Asatrú (and Icelandic word meaning "belief in the Æesir," or gods) has been officially recognized as a religion in Iceland since 1972, and historically its architects avoided racist interpretations of its Eurocentric cosmology, however Lane and his 14w cohorts manipulated Norse mythology to champion the Aryan race, and since then, Odinism has become a core tenet of worldwide "white pride", Skrewdriver tribute bands incorporating supernatural white supremacist Odinist themes into their violent hate lyrics.
https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/1998/new-brand-racist-odinist-religion-march
Odinism revives a pre-Christian pantheon of Norse gods for white supremacists by mythologizing the virtues of early northern European white people, white people viewed by this fundamentalist religion as wandering barbarians in a mystical relationship with nature, struggling heroically against the elements. Odinism hails the virtues of the tribe, or folk, (German: volk) strongly emphasizing genetic closeness, crediting all civilisation at the feet of white men who they believe slew wild boars with their bare hands on their way to conquering inferior races and nations.
The Odinist cult of Asatrú, was based around similar Norse mythological philosophies favoured in Nazi Germany. Nordic/Teutonic mythology was a bedrock belief for key Third Reich leaders, and it was an integral part of the initiation rites and cosmology of the elite Schutzstaffel (SS), which supervised Adolf Hitler's network of death camps. Decades later, Odinism also influenced George Lincoln Rockwell's American Nazi Party. According to Jeffrey Kaplan, who wrote the 1997 study Radical Religion in America, an early international promoter was Australian Nazi sympathizer Alexander Mills. Mills, in turn, deeply influenced key American Odinist and drug-smuggler Else Christensen, who published The Odinist entitled newsletter in the early 1970s.
Anti-Semitic murderer David Lane, who murdered a Jewish talk-show host, was a leading member of Bob Matthews anti-Semitic and anti-black neo-Nazi movement "The Order" which helped popularise Odinism throughout far right communities worldwide, via neo-Nazi websites such as Stormfront. In the words of Lee John Barnes, he predicts "the rebirth of Yggdrasil and the West after the Ragnarok of the last 1300 years of European history and the collapse of the West into the black hole of liberalism", Odin believers not so much actually believing that Norse gods will supernaturally wipe out non-whites, but, like Hitler, see a Paganist justification for the genocidal destruction of minorities, whilst themselves throwing around terms like "white genocide".
Though hardly likely to leave behind his bong for a fight, and not up for saying boo to a goose if he was, Barnes, as other ageing British ex-BNPers, are pushing for British nationalism to "confront the real enemies in London", which he sees as black people, the "passing EDL fad" he grumbles about on Facebook having diverted hearts and minds from what he sees as white supremacy's real enemy, a watering down of the white race through "miscegenation", or race mixing. They might not be taking the lead on the streets, but there are still enough unreconstructed nazis in Great Britain to stir on the jackboots of hooligan-based street fascism.
Actual Soldiers of Odin members are most likely to be moonlighting members of National Action, the ever-splintering National Front or the South East Alliance, as the Soldiers of Odin UK South Division's Facebook group (report, please) prepare for violent "vigilantism", i.e., cowardly intimidating and beating-up racial and religious minorities after dark. S.O.O. (yet another three digit far right acronym) are in the process of co-ordinating biker-jacketed former football hooligan street gangs in Bristol, South London and Plymouth to beat up Muslims, refugees and black people when the cops turn their backs. One of the key organisers of Soldiers of Odin is Edward Dowden, the repulsive former EDL organiser from Bristol who wants to see Bristol's settled black Somalian community driven out by neo-nazi thugs, which says a lot for how the slimy remnants of the EDL have gravitated towards hardcore white supremacism, having started up marching against Islamic extremists. Dowden regularly trolls his local newspaper with fabricated stories about African migrants raping white women - that old neo-nazi chestnut of a lie.
Although Odinist extremists throughout Europe, especially in countries like Sweden, play upon the Islamophobia fomented by neo-con Islamophobes these hardline anti-Semites see as Z.O.G., Christians are also in the firing line of Lane's remixed Pagan nazi philosophy, especially Roman Catholics. According to the Irish Times, the UK's SOO groups are attempting to link up with anti-Catholic far right Unionist group Ulster Awake. Republicans need to be on their mettle, as racial attacks continue to soar in Northern Ireland, as do all ANTIFA.
Recalling the victories of Cable Street, Liverpool Lime Street, and now Dover, black, white and Asian, Muslim, Jewish, Catholic and Atheist, young and old, need to unite against this terrifying neo-nazi street menace. The EDL is dying a prolonged death, the BNP is long gone, Pegida UK is a total and utter waste of sellotape on mouths - leaving the way open for groups like National Action and Soldiers Of Odin to grow in support.
In Sweden, at the start of the New Year, this repulsive gang of Odinist neo-nazis unleashed a violent assault upon homeless refugees whilst the Swedish police stood by and smiled.
MILITANT ANTIFA RESPONSE NEEDED AS AND WHEN.
NO PASARAN EVER!
ANTIFA