Against Racism and Fascism
Encyclopedia
The Campaign Against Racism and Fascism (CARF) is an anti-racist
group based in London
with a history going back to the mid-nineteen-seventies. It was originally an anti-racist/anti-fascist paper published by Anti-Fascist Committees in Greater London
, later it appeared as a section within the anti-Fascist Searchlight
magazine, and later still it split with Searchlight to publish as an independent magazine for some years before closing down in 2003. The CARF editorial collective was always closely associated with the IRR (Institute of Race Relations
) and the CARF group now operates as a support group for the IRR's news output.
Anti Racist Committee. In 1977 it was adopted as the paper of the (London) Anti-Racist, Anti-Fascist Co-ordinating Committee (ARAFCC) - a federation of the broad-based anti-fascist committess that had sprung up across Greater London in response to the growth of the National Front and its Strasserite offshoot, the National Party
. ARAFCC and CARF were also associated with the Institute of Race Relations
.
When ARAFCC wound down in 1979 CARF continued to publish under an agreement with the then editor of Searchlight, Maurice Ludmer, with whom they had generally good relations, and CARF appeared for several years as a separately edited section within Searchlight. This arrangement continued after the untimely death of Ludmer in 1981, but was put under some strain by the perception that Searchlight maintained too close a relationship with pro-Zionist
groups (Zionism being regarded as a racist ideology by the great majority of leftist and anti-racist groups and organisations in the UK).
This strain came to a head in 1991 when Searchlight editor (and one of its original founders) Gerry Gable
was accused of excluding leading Asian anti-racists from a public platform and when he published an article promoting the openly pro-Israeli/pro-Zionist Jewish Action Group in the pages of Searchlight. The CARF editorial group decided to end their relationship with Searchlight and CARF went back to being an independent magazine with an editorial collective based largely on members and supporters of the IRR. By this time the activists from the London Anti-Fascist Committees who had founded CARF in the seventies were no longer prominent and CARF had therefore lost most of its connections with local Working class
and Labour Movement
bodies (e.g. with local Trades Councils who had established or sponsored most of the London Anti-Fascist Committees).
CARF published until 2003 when it was decided that the magazine was no longer viable and it effectively became a support group for the IRR's own publishing and promotional efforts.
Anti-racism
Anti-racism includes beliefs, actions, movements, and policies adopted or developed to oppose racism. In general, anti-racism is intended to promote an egalitarian society in which people do not face discrimination on the basis of their race, however defined...
group based in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
with a history going back to the mid-nineteen-seventies. It was originally an anti-racist/anti-fascist paper published by Anti-Fascist Committees in Greater London
Greater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
, later it appeared as a section within the anti-Fascist Searchlight
Searchlight (magazine)
Searchlight is a British anti-fascist magazine, founded in 1975 by Gerry Gable, which publishes exposés about racism, antisemitism, and fascism in the UK....
magazine, and later still it split with Searchlight to publish as an independent magazine for some years before closing down in 2003. The CARF editorial collective was always closely associated with the IRR (Institute of Race Relations
Institute of Race Relations
The Institute of Race Relations is a think tank based in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1958 in order to publish research on race relations worldwide, and in 1972 was transformed into an 'anti-racist think tank'....
) and the CARF group now operates as a support group for the IRR's news output.
History
The journal CARF was first published in late 1976 by the Richmond & TwickenhamTwickenham
Twickenham is a large suburban town southwest of central London. It is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan...
Anti Racist Committee. In 1977 it was adopted as the paper of the (London) Anti-Racist, Anti-Fascist Co-ordinating Committee (ARAFCC) - a federation of the broad-based anti-fascist committess that had sprung up across Greater London in response to the growth of the National Front and its Strasserite offshoot, the National Party
National Party (UK, 1976)
The National Party was a short-lived British far right political party formed on 6 January 1976 and which dissolved before the 1979 general election...
. ARAFCC and CARF were also associated with the Institute of Race Relations
Institute of Race Relations
The Institute of Race Relations is a think tank based in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1958 in order to publish research on race relations worldwide, and in 1972 was transformed into an 'anti-racist think tank'....
.
When ARAFCC wound down in 1979 CARF continued to publish under an agreement with the then editor of Searchlight, Maurice Ludmer, with whom they had generally good relations, and CARF appeared for several years as a separately edited section within Searchlight. This arrangement continued after the untimely death of Ludmer in 1981, but was put under some strain by the perception that Searchlight maintained too close a relationship with pro-Zionist
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
groups (Zionism being regarded as a racist ideology by the great majority of leftist and anti-racist groups and organisations in the UK).
This strain came to a head in 1991 when Searchlight editor (and one of its original founders) Gerry Gable
Gerry Gable
Gerry Gable is a British political activist. He was a long-serving editor of the anti-fascist Searchlight magazine.-Background:...
was accused of excluding leading Asian anti-racists from a public platform and when he published an article promoting the openly pro-Israeli/pro-Zionist Jewish Action Group in the pages of Searchlight. The CARF editorial group decided to end their relationship with Searchlight and CARF went back to being an independent magazine with an editorial collective based largely on members and supporters of the IRR. By this time the activists from the London Anti-Fascist Committees who had founded CARF in the seventies were no longer prominent and CARF had therefore lost most of its connections with local Working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
and Labour Movement
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
bodies (e.g. with local Trades Councils who had established or sponsored most of the London Anti-Fascist Committees).
CARF published until 2003 when it was decided that the magazine was no longer viable and it effectively became a support group for the IRR's own publishing and promotional efforts.