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Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

I got the notoriouswhite nationalistRichard Spencer kicked off of his podcast platform.

Spencer, the leader of the white nationalist so-called alt-right who has made it clear he believes people of color are inferior to whites, is a lightning rod for controversy. He advocate what he calls peaceful ethnic cleansing and claims thatLatinos and AfricanAmericans havelower average IQs than whites. Auburn University initially canceled a speech he was set to give in April, but a court ruled that he must be allowed to speak. Hundreds of peopleprotestedoutside the event. In January, he took aflying punchin the neck from a masked person in the middle of an interview, immediately falling out of the view of the camera.

Recently, the Virginia gym Spencer belonged torevoked his membershipafter a university professor confronted him in the weight room and outed him as a vocal white nationalist. This is our December 1932. We have a choice,wrotethe Georgetown professor, Christine Fair, in a column for the Washington Post explaining her actions. We can refuse to treat this hateful, dangerous ideology as just another way of being, and fight it in every space we occupy.

Last Monday, Inoticed that the podcast Spencerproduces with his alt-right website had a paid account at SoundCloud, the popular streaming website. TheAltRightRadio accountdidnt have many followers, but some of the podcasts themselves, which one can embed on most websites, had been listened to roughly 12,000 times.

I wondered whether Spencers hate-filled podcasts were violatingSoundCloudsterms of service. Sure enough,SoundCloudscommunity guidelineswere clear:The companyforbids content that promotes or encourages hatred, discrimination or violence against others based on things like race, cultural identity or ethnic background, religious beliefs, disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation.

Heres just one exchange on oneAltRightRadioepisode called You Say You Want a Revolution,in which Paul Kersey, founder of the racistStuff Black People Dont Like website, makes it clear that hes a racist white supremacist. And Spencer agrees withhis bigoted assertions.

KERSEY: Make America Great AgainThats a synonym for Make America White Again.

SPENCER: Mm-hmm.

KERSEY: Because wherever America isnt white, its not great. Wherever America is great, its white.

SPENCER: Yeah.

KERSEY: And wherever Americais not safe, its not white. Wherever America is safe, its white.

There are morechoice quotesfrom white nationalist Jared Taylor, whose Beyond Conservatism speech was uploaded toSoundCloudbyAltRightRadio,and anti-Semite Kevin MacDonald, aguest onapodcast episode.

Per its terms ofuse,SoundCloudcan suspend or terminate an account if it violates its community guidelines. I did atweetstormabout theAltRightRadio account and the racist, anti-Semitic ideologies of its creator, urgingSoundCloudtoterminatethe account. The next morning, the company did just that.

All weve heard from Spencer on the matter was this tweet from last Tuesday

An associated account, Radix Radio, from the journal published by Spencers racist National Policy Institute appears to be terminated as well, although its unclearwhen itwas taken down.Several podcasts thatAltRightRadio promotes,includingThis is Europa,KulturkampfandRed Ice Radioare still online.

Embedded links to podcast episodes from the AltRightRadio and Radix Radioaccountsno longer work, and as of Friday, the white nationalist sites hadnt replaced them with an alternative.The latest Alt-Right Politics episode hosted by Spencer was uploaded directly to the Alt-Right website.

I got plenty of support for what I did,although as expected, the neo-Nazi trolls came out infull force. Overwhelmingly, themostfrequentresponses from these almost unanimously anonymous users came in three categories: 1) assumptions that I was Jewish, with mentions of yellow stars, gas chambers and the size of my nose; 2) assertions that Im gay or a faggot; and 3) revelations that Im a cuck and a very skinny, slight andgenerallyweak person.

But many of the replies alsoprotestedthat no-platformingSpencer was a free speech issuean allegation that is false.

The First Amendmentprotects againstgovernment-imposed restrictions on speech.(There areexceptionsincluding advocacy of illegal action and fighting words.) ButSoundCloudis not the government; its a private companythat has every right to a terms-of-use document that its users, including Spencer,agree towhen creating aSoundCloudaccount.And the terms of use does not discriminate against any group of people; in fact, it prohibits such discrimination.

