The Phony Martyrdom of Tommy Robinson
Tommy Robinson wants you to believe he’s a plucky underdog who’s been unfairly repressed. But the British far-right leader is no martyr — just a clever fascist with blood on his hands.
Tommy Robinson is escorted by police during a protest on April 1, 2017 in London. Chris J Ratcliffe / Getty
Last month, an irate Steve Bannon fulminated against Britain’s “liberal elite” and insisted that Tommy Robinson was “the fucking backbone of this country.”
Bannon’s comments came after a soft-soap radio interview with former UK Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage. It was left to Farage, of all people, to clarify that, far from being the backbone of the country, “everybody hates Tommy Robinson.”
Farage is not far wrong. Though a cause célèbre for the Trump reactionaries, Robinson remains deeply unpopular in Britain. Serving his fifth prison term as Bannon spoke, he is the backbone only of a violent, schismatic far-right subculture.
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