As a core member of Bradford City's FC's Bantams Community Programme project, Andy Sykes is at last contributing positively to the city and the football team that he loves. But the Yorkshireman once served the area he was born and bred in a more unsavoury manner.
It's an amazing transformation that began in 2001, when Andy joined the BNP.
He signed up after being told by BNP officials that an influx of immigrants and asylum seekers were about to hit the area. He swiftly rose through the ranks to become regional organiser for Bradford and Keighley.
'I knew nothing about asylum seekers and immigration. Now I was being told that the problem was becoming prevalent in my area. Before I knew it, BNP leaflets were coming through my door. It was just before the riots so there was a lot of unease. I joined in a bid to make sense of what was going on.'
It wasn't long, however, before disillusionment set in.
'I attended a number of meetings during my formative months. The first actually was held by Nick Griffin, who was flanked by a dozen burly men as he made his speech. Even the sight of this didn't sit right with me. And, after subsequent meetings it became abundantly clear that Id been a victim of 'party propaganda'. The BNP's version of the truth seemed completely distorted and I had an overwhelming feeling that this wasn¹t what I signed up for.'
The final straw came when a fellow party member in Leeds contacted Andy, asking him to launch an attack on a local fun-day, shortly after the Bradford Riots. "It had been organised by Bradford TUC and the local community in an attempt to begin the healing process after the riots, and I got this call telling me to get as many lads together as I could and go and attack any TUC members or Labour people or lefties.'
Disgusted and dismayed, Andy decided at that point to do what he could to stop the BNP, not just in Bradford but across the country.
Andy linked up with anti-fascist organisation, Searchlight and the BBC and set about exposing the ugly side of the BNP. He kept a diary, taped party meetings, filmed activity and fed back to the authorities. He also ensured targeted areas of BNP literature the type of which inspired him to join the party - were flooded with anti-fascist literature before it had chance to reach the doorsteps.
Andy's efforts culminated in the prosecution of a number of high-profile party members. It's come at a cost though. He now lives with security equal to that of a senior cabinet minister. West Yorkshire Police, the Bradford TUC and Searchlight have all put in extra security around his home.
Andy remains vigilant against the threat of far-right organisations. 'Its in times like this, when unemployment is on the rise, and morale within communities is low, that organisations like the BNP will appear more prominently. Thankfully the BNP is a minority, but still visible enough to cause concern.'
His has now come full circle, campaigning actively as part of Rewind, a nationwide organisation committed to teaching young people about racial origins and harmony. 'The work we do at Rewind takes us into schools across the country. We try to re-evaluate the real meaning of race, what it means and how people identify themselves.'
Andy¹s dalliance with the far-right was thankfully short lived. His mission now is to make sure others don¹t go down the same path.