For some people, freedom of speech has come to mean freedom to discriminate.The campus free speech movement is ledprimarilyby far-right conservatives whofeel that their voices are underrepresented on college campuses, when the more likely scenario is that their ideas just arent very popular, andmanyof those ideas are both hateful andextremely poor scholarship. Charles Murrays failed argument that black people are inherently less intelligentthat whites has been panned in the academic community, yet he continues to make college tours, funded by the far-right, Koch-backed American Enterprise Institute. I have written extensively aboutright-wing fundingfor hate speechon campus, much of the money coming from the Koch andDeVosfamilies and distributedbyAEI and the Young Americas Foundation.

Many of the same wealthy figures arealso bankrolling an assaulton dissent, with a Goldwater Institute-written bill making its way through state legislatures around the country, imposing harsh penalties, including expulsion,on students who disrupt campus speakers. For some, freedom of speech applies only to guest speakers, nottothe hundreds of others in the audience.

Actualhate speech, which Richard Spencer actively engages in and promotes as both a career andapersonal ideology, has no place inmainstream society, nor does it deserve the servicesofany company that rejectsracism, sexism, homophobia,transphobia,Islamophobia, anti-Semitism and other forms of hatein its terms of use or community guidelines.Revived Nazi terms, blatant racism against black and Latinopeople and calls for ethnic cleansing should not be tolerated.This type of speech is not an argument or an opinion; it is hate, plain and simple.

Fighting against hate isnt discrimination, as the alt-right will feebly argue; its social justice.Good people should, any chance theyget, no-platform cowardly alt-right provocateurs, neo-Nazis, neo-Confederatesand other detestable groups of insecure, angrypeople.

Someone who cries, Hail Trump! ata white nationalist conference or organizes atiki-torch-lit nighttime rally defending Confederate monuments reminiscent of KKK rallies,deserves no platform. Let white nationalists build their own servers, their own infrastructure, so they can yell white genocide from the rooftops.But no honorable company should acceptwhite nationalistscause, ortheir money.

Alex Kotch is an independent investigative journalist based in Brooklyn, NY. Follow him on Twitter at @alexkotch.

This article was made possible by the readers and supporters of AlterNet.

Continue reading here:
How I Got 'Alt-Right' White Nationalist Leader Richard Spencer ... - The National Memo (blog)

From Mayor Ted Wheelers Facebook page (emphasis added):

On Friday three men Rick Best, Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, and Micah Fletcher stood up against bigotry and hatred. Two paid with their lives. A third was seriously injured.

Our community remains in shock and mourning. But we are also tremendously grateful to our heroes and their families for their selflessness and heroism. They will serve to inspire us to be the loving, courageous people we are meant to be.

As Mayor, I wanted to update you on a few developments:

1) I have reached out to all of the victims and their families, including the two women who were terrorized and subjected to such hatred and bigotry. I have offered my unconditional assistance and support, day or night.

2) I have confirmed that the City of Portland has NOT and will not issue any permits for the alt right events scheduled on June 4th or June 10th. The Federal government controls permitting for Shrunk Plaza, and it is my understanding that they have issued a permit for the event on June 4th.

3) I am calling on the federal government to IMMEDIATELY REVOKE the permit(s) they have issued for the June 4th event and to not issue a permit for June 10th. Our City is in mourning, our communitys anger is real, and the timing and subject of these events can only exacerbate an already difficult situation.

4) I am appealing to the organizers of the alt-right demonstrations to CANCEL the events they have scheduled on June 4th and June 10th. I urge them to ask their supporters to stay away from Portland. There is never a place for bigotry or hatred in our community, and especially not now.

5) I am calling on every elected leader in Oregon, every legal agency, every level of law enforcement to stand with me in preventing another tragedy.

