It was the first thing I noticed as news of the Christchurch shooting came in — the patch on the back of the shooter's rucksack, something that was also emblazoned on the cover of the rambling manifesto.
It was far from the first time I'd seen it.
I'd seen it on t-shirts sold by far-right fashion brands in France. I'd seen it in photos of shields held by white supremacists at the violent "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville in 2017. And, here in Ukraine, I'd seen it on the paraphernalia of the far-right Azov movement.
It's a sonnenrad (sunwheel) or black sun: a symbol commonly used by the far-right, including outright neo-Nazis, originally adapted from a mosaic on the floor on the SS Generals' Hall.
Seeing it in the context of Christchurch reminded me of just how interconnected the global far-right has become.
A manifesto was sent to police believed to be sent from the Christchurch shooter.
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