LAST weekend, as the world watched in horror at the racist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, I was struck by a new and frightening development on the American far-right.

Images of angry white supremacists, carrying torches and chanting racist and anti-Semitic slogans flashed across our screens. These “Unite the Right” demonstrators were only getting started – the real action was scheduled for Saturday, when a larger group of mostly male civilians, some dressed as paramilitaries with Swastika flags, marched through the quiet university town. Events were to take a shocking turn when a car deliberately ploughed into vehicles next to counter-protesters, killing one person and injuring many others, and a state of emergency was immediately called by Virginia’s governor.

As photographs of these men’s aggressive faces appeared on the internet, I was struck by one major difference from KKK imagery and white supremacist marches of old. We could observe clearly who they were; their identity plain for all to see. In a world where we struggle to challenge the faceless, racist bile spewed forth so readily on social media, it was alarming to watch these Nazi sympathisers march with un-hooded faces, open and defiant.

Unmasked we can see that they are not bogeymen but real people. They live and work side by side with ordinary Americans from a variety of racial backgrounds. But they are now no longer ashamed to show their true selves, emboldened by what they interpret as a sympathetic President, full of their kind of “fire and fury”. In the midst of the anger and chaos, a reporter interviewed former Grand Wizard of the Klu Klux Klan, David Duke, who said triumphantly, “we’re going to take our country back; we’re going to fulfill the promises of Donald Trump”.

This was Trump’s chance to distance himself and his party from these far-right groups once and for all but his immediate response to the violence only served to fan the flames of unrest. By ad-libbing “many sides” to the official White House statement, Trump brought his impulsive Twitter habits into the real world, encouraging the very group that so desperately needed to be condemned in clear and decisive language.

His following tweets added insult to injury, with a series of clumsy responses to the horrific murder of the peaceful counter-demonstrator, Heather Heyer, the injury of 19 demonstrators and the accidental death of two police officers. By the time the White House released another more direct criticism of the racist violence, Trump had disappeared off the radar, grounded like a badly behaved teenager with his phone confiscated for good measure.

World leaders, past presidents and also-rans were quick to highlight their horror at the unfolding events in Charlottesville. Our First Minister was unequivocal in her rebuke of the bigotry and racism of these far-right protesters. The Prime Minister, however, remained silent until the morning after the march, when she finally issued a clear condemnation. It was all too little, too late or certainly not quickly enough.

We can’t sit on the fence and ignore the rise of this new, bolder far-right in America, and pretend that it isn’t happening here. As Brexit Britain turns away from Europe to look more to the States, we need to be aware of copycat behaviours by fascist groups in our own country.

We must also look to our own political past as a warning from history. It’s 40 years this month since the battle of Lewisham in London, where the National Front was so decisively defeated and robbed of their authority. In August 1977, the newly vitalised National Front, with growing support for their extremist immigration stance, chose the streets of Lewisham to march, only to be successfully stopped by local residents and anti-fascist activists in a day of violence and bloodshed not often seen in Britain. The National Front never recovered from this symbolic defeat, silenced by the will of the people. They disappeared from political life, only to be quietly absorbed later into Mrs Thatcher’s new Conservatism that took a harder line on immigration.

And here lies another frightening parallel to our political situation in present day Britain. Support for Ukip dropped sharply this past General Election, losing their vote across the country. There was much speculation that their voters had turned to the Conservatives, whose Brexit plans and tough position on refugees and immigration were more to their liking. It’s in this climate that only a few months ago, in my former constituency of Ochil and South Perthshire, the Scottish Defence League brought their hatred and anti-refugee message to the high street in Alloa, a small handful of bigots hoping to find some purchase with Saturday shoppers. Masked and wearing balaclavas, their identity was hidden from view. It’s terrifying to think, that post-Charlottesville, they may not be so scared to reveal themselves in future demonstrations.