6) When and if the time is right for them, I would like to work with the families to find an appropriate way to permanently remember their sacrifice and honor their courage. Their heroism is now part of the legacy of this great city and I want future generations to remember what happened here, and why, so that it might serve to both eradicate hatred and inspire future generations to stand up for the right values like Rick, Taliesin, and Micah did last week.

The murders in Portland are, of course, appalling but, no, the government may not deny permits for speech because it views the speech as promoting bigotry or hatred, whether toward Muslims, blacks, whites, police officers, capitalists or whomever else. Nor can the government impose viewpoint-based timeouts for speech after certain events. If a police officer is murdered by anti-police fanatics, for instance, that cannot justify canceling the permit for a rally at which people speak out against the police, at which some attendees may hate the police, and at which a few attendees may indeed support killing police officers.

KGW-TV reports that Wheeler justified his position by saying, hate speech is not protected under the U.S. Constitution. But that is not correct (see here for more legal details).

Indeed, the Supreme Court has made clear that the government cannot even impose viewpoint-based demonstration security fees, even when the demonstration has an overt white nationalist message (see Forsyth County v. Nationalist Movement (1992)). It is even clearer that the government cannot just deny permits for rallies that it views as associated with racism or hostility to certain religions. (The 7th Circuits Nazi Skokie march case is just the most prominent example.)

The ACLU of Oregon, Im pleased to say, takes the same view as I do:

The full tweets from the ACLU of Oregon (Im merging six together here):

1. The government cannot revoke or deny a permit based on the viewpoint of the demonstrators. Period.

2. It may be tempting to shut down speech we disagree with, but

3. once we allow the government to decide what we can say, see, or hear, or who we can gather with

4. history shows us that the most marginalized will be disproportionately censored and punished for unpopular speech.

5. We are all free to reject and protest ideas we dont agree with. That is a core, fundamental freedom of the United States.

6. If we allow the government to shut down speech for some, we all will pay the price down the line.

(Note that I recently had the pleasure of representing the ACLU of Oregon in an unrelated free speech case.)

See the original post here:
Portland mayor urges federal government to revoke permit for 'alt-right' demonstration, on the theory that 'hate ... - Washington Post

In February 2017, at the state of the nation address, Viktor Orbn, the prime minister of Hungary and the leader of the far-right, anti-immigrant Fidesz party, offered his vision for the country in the coming year. We shall let in true refugees: Germans, Dutch, French, and Italians, terrified politicians and journalists who here in Hungary want to find the Europe they have lost in their homelands, he proclaimed.

In reality, Orbns refugees have been moving to Hungary, and Budapest in particular, for years. A small clique of Identitarians, or aggrieved nationalists from Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, France, and elsewhere, all motivated by their disdain for their home countries commitment to liberal values, have found an ideological match in his Hungary, where two extreme far-right parties, the governing Fidesz and Jobbik, the largest opposition party, make up most of the National Assembly. Jobbik is the first European political party to champion a border wall. Its members frequently express open anti-Semitic and anti-Roma sentiments, and prioritize the preservation of Hungary for the Hungarians.

Freedom Fights for Survival in Hungary

This transformation has allowed a system of far-right culture leaders to flourish in Budapest. Coming from all over Europe and the United States, they have created a structured propaganda circuit, in the hopes of spreading their ideas far and wide.

At the center of the scene is a publishing house called Arktos Media. It is routinely referred to as the preeminent publisher of the alt-right by those within the movement and experts who study it, and is known for translating many canonical alt-right texts into English, including the first full-text English translations of Russian theorist Alexander Dugincharacterized variously on the left and right as the intellectual guru of Putinism, and Putins Rasputin. Dugins ethnonationalism, a belief in the creation of ethnically homogenous nation states, has been championed by white nationalists, who argue that Europe and America are innately white nations. Arktos titles largely promote a viewpoint it characterizes as alternatives to modernity that are critical of liberalism, human rights, and modern democracy.

