| Summary: | The 62 Group, an anti-fascist coalition set up in 1962 largely in response to the resurgence of fascism in Britain, appointed Gerry Gable to work with their intelligence operation. This led to the formation of the anti-fascist magazine Searchlight, alongside Searchlight Associates, an information service aimed at exposing racist and fascist groups. Searchlight Associates collected material from a wide-range of radical right groups, primarily in Britain but also internationally. They especially focused on the British National Party, Combat 18, and the English Defence League, as well as the activist groups that opposed them. The results of these investigations formed the Searchlight Archive, which is a major body of material documenting the activities of British and international fascist and racist organisations. It is also a unique archive, and is one of the most extensive and significant resources of its type in Europe. The archive features an array of material and documents related to the history of the extreme right. This collection contains leaflets, stickers, posters, and electoral ephemera from far-right groups, such as the British Movement, British National Party, Combat 18, England First, International Third Positionists, National Front, National Socialist Movement, and the National Socialist Party of Australia. These materials offer a unique insight into the beliefs, actions, and campaigning strategies of several fascist and racist groups, as well as mapping the evolution of far-right movements throughout the twentieth and twenty-first century. This collection is highly important, not only for those interested in the history of far-right movements in Britain and abroad, but any researcher trying to understand global politics in the twentieth century.
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