The founder of the campaign group Hope Not Hate has described Nigel Farage as “disgustingly offensive” for saying the widower of the murdered MP Jo Cox was tainted by extremism because he supported the organisation.
Writing for the Guardian, Nick Lowles likens the Ukip politician to Donald Trump, saying both seek to “vilify, abuse and bully their opponents into silence”, in part through abuse from their supporters on social media.
Farage dislikes Hope Not Hate, Lowles argues, because his organisation, which campaigns against political militancy, has “shone the spotlight” on Ukip, and campaigned to stop Farage being elected to the Thanet parliamentary seat at the 2015 election.
Lowles’s comments follow a row on Tuesday, which began when Brendan Cox, whose wife was murdered in June by the neo-Nazi terrorist Thomas Mair, replied to a tweet by Farage blaming the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, for the Berlin truck attack. This was “a slippery slope”, Cox warned.
Speaking soon afterwards to LBC radio, Farage accused Cox of links to extremism via Hope Not Hate, one of three charities supported by a foundation set up in the name of Jo Cox.
Farage said: “Well, of course, he would know more about extremists than me, Mr Cox. He backs organisations like Hope Not Hate, who masquerade as being lovely and peaceful, but actually pursue violent and undemocratic means.”
This prompted a barrage of criticism from Labour MPs, and a demand from Hope Not Hate that Farage withdraw his comments or face legal action. A crowdfunding campaign to pay for the case has received a huge response, the group said on Wednesday.
In his article, Lowles says Farage has “lashed out in the most unbelievable way” by trying to say Brendan Cox was associated with extremism.
“Even by his standards, Farage’s comments were disgustingly offensive. Many were outraged, not just us,” he writes.
It is, Lowles says, “a David v Goliath struggle, where the other side portrays itself as the underdog, yet in reality is backed by an online army and millionaires in the wings”.
Farage and Trump form part of a resurgent populist right, Lowles argues: “That’s why it’s time to draw a line in the sand and why we have demanded a retraction and an apology from Nigel Farage. He cannot keep getting away unchallenged with his lies any longer.”
Hope Not Hate is an offshoot of Searchlight, a long-established anti-fascist magazine. While the bulk of its campaigning has targeted the likes of the British National party and the anti-Islamic English Defence League, it also covers areas such as Islamist extremism.
Farage’s animosity against the group dates back to Hope Not Hate’s decision in 2013 to monitor Ukip’s policies and extreme elements attracted to the party, although it has never classified Ukip itself as far right.
Lowles says Hope Not Hate began looking into Ukip “as it began adopting a more anti-immigrant stance and specifically whipping up scare stories with claims that 29 million Bulgarians and Romanians would come to the UK”.
He adds: “Events since have proved we were right to do so.”
Hope Not Hate is split into two parts: a charitable arm that funds community projects and research, and a company that carries out more overtly political campaigns. The charitable trust has previously received government funding to run community work in areas where the EDL was active. Money from the Jo Cox Foundation will benefit both parts of the organisation.