Arktos originally began operations in India in 2010 when a Swedish businessman named Daniel Friberg absorbed a traditionalist publishing house run by American editor-in-chief John B. Morgan. Both lived in India for the first years of the companys existence. In early 2014, both Friberg and Morgan moved to Budapest to continue to expand Arktos from within the European continent. (Morgan has since left Arktos and now works for Counter-Currents, a white-nationalist publishing house and website also partially based in Budapest.) Friberg, whose vision is central to Arktos, sees its mission as changing metapolitics, a term appropriated from 20th-century Marxist intellectual Antonio Gramsci. In Fribergs book The Real Right Returns, he argues that multiculturalism and liberal human rightswhat he calls cultural Marxismhave been the dominant culture since the fall of Nazism, and outlines how transforming this culture space is necessary for political and social change.

Peter Krko, a Hungarian political analyst and academic researcher of populism and extremism at Indiana University Bloomington, said that the timing of Arktoss move to Budapest was no accident. In 2014, Jobbiks popularity surged, thanks to a platform that pledged to preserve Hungarian ethnic purity. That year, Orbn was also re-elected to a second term, and Jobbik won 20 percent of the national vote and 47 seats in the parliament, while Fidesz grabbed a super-majority. The Identitarians are happy that they feel that in Hungary there is a leader that represents their values. These are people with an almost medieval view on the world and they find a safe haven in Hungary, Krko told me.

It is difficult to tell where Arktoss ideas end and Jobbiks begin. For both, multiculturalism is the supreme enemy. Both believe in draconian immigration laws based on ethnic and racial preservation. The Jobbik-run newspaper Magyar Hirlap (which translates to Hungarian Newspaper) has published articles sympathetic to members of Fribergs circle. Gabor Vona, Jobbiks leader, wrote an introduction to Arktoss translation of 20th-century intellectual fascist Julius Evolas A Handbook For Right-Wing Youth, a collection of Evolas essays targeted at young people interested in the radical right. Evola, who White House chief strategist Steve Bannon quoted in a 2014 speech at the Vatican, is considered by academics as possibly the most important intellectual figure for the Radical Right in contemporary Europe. Numerous Facebook posts show Friberg shaking hands with Vona and dining with Marton Gyngysi, another key politician in Jobbik credited with calling for all Jews in Hungary to be registered on a list.

When I spoke with Gyngysi, he voiced his admiration for Evola. Jobbiks resistance to immigration, he said, is limited to people from Africa or the Middle East, because they do not share the same cultural values as Hungarians, as opposed to the Austrians or Polish or American people who come to our country and who share the same civilization, the same religion, or the same values or way of life. But despite Jobbiks ideological overlap with the Arktos scene, Gyngysi denied that it has any influence over the party.

Prior to Arktos, Friberg also had long-standing and prolific ties to far-right extremists in Sweden. As a teenager, he was heavily involved with neo-Nazi groups and, at the age of 28, helped construct and manage the online forum Nordisk.nu, a 22,000-member-strong gathering place for Scandinavian national socialists, including Anders Breivik. Friberg also served time in prison for various offenses from 1995 to 2010, including for possession of a stolen AK4 rifle (a rifle formerly used by Swedish army) and other illegal weapons.

More recently, Friberg has sought to obscure his violent transgressions under a cover of intellectual legitimacy. With an MBA from Gthenberg University and work experience at Wiking Mineral, a company founded by far-right political backer (and fellow Budapest resident) Patrick Brinkmann, Friberg now sports a fashy haircut and suits. He prefers to mingle with coiffed intellectuals and politicians in lieu of skinheads. He has spent his far-right career repackaging eugenicist ideology by rebranding the same or similar material with words such as identitarian, traditionalist, or archeofuturist. His partner, U.S. white nationalist Richard Spencer, has been criticized for doing the same thing by hate-watch groups such as the Anti-Defamation League and Southern Poverty Law Center.

