The White Nationalist Party (WNP) was a British

neo-fascist Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology that includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, racial supremacy, populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xenophobia, and anti-immigration s ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

, founded in May 2002 as "the British political wing of Aryan Unity".

Development

The party was formed by

Eddy Morrison Eddy Morrison (16 July 1949 – 10 June 2020) was a British neo-Nazi political activist, who was involved in a number of movements throughout his career. Biography Morrison was involved in the British Movement (BM) and also the National Front ...

, and Kevin Watmough "a key figure in

Combat 18 Combat 18 (C18 or 318) is a neo-Nazi terrorist organisation that was founded in 1992. It originated in the United Kingdom, with ties to movements in Canada and the United States. Since then it has spread to other countries, including Germany ...

" and webmaster of

Redwatch Redwatch was a British website associated with members of the far-right British People's Party. It published photographs of, and personal information about, alleged far left and anti-fascist activists. It typically targeted activists in politic ...

; the new party was effectively the

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

branch of the National Front, and the party conducted most of its activities in Yorkshire. The national youth leader of the White Nationalist Party was Ronnie Cooper, a teen from the South Yorkshire area who was exposed for his fascist beliefs by the ''Sunday People'' newspaper in 2003. Cooper is now understood to be a serving member of the Royal Navy. Although largely Yorkshire-based it also sought to expand elsewhere. In 2003 the group applied to march in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

but it was rejected by the city council. The WNP also sought to campaign in amongst

loyalists Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

, posting stickers and delivering leaflets in Ballymena, Coleraine,

Antrim town Antrim ( ga, Aontroim , meaning 'lone ridge') is a town and civil parish in County Antrim in the northeast of Northern Ireland, on the banks of the Six Mile Water, on the northeast shore of Lough Neagh. It had a population of 23,375 people in ...

and

Ballymoney Ballymoney ( ga, Baile Monaidh , meaning 'townland of the moor') is a small town and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is within the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council area. The civil parish of Ballymoney is situated i ...

in the run-up to

the Twelfth The Twelfth (also called Orangemen's Day) is an Ulster Protestant celebration held on 12 July. It began in the late 18th century in Ulster. It celebrates the Glorious Revolution (1688) and victory of Protestant King William of Orange over ...

in 2003. The group, which emphasised its anti- Irish republican nature by using slogans such as "hang IRA scum" in its literature, claimed to have 80 members in the province in May of that year. In a move condemned by local politicians WNP flags were also placed on lampposts in Ballymena around the same time. Most of the party's stickers and flags were removed by parties of residents organised in opposition by the left wing loyalist

Progressive Unionist Party The Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) is a minor unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979. Linked to the Ulster Volunte ...

, which publicly condemned racism. In 2004 the party also revealed plans to host a Blood & Honour music festival in Northern Ireland although a counter-campaign was organised to encourage venues to turn down the booking. The proposed gigs did not take place however. The WNP was severely weakened in 2004 when the

England First Party The England First Party (EFP) was an English nationalist and far-right political party. It had two councillors on Blackburn with Darwen council between 2006 and 2007. Formation and policies They were formed in 2004 by Mark Cotterill who ha ...

(EFP) broke away under

Mark Cotterill Mark Adrian Cotterill (born 3 October 1960) is a far right political figure who has been involved in a number of movements throughout his career. He is noted for activity to establish links between the far right in Britain and America, by foundi ...

. The WNP had intended to use that name when the

Electoral Commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...

refused to register WNP as an official name; but after a dispute between Cotterill on the one side and

and John G. Wood (the WNP's national organiser) on the other, the EFP group broke away to become a separate, English nationalist, party. The WNP under Morrison and John G. Wood courted John Tyndall, although he refused to join as he did not feel that divisions were helpful. Eventually Eddy Morrison left the party and with John G. Wood and Kevin Watmough in 2005 formed the similar British People's Party.

Policies and ideology

The White Nationalist Party's inspiration was "unashamedly nationalist socialist" and opposed to "all democracy". The WP had a list of 32 policies, based on principles which included repatriation, opposition to populism,

Zionism Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after '' Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...

and

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

, and adherence to David Lane's fourteen words. The group is now vehemently opposed to the

British National Party The British National Party (BNP) is a far-right, fascist political party in the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Wigton, Cumbria, and its leader is Adam Walker. A minor party, it has no elected representatives at any level of UK gover ...

, viewing them as

race traitor Race traitor is a pejorative reference to a person who is perceived as supporting attitudes or positions thought to be against the supposed interests or well-being of that person's own race. The term is the source of the name of a quarterly magaz ...

s.Anti-Griffin page
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References

{{UK far right National Front (UK) breakaway groups Defunct political parties in the United Kingdom Neo-Nazi political parties in Europe Neo-Nazi organisations in the United Kingdom