Greek Neo-Nazi punks

31Oct12

Continuing the Greece/fascism theme, here’s Max Fischer on “Pogrom Punk: The Greek neo-Nazi rock bands boosting Golden Dawn’s rise“.

Golden Dawn members sing the national anthem in Thessaloniki (SAKIS MITROLIDIS/AFP/Getty)

The Guardian’s Marla Margaronis begins her deep, and deeply disturbing, article on the rise of Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn with an interesting detail. The movement’s favorite band is a group called Pogrom.

Just so we’re clear, pogrom is a Russian word that originated in the 19th century to describe state-sanctioned mob violence against Jews. Encyclopedia Britannica defines it as “a mob attack, either approved or condoned by authorities, against the persons and property of a religious, racial, or national minority. The term is usually applied to attacks on Jews in the Russian Empire in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.”

Greek neo-Nazi music has its own charming history. Finding English-language articles from within this particular sub-culture can be difficult; most neo-Nazi groups, with the obviously significant exception of Greece, have learned to lay low in the Western world. But Greek neo-Nazi music fans seem to define the genre as “the Hellenic NS/WP skinhead music scene.” NS/WP is the broader movement’s self-styled acronym for national socialism (Nazi)/white power. Common shorthands seem to be Hellenic nationalist music or Hellenic skinhead. The music movement, which began 20 years ago in rock clubs and bars, now seems to moving into mainstream Greek politics.

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Related articles

• Greeks in Germany warn against neo-Nazis (forexlive.com)
• Trial Set For Boy Accused Of Killing Neo-Nazi Dad In Riverside (losangeles.cbslocal.com)
• Anonymous Takes Down Site of Greek Neo-Nazi Golden Dawn Party (news.softpedia.com)
• Rising Greek Neo-Nazi Party Opens N.Y. Office (observer.com)
• Golden Dawn MPs Are Taking The Nazi Comparisons To A Whole New Level In Greece (businessinsider.com)
• The Extremist Golden Dawn Party Is Stoking A Religious Frenzy In Greece (businessinsider.com)
• Who makes the Nazis?

Filed under: Fascism and antisemitism, Greece, music, national anarchism and autonomous nationalism   |  1 Comment
Tags: Golden Dawn, Greece, Hellenic nationalist music, Hellenic skinhead, Pogrom, punk, skinhead, white power punk