Two skinheads preparing what was seized from a neo-Nazi party: Best photo of Leo Reagan | Art and design

IIn 1990, I was working in photojournalism but I was doing music photography to make money. At the time, there was a rise in neo-Nazi music, with bands like Skrewdriver and the Blood and Honor movement. I initially intended to write a magazine article about it, but it grew into a much larger project and I ended up spending two years following these people around the country. This led to a book and a documentary.

It was a difficult project and there were moral and ethical challenges as well as serious challenges, but that was part of the attraction. People were skeptical of me but I was honest about what I wanted to do. They knew I didn’t agree with their policies, but I didn’t have an agenda.

I worked with a Jewish publisher and editor on my resulting book, Public Enemies, but I received a lot of encouragement from people who were like, How dare you do this? But I think the whole point of being an artist is to explore and challenge things that are uncomfortable. A camera gives you this amazing privilege of being present in other people’s lives. Skinheads were a symbol of a certain political point of view, but I wanted to go beyond that and get as close as possible.

My driving belief is that we need to be able to reach out, touch humanity, and try to connect to each other in some way, but I’m also not trying to forgive or downplay the importance of extremes.

At first, what I saw was very shocking. When you’re in those environments, it’s very toxic and unpleasant. I’ve been in situations that were full of riots and there was always a fight breaking out. I just tried to keep my head down. I had a cross section but wasn’t hurt too much.

In this picture, we are in a very upscale area of ​​Milton Keynes and behind us is a school. A group of skinheads rented a school hall, claiming it was for a 21st birthday party but it was actually for a concert. So the neo-Nazi skinhead band and all their followers appear to the absolute horror of the people renting the hall. Someone called the police who surrounded the building, but they had to let the party continue because they didn’t want these guys out in the street – that would have been more annoying.

Inside, it was chaos, and there was a lot of fighting – either between different factions or just for fun. These people in the photo wanted to leave the mess in the room and go and count the money they took at the door, so they said to me: “Okay, Leo, we’re using your car to count.” “Okay, as long as I can take a picture,” I said. The party was still going on at this point, but then everyone in attendance got a police escort to the nearest train station to get them out of this neighborhood.

After two years of covering the neo-Nazi scene, I realized it was time to stop. I was on people’s radar and the police were looking at me, I was being photographed, and some leftist groups were going after me because of the association. Maybe my timing was right because I was pushing my luck too far and things kind of exploded after that. This whole world has become a crazier and more volatile place because of the Combat 18 movement – a very dangerous group. Some of the people I spent time with ended up in Combat 18 and got life sentences. Others went in different directions, some denounced it, others did not. It was very dangerous, but I stand by the action. When I look back, I think, “Jesus Leo, what were you doing?”

Biography of Leo Reagan

child: Dublin, 1963
High point: The camera gives you access to hidden worlds in all their chaotic glory. The uncertainty and the unexpected, the highs and lows. It is a way of thinking and being. A unique privilege for which I am grateful.
Top tip: Keep pushing. When you’ve gone too far, you’re in the right place.