A local anti-racism group has issued a stark warning, drawing chilling parallels to 1930s Germany, after a series of antisemitic attacks rocked the town. The warning comes as police investigate hate crimes targeting the Jewish community, including racist graffiti daubed on a rabbi’s home and a teenager being shot with an air rifle.
The incidents have been condemned by Stand Up To Racism Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, which points to a rising tide of far-right activity both locally and nationally as the source of the hostility.
“These shameful assaults on the Jewish community come as the extreme right has become more prominent,” said Peter Lynn, the group’s Co-Convenor. “We will not let the racists divide us.”
Symbol of Hate Displayed
The first incident saw a swastika—the definitive symbol of the Nazi Party—painted on the home of Bournemouth Rabbi Bentzion Alperowitz. The same symbol was also found on other buildings in the area. In a separate but linked attack, a Jewish teenager was shot in the head with an air rifle. Dorset Police have confirmed both investigations are being treated as hate crimes.
“Those responsible should be identified and bear the consequences,” the Stand Up To Racism statement read.
Linking Local Attacks to National Movement
The group directly connects these attacks to a broader pattern of demonstrations that have emerged in several towns against hotels housing asylum seekers. These protests, they note, have frequently featured Nazi salutes and symbols.
“At the core of these events are known fascists – people with records of Holocaust Denial and virulent antisemitism,” the statement claims.
It identifies the driving force behind this movement as the ‘Great Replacement’ conspiracy theory, an antisemitic ideology which falsely claims a Jewish “global elite” is orchestrating a migrant invasion to replace white populations and undermine national identity.
Vigilante Groups Spark Historical Fears
A particularly alarming development, according to the group, is the formation of local vigilante groups claiming to “protect” communities. They assert these groups are led by organisers of anti-refugee protests and have a history of invading mosques and attacking legal centres that offer advice to migrants.
This trend prompted a grave historical comparison from the anti-racism campaigners.
“This chilling development recalls the appearance of street bullies in Germany in the 1930s, who went on to form the ‘Brown Shirts’,” the statement said, drawing a direct line to the paramilitary force that helped bring the Nazis to power. It also referenced Oswald Mosley’s British Union of Fascists—the ‘Blackshirts’—who terrorised Jewish communities in London’s East End.
The statement served as a grim reminder that the Holocaust, which claimed six million Jewish lives, began not with gas chambers, but with targeted street-level violence, vandalism, and the rhetoric of hate.
A Unified Stance Against Hate
Stand Up To Racism ended its message with a firm declaration of solidarity with all communities targeted by the far right.
“We oppose the vigilantes, racist bullies and others that threaten our towns. We stand with the Jewish community and with Muslims,” the statement read, concluding with the powerful promise of “Never Again”—a pledge born from the horrors of the Holocaust that the group vows to uphold.
The community now waits to see if the perpetrators of the recent attacks will be found, and whether the warnings of campaigners will be heeded by the wider public.
Thanks to Peter Lynn, Co-Convenor, Stand Up To Racism Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole; Candy Udwin, Secretary, Stand Up to Racism Dorset
