Fear and Loathing in Athens

If you thought last week’s footage of a Greek extreme right politician punching a female political rival on live TV was bad, you should hear what’s been happening on the streets of Athens. Greece’s Golden Dawn, a racist party with Neo-Nazi roots, a swastika-like flag and a holocaust-denying leader, has been making waves in the city since they shocked Europe (and most Greeks) by winning an unprecedented 6.7 percent of the vote in national elections early last month.

Profiting from the country’s economic turmoil and general desperation, Golden Dawn may lose much of its vote in fresh elections this Sunday. But with supporters making their presence felt across Athens' densely populated inner city, things have already turned ugly.