Spycops

Please note this piece contains mentions of abuse, rape and police violence. It also contains mild content spoilers for Spycops.

They reckon it's around twenty five, at least.
That's at least twenty five spycops that squirmed their way into relationships.
They raped and lied.
They ruined peoples lives.
Four of them have kids.

The state has granted most of them a protective mask of anonymity 
You don't hate cops enough.

We've just came out of Tranche 2 of the "The Undercover Policing Inquiry" with Tranche 3 starting in October looking at deployments of SDS through the 90's and early 00's and the British media having somewhat put the disgraceful Post Office Horizon scandal to bed, are now tuning in with the weight which they should, some 15 years after the story first broke. The "Spycops" Inquiry started in 2015 to investigate the the Metropolitan Police's Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) and the National Public Order Intelligence Unit (NPOIU), two units which stand at the end of a long legacy of “Spycops” and who themselves were responsible for infiltrating over a thousand organisations, overwhelming those focused on progressive and egalitarian politics.

I have very little faith in such officiality, but where it bring public attention, we can atleast hope that for the victims there is some resolution, compensation, and answers found where possible. who knows, perhaps the infrastructures, brought into the light of day and public specticle, will change with some mild but meaningful reform, at the very least, the veneer of the police, our kindly protectors, gets to slip in public and we're all forced to confront the awful truth.

Following on from last years' “We Did Not Consent” by The Guardian, tonight begins The Undercover Police Scandal: Love and Lies Exposed  (ITV 1 at 21:00 tonight and then online), it seems that public awareness and pressure is mounting once more to confront the sheer horrific abuse of women at the hands of The Met, an organisation we know has a history of rampant casual  misogyny and sexual violence, rape, and murder, seemingly both in and out of uniform.

Elsewhere the papers have been jumping on the story across the board from the broadsheets to the red tops and while this is an important focal point for the media and if it is anything like Mr Bates vs The Post Office it will do immense legwork in bringing the sinister actions of our would-be protectors to the consciousness of millions. It is all, unfortunately, somewhat on the surface, concerned with the specific injustices rather than the fundamental infrastructure which allows these actions historical and contemporary.

These stories are at the very tail end of decades upon decades of the most odious and villainous actions by the state and its jackbooted police forces. For most of us, diving any deeper into the truth behind the shadowy world has meant scrawling through old newspapers and political ephemera, near indigestible and forgotten for most people, only occasionally brought forward and palatable for a bit of mid-season spice in Peaky Blinders or some other show which weaves the narrative for screen but leaves everything feeling adrift in fantasy.

The reality isn't so fanciful, it's not Hollywood, the are no Brian O'Conner's here, just some 30 year old cunt manipulating 19 year olds to bed before becoming a conservative councillor. There are fresh faced cops, given an attaboy and pat on the back for years as they bullshit their way through reports and straight up ruin peoples lives leaving them with lingering trauma and pain. The reality of undercovering policing is much more mundance and insidious.

These are your boys in blue, signed off by the brass, approved by the state, whoever was in power, both shades of blue, and mostly ignored and forgotten about by the very people whose consent they are supposed to require. The legacy of the “spycops” is brutal, disgusting, and now neatly packaged in just a few dozen packages wonderfully and evocatively illustrated.

"Spycops: The Graphic Novel", self published and released last month by it's artist and author Glenn Hustler, it a 68 page exploration of this most horrific act of abuse, not only taking us through the history of the secret police unit set up in 1968 to infiltrate and disrupt movements which presented an existential threat to the hegonomy of state and capital, you know, such horrific organisations as the Quakers, Family Justice Campaigns, and trade unions.

The book is split into five digestable sections to help guide you through this most horrific reality.

Part One is an introduction. Who are the "Spycops", What is it they are even meant to do? Who were their targets? How did they operate? Especially highlighted here is how they stole the identities of children, and how much of what we know today came to the light, not with beaurcracy and good conscience of the stat, but by the hard work of the women they took advantage off.

Parts Two and Three run us through the history. Firstly we're given a concise dive into the social history of the working class and the formation of  "The London Corresponding Socitey"and early victim of the governments intelligence networks which would then take to more direct means to ensure their will was done, defiance met with brutal reprisals such as the Peterloo Massacre. Part Three carries on this exploration of history with a special frocus on the Police themselve, from the "Bobbies" of the 1800's through to the establishment of "Special Branch" to deal with "The Irish Threat" and eventually... other targets.

Part Four takes us into the "Birth of the Spy Cops", taking us on from the movements historical such as women's sufferage and spies within the Communist Party and The Vietnam Solidarity Campaign, into the the present day... and a graphic novel exposing us to what they hoped would never be known, the fifth section, The Tradecraft Manual, some twenty pages bringing to light the operational method and mentality of the Spycops as lifted from a document written by new recruits to the unit, an insidious, banal existances of deception, paranoia and paperwork.

Glenn has been writing and illustrating comics for a good few years now and has a minimal but frenetic style, the mono-chromatic pallet is a fantastic choice which only adds to the complex scenes depicted beautifully conveying their emotional weight and importance. There isn't a panel gone to waste and I expect over the next few years we'll see a vast number of them filter their way into the visual lexicon of the Anarchist scene in stickers and memes.

Despite taking on such a vast history, and covering so much, the pacing is absolutely spot on, changing from a quick sprint through years and then slowing down for a deeper exploration of numerous historical flashpoints and important notes. You'll probably finish it in a single sitting, not due to it's brevity, as it's actually pretty dense, but due to it's "one more page" flow which will keep you turning. For 68 pages, it's packed, the author takes on so very much and conveys it all with a flourish both in the words and art alike. It is a master class that's going to be right there with Breakling Free and The Super-Happy Anarcho Fun Book as classic anarchist comics.

As well as watching the show on ITV tonight, please also consider picking up and following the work of Tom Fowler. Mentioned in the book, this Anarchist from South Wales has been documenting the Inquiry from the start providing a an ongoing Podcast and reporting from the inquiry itself, step by step. Find him on social media (https://x.com/tombfowler) and better still support his work on Ko-Fi (https://ko-fi.com/tombfowler), much of his dilligent work documenting countless hours of frankly the most mind numbing procedural bullshit alongside moments of the ridiculous has come at his own expense and if you have the means I'm sure he'd welcome a bump in  his supporters fund, especially with years more work ahead of him.

His work and that of groups such as Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance, Police Spies Out of Lives, the Undercover Research Group amongst others has been absolutely vital and cannot be commended and supported enough.

To conclude, Spycops: The Graphic Novel is five star material. An absolute must read. For sure, watch We Did Not Consent, watch The Undercover Police Scandel: Love and Lies Exposed but also take the time to grab a copy this fantastic and educational graphic novel. This is more than just a scandel, some bad cops, a specific unit, or some questionable policies. These Spycops are part of the very fabric of the state and it's police force, and I cannot think of a single peice of media that has ever conveyed this so expertly, let along one so wonderfully illustrated. The subject matter and the stories within will leave you tamping sure, but that's the point.. Whether you buy, borrow, or steal it, get a copy in your mits and then pass it on, everyone should read it and be confronted with what these bastards did and in all certaintity carry on doing today. ■

Spycops is available to buy from their Ko-Fi for £10 (+p&p)

We Did Not Consent, produced in November last year, a short film which restages the experiances of three women who were manipulated into relationships with cops. The Undercover Police Scandel: Love and Lies Exposed is on ITV 1 at 21:00 tonight and then online.

Peter Ó Máille