The organisation, whose membership is unknown, is led by Thomas Sewell,[1][6][7] former ADF member, Neo-Nazi,[6] and convicted criminal.[8] The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism released a report on 5 October 2022, in which it classified the National Socialist Network as a "white nationalist", "antisemitic", and "neo-Nazi" group.[9]
Activities
2020
In 2020, a group of NSN members in Melbourne performed a Nazi salute and displayed a neo-Nazi flag at Swinburne University. A photo of the incident, shared on their Facebook page, included a caption stating: "NSN would like to thank the student body and faculty for letting us promote National Socialism on campus without opposition. Swinburne for the White man!" A university spokesperson responded: "Swinburne University of Technology abhors the comments, and the symbols depicted in the photograph taken on our campus. The views and ideas of groups such as this run counter to everything our university stands for, and we condemn them in the strongest possible terms."[10]
On the Australia Day weekend in January 2021, the National Socialist Network, a new group created by members of the Antipodean Resistance and the Lads Society under the latter's leader Thomas Sewell, were observed parading Nazi paraphernalia and harassing bystanders at several locations around the Grampians National Park in Victoria. One Halls Gap resident said: "There were 40 white males, many with skinheads, some chanting 'white power'".[11] They were reported to have chanted "sieg heil" and "white power", burnt a cross, and posted stickers saying "Australia For The White Man".[12]
Concerned citizens reported them to the police, who confronted the group and later collected video evidence from security videos. Victoria Police's Counter Terrorism Command and ASIO were notified, and the incident was widely covered in the media.[11] One antisemitism expert called for the group to be branded a terrorist group, saying, "We know that there is a direct link between incitement, between vilification … and shooting rampages that we saw not just in Christchurch, but in other places".[12]
After a group of neo-Nazis had posted photographs of themselves giving fascist salutes outside the Adelaide Holocaust Museum, concerns were raised about the activities of groups such as the National Socialist Network in South Australia. On 2 September 2022, SA Minister for Multicultural Affairs Zoe Bettison said there would be a Parliamentary inquiry into "neo-Nazi symbols, the activities of extremist groups, discrimination faced by targeted groups and the prohibition on symbols in other states".[13]
2023
Members of the National Socialist Network doing Nazi salutes on 18 March 2023
In early January 2023, flyers belonging to the National Socialist Network were found in circulation in East Brisbane, Queensland.[14]
On 13 January 2023, a Melbourne Magistrates Court sentenced Thomas Sewell to 150 hours of community service to be completed in 18 months.[15]
On 13 May, neo-Nazi and anti-fascist groups clashed in Melbourne at an anti-immigration rally, organised by NSN.[22][23] Police made several arrests on both sides, while also deploying capsicum spray. A police officer was also hit with pepper spray.[22] Federal government minister Chris Bowen labelled the rally "unspeakably un-Australian", calling the neo-Nazis who participated a "fringe of political lunatics who have no place in modern Australia".[23] The rally was also condemned across both sides of the Victorian Parliament, described as "toxic bigotry and hate" and "disgraceful and cowardly".[22]
On 15 September 2023, a group of NSN activists attempted to disrupt an antifascist fundraiser at Cafe Gummo in Thornbury, Victoria. The event, hosted by Melbourne SHARPs, aimed to support the White Rose Society and the Black People's Union. In response, antifascist activists chased the NSN members several blocks, chanting "Nazi scum!" Witnesses reported that some of the masked NSN members were armed, although no arrests were made as individuals dispersed down side streets.[24][25] One witness told Nine News that some of the masked neo-Nazis were armed with knives.[25] The crowdfunding campaign raised more than $9,800.[25]
