Blair Cottrell (born November 1989) is an Australian far-right extremist and neo-Nazi.[1][2] He is the former chairman and founding member of the United Patriots Front (UPF) and the Lads Society. He has been convicted of several charges, including stalking, arson, steroid dealing and burglary, and has spent time in prison.
Political leaning
Cottrell has right-wing extremist views, he has been described by numerous media outlets and Australia's former Race Discrimination Commissioner, Tim Soutphommasane, as a neo-Nazi. He has been convicted of charges of inciting hatred against communities.[3][4][5]
Cottrell has stated a desire to see a portrait of Adolf Hitler hung in Australian classrooms and for copies of Mein Kampf to be "issued annually" to students, and has made anti-Semitic and racist comments in support of Nazism.[6][7]
Political activities
In October 2015, Blair Cottrell replaced Shermon Burgess as chairman of the United Patriots Front, and is a founding member of the Lads Society.[6][8][9]
In September 2017, Cottrell, Neil Erikson, and Chris Shortis were found guilty by a magistrate of inciting contempt against Muslims after they had enacted and made a video of a fake beheading, to protest against the building of a mosque in Bendigo. Each was fined $2,000.[10][5] Cottrell lodged an appeal, applying for his case to be heard in the High Court of Australia and arguing that he had been charged under an "invalid law". This was thrown out in February 2019, and he tried to have the matter heard in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The district court judge ruled that there were matters to be decided in her court, such as his intentions in making the video, before the case could proceed to a higher court, and set a date for the appeal to be heard in the county court.[11] The county court dismissed Cottrell's appeal in December 2019. The judge also said: "even if the ends were political, the means remain vilifying. Having a political end is not a defence to the charge.“[12]
Christchurch mosque shooter connections
In the aftermath of the Christchurch mosque shootings at Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre in Christchurch, New Zealand on 15 March 2019, it was discovered that the perpetrator, Brenton Harrison Tarrant of Grafton, New South Wales, Australia, had interacted with Cottrell's United Patriots Front (UPF) on its Facebook pages. He affectionately called Blair Cottrell "Emperor Blair Cottrell" and celebrated Donald Trump's victory as President of the United States in the 2016 presidential election, as well as donating to the UPF and threatening a man from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia over criticism of the organisation in 2016. Cottrell had distanced himself from Tarrant and denounced his attacks, stating he didn't know him. He conceded it was possible that a UPF member did meet him at one point. Tarrant was also offered to join the Lads Society, a fight club also led by Cottrell, but declined.[13][14][15]
Sky News appearance
In August 2018, News Corp news outlet Sky News Australia was criticised for providing a platform to Cottrell in a one-on-one discussion about immigration. Sky News reporter Laura Jayes took offence at his appearance on the program due to the fact that he has expressed admiration for Hitler and claimed to have manipulated women "using violence and terror".[2] Political editor of Sky News David Speers was also critical of Cottrell's appearance on the show. Sky News commentator and former Labor Party minister Craig Emerson resigned in protest after the interview was broadcast, saying that the decision to give Cottrell a platform on Sky was "another step in a journey to normalising racism & bigotry in our country". Cottrell subsequently tweeted about Jayes: "I might as well have raped @ljayes on the air, not only would she have been happier with that but the reaction would've been the same." Activist groups called on advertisers to pull advertising campaigns off Sky News.[16][17][18][19][20]
In 2012, Cottrell served four months in Port Phillip Prison after being convicted of stalking his ex-girlfriend and her new partner, and of arson after attempting to burn down the man's house. In December 2013 he was fined $1,000 and sentenced to seven days in jail by a County Court judge for aggravated burglary, property damage, arson, testosterone trafficking, possessing a controlled weapon and breaching court orders.[23][24][25][10]
^ abMeade, Amanda (6 August 2018). "Outcry over Sky News Australia interview with far-right extremist". Retrieved 7 March 2021. Sky News has sparked outcry in Australia after it broadcast an interview with Blair Cottrell, a far-right extremist who has expressed his admiration for Hitler.