While Gyngysi admits to knowing Friberg, he claims he knows nothing of Fribergs criminal history. Gyngysi was skeptical before I read from his arrest record, and ultimately admitted that he is not particularly happy ... about any criminal from any country living in Hungary. But most important to Gyngysi is that nobody from outside imposes on Hungary some social model that is not welcome in Hungary.

In Budapest, Arktos is surrounded by alt-righters who have made the trek to the increasingly illiberal Hungary. Michael Polignano, co-founder of Counter-Currents, moved to Budapest in 2016, and joined the nationalist scene. After moving to Hungary in January 2017, mens rights activist Matt Forney wrote: Imagine theres no leftists. Its easy if you try. No protests in the streets, and in front of us, only cute white girls. That world exists, and its called Hungary. Ferenc Almassy, a French nationalist, has worked as a translator for Jobbik. He helps other French nationalists new to Hungary acclimate to their haven. Popular American far-right YouTube and Twitter personality RamZPaul, who has lived in the Hungarian capital off and on since 2013, tweeted in February to nearly 35,000 followers: Budapest is like Paris of the 1920s. #Hungary.

In addition to Fribergs clique, other nationalists have also moved to Hungary. Although former British Nationalist Party leader Nick Griffin has claimed he is not affiliated with the alt-right ex-pat community, he has been deeply involved with a radical Christian organization called The Knights Templar International, which has offices in the U.K. and Hungary. (His Twitter profile lists Budapest as one of his locations, and many articles published in March of this year commented on his plans to move there.) The Knights Templar were invited to inspect the Hungarian border in 2015 by Jobbik party member and mayor of Asotthalom, Lazsl Toroczkai, and have started a resettlement campaign called Operation Ark for refugee South African Boers to relocate to rural Hungary.

But perhaps Griffin and company shouldn't get too comfortable: on Friday, authorities expelled him from Hungary, calling him and his organization a threat to national security. While it is certainly premature to think that this represents some national reckoning, perhaps the countrys far-right ex-pats days are numbered.

For now, these groups will continue to expand their vision beyond Hungarys party politics. In January 2017, Arktoss team and Spencer officially cemented their partnership when they teamed up to create AltRight.com, a one-stop shop for the emerging movement. Even Washington-based Breitbart is now rumored to be opening a Hungarian office in the near future, after acquiring the domain name Breitbart.hu. From their vantage, the possibilities of cross-border exchange look promising. In flocking to Budapest, these nationalist internationals are creating a sanctuary from which to broadcast anti-globalism across the globe.

Read the rest here:
How Hungary Became a Haven for the Alt-Right - The Atlantic

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A group of protesters gathered Sunday outside the offices of Richard Spencer, the white nationalist who is credited with coining the term "alt-right."

Protesters have convened outside Spencer'sVirginiaoffices regularly in recent months, but the organizers said Sunday's gathering was larger than usual. The protest came a day after racist fliers with messages including "Stop the blacks" and "You're losing your country, white man" were found in Alexandria, Virginia.

Sunday's protesters held signs saying "White supremacy not welcome" and "Love not hate."

"Its particularly important that we lead the way for our kids," said one protester, who gave his name only as Allen. "I would like to believe that some of the explicit racism and implicit racism thats still around here will be a thing of the past in their generation. But if not, we need to teach them to stand up."

Alexandria residents woke up Saturday morning to find racist flyerson poles and car windows. The images on some of the fliers are the same as those on a white supremacist website that endorses "American fascism."

Mayor Allison Silberberg issued a statement, saying the city denounces "hate speech and hate crimes and discrimination in all forms."

Alexandria police are investigating.

Published at 6:17 PM EDT on May 28, 2017 | Updated at 10:19 PM EDT on May 28, 2017

See the rest here:
Protesters Gather Outside 'Alt-Right' Leader's Virginia Office | NBC4 ... - NBC4 Washington

Ben Jacobs, above, had been following the House campaign of Greg Gianforte for several weeks when he was allegedly assaulted by the candidate. (Screenshot from ABC News)

(JTA) Users of websitesassociated with the alt-right are cheering a Republican congressional candidate from Montana for allegedly body slamming Jewish reporter Ben Jacobs.

