After the rise Adolf Hitler and World War II, all parties involved shook their heads and said 'never again.' Well, the 'never' part appears to be fading in Greece and perhaps beyond.Golden Dawn, the fascist neo-Nazi group, which was once considered a fringe party within Greece, gained international attention when they picked up 18 seats in the Greek Parliament last year. Now, with an 11.5% approval rating within Greece, they appear to be setting their sights beyond the country's borders.
The extremist group, which forged links with British neo-Nazis when it was founded in the 1980s, has begun opening offices in Germany, Australia, Canada and the US…
The group – whose logo resembles the swastika and whose members are prone to give Nazi salutes – has gone from strength to strength, promoting itself as the only force willing to take on the "rotten establishment". Amid rumours of backing from wealthy shipowners, it has succeeded in opening party offices across Greece.
It is also concentrating on spreading internationally, with news last month that it had opened an office in Germany and planned to set up branches in Australia. The party's spokesman, Ilias Kasidiaris, said it had decided to establish cells "wherever there are Greeks".
"People have understood that Chrysi Avgi [Golden Dawn] tells the truth," he told a Greek-language paper in Melbourne. "In our immediate sights and aims is the creation of an office and local organisation in Melbourne. In fact, very soon a visit of MPs to Australia is planned."
Despite the expected outcry from virtually all of western society (Golden Dawn’s target audience), it does not appear that they care one bit about angry rhetoric from their opposition. In light of Greece’s financial disaster, as well as the support they have from both the Greek community and other neo-Nazi organizations, they have no reason to care.