International conference held to launch ground-breaking centre

Experts from around the world attended a unique conference at Teesside University to examine the history of fascism and the far right.

The ‘Fascism Ideologies Past and Present’ conference took place over two days at the University’s Darlington Campus on 4-5 July.

It attracted a range of national and international experts from places including New York, Stockholm and Budapest to address issues such as the historical impact of key radical right figures, lone-wolf terrorism and the evolution of Swedish fascism.

The conference was held to mark the official launch of Teesside University’s Centre for Fascist, Anti-Fascist and Post-Fascist Studies.

The ground-breaking centre, part of the School of Arts & Media, is the first research unit in Britain dedicated to the study of the far right and its opposition.

It will examine the historical development of far right politics and culture since its inception in the early twentieth century.

Led by Professor Nigel Copsey and Dr Matthew Feldman, the Centre will build upon their reputations as two of the leading UK experts on both historical and contemporary manifestations of fascism and (radical) anti-fascism.

During the two day international conference, Professor Copsey also presented a new report which shows that up to three-quarters of anti-Muslim hate crimes reported to a monitoring organisation are taking place online – with the English Defence League highlighted as the far-right group implicated in the majority of internet attacks.

The report, based on data from the Tell MAMA (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks), project also revealed a surge in anti-Muslim attacks since the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich, rising from an average of 1.5 reported incidents a day, to 6 to 7 reported incidents.

Professor Copsey’s report has received significant media interest and has been featured in The Observer, The Independent and Mail Online, as well as Channel 4 News and Daybreak – highlighting the University’s reputation as a renowned centre of expertise.

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