There was no indication that Greg Gianforte knew or cared that Jacobs was Jewishwhen he allegedly threw The Guardian political reporter to the ground on Wednesday evening and broke his glasses, leading to misdemeanor assault charges. But that has not stopped online commenters from making the connection on platforms frequented by the alt-right, a loose right-wing movement that includes white nationalists and anti-Semites.

A user on the neo-Nazi website The Daily Stormer posted an article by The Guardian, a London-based daily, about the incident with the title Montana Republican Stands up to the Jewish Media. The user commented, I dont know anything about this guy, but I can appreciate him treating the jewish media how it deserves to be treated.

Responses included Body slamming k*** media members should become standard for Republican candidates. It should be part of the party platform. Also, The night of the broken glasses wont soon be forgotten, an apparent reference toKristallnacht, a Nazi pogrom considered the start of the Holocaust.

On 4chan, an online message board credited with launching the alt-right, threads about the incident frequently turned anti-Semitic, with comments like, One day our patience will come to an end and then we will grab these insolent Jews by their throats and stuff their lying mouths shut! and Shouldve stomped the Jewlet.

Breitbart News calledthe platform for the alt-right by its former top executive, current White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon reported the story straightforwardly, acknowledging that Jacobs story was supported by an audio and an eyewitness from Fox News. The comment section, however, featured a handful of anti-Semitic remarks, like the left wing marxist Jew reporters had best watch their arse. But unlike in other forums, other users were quick to criticize them.

Jacobs has publicly discussed his Jewish background, and on Twitter often weighs in on issues related to Judaism and anti-Semitism, including the alt-right. In 2015, he wrote a guide tofirst-time participants in a Passover seder advising, praise the brisket, and dont mention Israel lest they start an argument.

Gianforte, a high-tech millionaire, is the Republican candidate in a special election for Montanas lone seat in the House of Representatives. He has been endorsed by President Donald Trump. Jacobs asked the candidate about his views on the Republican health care plan before the alleged assault.

Although Jacobs has been following Gianfortes campaign for several weeks, the candidate did not seem particularly familiar with his work at the time of the alleged assault. In a recording of the incident, Gianforte can be heard saying, Youre with The Guardian? The last guy did the same damn thing.

You just body slammed me, Jacobs says. Id like to call the police.

Gianforte campaign spokesman Shane Scanlon said in a statement that Jacobs entered the office without permission, aggressively shoved a recorder in Gregs face, and began asking badgering questions.

Jacobs was asked to leave. After asking Jacobs to lower the recorder, Jacobs declined. Greg then attempted to grab the phone that was pushed in his face. Jacobs grabbed Gregs wrist, and spun away from Greg, pushing them both to the ground, the statement said.

Richard Spencer, a white supremacist and alt-right leader, tweeted Thursday, Im not a fan of Gianforte at all, but his version of events simply sounds more plausible. Spencer is a native of Whitefish, Montana. Andrew Anglin, the editor of The Daily Stormer, in January organized a neo-Nazi March in the city, purportedly because Jewish residents were threatening a local business run by Spencers mother. It was canceled because organizers did not file the required paperwork.

Twice this month, anti-Semitic and anti-Israel fliers were droppedoutside homes in Bozeman, Montana.

Gianforte is scheduled to appear in Gallatin County Justice Court by June 7. He faces a maximum $500 fine or six months in jail if convicted.

Today is the final day of voting in Montanas special election to replace Ryan Zinke, the former Montana Republican now running the Interior Department. Going into Thursday, Gianforte held a single-digit lead over Democrat Rob Quist, a folk singer and first-time candidate.

Excerpt from:
'Alt-right' celebrates alleged body slam of Jewish reporter Ben Jacobs by GOP congressional candidate - Jewish Telegraphic Agency