In 2022, shortly after Russia’s illegal expansionist invasion of Ukraine, I took to Twitter to keep up with any updates.

One post in particular caught my attention: a Russian ambassador pushing the Kremlin line of “saving persecuted Russians in the Donbas region”. I clicked on the comments, only to find a small group of people with cartoon dogs as their profile pictures, sharing memes mocking Putin and the Russian army. I first thought nothing of it until I saw a follow-up post from the ambassador, in which he said, “You pronounced this nonsense, not me.”

I remember commenting, over and over, until another post of his went up, demanding we stop. We carried on. And then, just like that, he blocked me. Nearly everyone who had commented shared screenshots, showing he had blocked all of us. A bond was created in those posts; a bond that would go on to become “NAFO”, or the North Atlantic Fella Organisation.

I’d like to explain what NAFO is. Simply put, it’s a grassroots network that exists to do two main things:

1. Counteract disinformation spread by Russia and its allies
2. Raise money to support Ukrainians

Despite the F in NAFO standing for Fella, it isn’t meant to denote male-only membership. A “Fella” in this case is the name of the small cartoon dog, often associated with the “bonk” meme (for those who don’t know, don’t worry about it.) 

But NAFO’s membership consists of cis men and cis women, trans men and trans women, non-binary and gender non-conforming people. There is no set political allegiance, either. I made many good friends through NAFO, some of which are anarchists, conservatives, Trotskyists, social democrats, and many more who believe in very different ideologies. There was one universal truth that united us all: Ukraine is a sovereign nation who has been invaded, and they need our support.

We began to connect via X and other social media platforms, sometimes using WhatsApp, other times Telegram. If a group of Fellas were in the same country, they would meet to discuss what their focus should be. For me, I thrived in combating disinformation. I was more than happy to disrupt Russian bots and politicians on Twitter, who spent more time trying to deal with us than actually sharing their propaganda. It was a strange but exciting time: a digital meme-based movement that managed to achieve tangible political outcomes.

Fast-forward a little, and NAFO had now become an official organisation, recognised by politicians worldwide, and even received recognition from the Ukrainian government for the work we had done in combating disinformation. A significant turning point in the movement for me was directly addressing the bile being spewed by George Galloway. It started with the standard formula: share memes, annoy, repeat. However, what I realised about him was that, while he would post a lot, he was also gearing up to hold in-person events in support of Russia. I knew I had to do something, so I began rallying the Fellas.

Each campaign to take down his live show also followed a formula:

1. Find out where the show is taking place.
2. Find the contact details of the venue owner.
3. Stress to NAFO members that politeness was key; anyone found to be aggressive or rude towards venue owners would be disowned by the organisation.
4. Contact the venue owners and begin drafting polite and respectful emails, presenting the evidence clearly and concisely, and allowing the venue owners to make an informed decision about whether they wish to be associated with Galloway’s views. 

We did this for three separate venues, whose names now escape me. Two were concert halls, and one was a pub; it was a moral victory in and of itself to reduce Galloway to having to perform in a pub, compared to the vast halls he had envisioned himself in. One by one, the venue owners put out a statement condemning Galloway and announcing that they had cancelled his booking. This led to a video from George Galloway, which can be found here, denouncing NAFO as “The Dogs Of War”. This reaction from Galloway was a clear sign that our actions were having an impact, and it only served to strengthen our resolve.

While NAFO’s numbers have dwindled due to the changing landscape of social media, the lessons we learned in those two years remain invaluable. We discovered the power of civic-led campaigns in combating disinformation. We refused to let authoritarian apologists dominate online debates unchallenged, often pushing their messages to the fringes where they belong. NAFO’s spirit is akin to that of the Liberal Democrats – both value freedom, justice, and democracy. Both believe in the power of grassroots politics, decentralised action, and empowering individuals to combat illiberalism.

Above all else, it taught me that if liberal voices do not fill this space, it will not remain empty. It will be filled by those who despise democracy, truth, and freedom. We’re seeing that now, with Tommy Robinson, Nigel Farage and Donald Trump’s far-right propaganda. We must take action to reclaim those spaces and push back against hatred.

* Jack Meredith is a member of the Welsh Liberal Democrats and an active campaigner and canvasser with Swansea and Gower Liberal Democrats. His writing focuses on democratic reform, social justice, trade unionism, economic democracy, and the institutional foundations of effective government. He has written for the Fabians, Lib Dem Voice, Liberator, Nation Cymru, Bylines Cymru, and Centre Think Tank.