On 13 October 2023, after the candlelight vigil event for Israelis kidnapped by Hamas and ahead of pro-Palestinian protests in the city, the group gathered outside Flinders Street station in Melbourne, displaying an antisemitic banner at the station entrance under police surveillance; then the group members went inside the station, performing Roman salutes while going down an escalator, and boarded a Werribee Line train. While on the train they asked passengers whether they are Jewish or not, handed out NSN's "business cards" and another racist flier; they also sung the Australian national anthem as well as a white racist anthem. After the incident, State officials including Premier Jacinta Allan condemned the action and described the group as "cowardly neo-Nazis". The State of Victoria subsequently passed legislation banning public displays of the Roman salute which took effect on 21 October of the same year.[26][27]
On 3 December, around 40 members of the NSN, led by Thomas Sewell, marched through the streets of Ballarat on the 169th anniversary of the Eureka Stockade. The group displayed a banner with the phrase, "Australia For The White Man" as they marched in through the city.[28] A 15-year-old boy was questioned over his use of the Nazi salute in support of the group.[29] Residents condemned the march as "frightening".[29]
2024
On 26 January 2024, Australia Day, a group of NSN members, led by Thomas Sewell, were detained by New South Wales Police at the North Sydney railway station. An officer issued Sewell and his group a legal order banning them from attending any Australia Day events in the City of Sydney, citing a risk to public safety and Sewell's history of crime and public order incidents.[30][31]
In the weeks following the 2024 UK Riots, 70 NSN members marched through the streets of Brisbane and posed in front of multiple landmarks whilst holding a banner which called for a "Free England".[34][35] Multiple arrests were made, with a 19-year-old Victorian man being charged with "inciting others to incite vilification".[36]
On 16 August, a large group of NSN members in Melbourne hijacked a refugee encampment that had been set up outside the office of Home Affairs, calling for permanent visas. The NSN stood in a line with a large banner that read "Fuck Off; We're Full"[37] and chanted offensive comments.[38]
Around 50 members of NSN marched through Corowa, NSW, protesting against the local piggery's takeover by multinational meat processor JBS and their employment of immigrant workers. They carried a "White Man Fight Back" banner.[39]
Around 40 members of NSN protested outside the Chinese Consulate in Toorak, Melbourne, calling for the extradition of a Chinese national suspected of pouring hot coffee on a baby in a park. The NSN members displayed a banner, burned portraits of the suspect, Mao Zedong, and Chinese president Xi Jinping, as well as the Chinese flag.[40][41]
2025
On 11 January 2025, members of the NSN staged a protest on Adelaide's Morphett Street bridge, displaying a banner reading "Mass Deportations Now". Six participants were arrested and charged with wearing an article of disguise.[42][43]
On 26 January 2025, Australia Day, around 40 members of the NSN, most of whom who had travelled from other states, marched through Adelaide city centre, dressed in black and wearing sunglasses and hats.[44] Chanting "Australia for the white man", the NSN group stood in front of the War Memorial on North Terrace. South Australia Police officers arrested 16 people, including a 16-year-old boy, on charges that included loitering and displaying Nazi symbols.[45][46] Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the action of the men, as did SA Premier Peter Malinauskas, and the PM praised SA Police for their actions.[47][48][49] Thomas Sewell and 13 other men appeared in court on 28 January, charged with a variety of offences, including carrying offensive weapons and displaying a Nazi symbol, and were given bail, but Sewell said that he would not agree to the bail conditions.[44]
1 2 McKenzie, Nick; Tozer, Joel (27 January 2021). "Neo-Nazis go bush: Grampians gathering highlights rise of Australia's far right". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 3 March 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2022. According to extremist experts, two right-wing groups, the Lads Society and Antipodean Resistance, recently helped form a new Australian extremist outfit, the National Socialist Network, which in turn helped organise the 38 young white men to assemble in the Grampians over the Australia Day weekend.
↑ Dabbas, Maria (24 September 2023). "Campaign continues against Melbourne's neo-Nazi gym". Red Flag. Archived from the original on 8 December 2023. Retrieved 9 December 2023. Saturday's protest followed a recent attempt by NSN members to disrupt an anti-fascist fundraiser for the White Rose Society and the Black People's Union at Cafe Gummo, a left-wing gathering place in Thornbury. Though they intended to intimidate, the handful of Nazis instead were forced to flee up High Street.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
