Bash Back Convergence 2023

  • March 17, 2023 1:25 am

Submission

In 2008, queer anarchists gathered in Chicago to plot a disruption of the electoral spectacle and cohere a network out of emergent youth crews in multiple cities. Fifteen years later, the proposals put forward then — criminality, autonomous self-defense, riots, and orgies — are needed more than ever.The intervening years have been marked by intensification — of crisis, alienation, loss, and struggle. The right wing no longer hides behind euphemisms: they want to exterminate trans and queer people. The left offers only false solutions: vote, donate, assimilate. A decade of representation, symbolic legal victories, social media activism, and mass-market saturation has left us worse off by all metrics. Our fairweather friends won’t save us from the consequences of their strategy of empty visibility. The inescapable conclusion is that we must come together to protect ourselves.

History confirms the queer legacy of building connection in a world that hates us, the legacy of riotous joy—the legacy of bashing back. The attacks will continue on our nightclubs, forests, story hours, and siblings. To hold on, we need spaces—underground if necessary—to re-encounter each other, spaces to remember, build, share, and conspire.

In this spirit, we are ecstatic to announce the return of the Bash Back convergence!

Fifteen years from the original gathering, Chicago will host the 2023 convergence September 8–11. Comrades, old and new, are invited to discuss what’s still vital in the past and what’s needed in the present. In keeping with tradition, the convergence will include presentations, workshops, distros, parties, and other opportunities to make trouble.

If you are interested in attending, especially if you’d like to propose programming or tabling, please send us an introduction to bashback2023@riseup.net.

Proposals due by June 20.
Please share on social media.

NJ Hate Watch: Neo-Nazi Richard Rygaard of Vineland, NJ

  • February 28, 2023 1:32 am

from Jersey Counter-Info

 

Richard Rygaard, former drummer and collaborator of the neo-nazi metal band Bound for Glory (BFG), has been having a difficult last few months in South Jersey. In July 2022, Rygaard managed to get himself arrested for possession of a controlled dangerous substance being caught with cocaine on his person in Vineland, NJ. For the past several months Rygaard has been going through the local court system with no resolve in sight.

Rygaard was first arrested July 15, where he resides in Vineland, NJ.
As of December 2022 Rygaard is still dealing with his possession charge stemming from his July 2022 arrest.

Prior to his arrest, Rygaard enjoyed relative anonymity and has kept a low profile even considering his prime BFG days. Thus far Rygaard has been lucky to enjoy a peaceful existence while also being an unrepentant neo-nazi. As a consequence of his arrest and ongoing municipal court proceedings, the state has released his information to the public.

Rygaard during his bonehead BFG days as a drummer.
Rygaard pictured more recently in 2017 at the IHOP in Williamstown, NJ.

The following release of information is not an endorsement of the state or how it operates, but evidence that anti-fascists can utilize a variety of information regardless of the source for our own purposes to protect the community at large.

Richard D. Rygaard currently resides at 37 Columbia Ave. in apartment in Vineland, NJ, 08360. He also has a P.O. Box , registered under his name at 736 E Landis Ave in Vineland NJ, 08362.

Rygaard lives here at 37 Columbia Ave. in Vineland NJ, in apartment .

Rygaard also has several identifiable tattoos including some that are decades old, some which are neo-nazi in nature, and others that are seemingly unrelated to fascism and white supremacy.

Rygaard with some of the sleeve on his left arm visible.
Rygaard’s right arm with a newer piece he received in 2017.

Send tips and information: njhatewatch@protonmail.com

Solidarity from PDX!

  • February 12, 2023 1:35 am

Submission

Solidarity from Portland to Philadelphia in preparation for the big game and the big night after. Fly Eagles, Fly.

Stella Forest Defender Fundraiser

  • January 22, 2023 1:14 am

from Twitter


updated fliers with new name, please spread around!

Graffiti in Solidarity with Atlanta and in Memory of Tortuguita in the South NJ

  • January 21, 2023 1:36 am

from Jersey Counter-Info

 

Graffiti placed in the Pinelands of NJ in solidarity with the struggle to Stop Cop City and to Defend the Atlanta Forest and in memory of Tortuguita who was murdered by police while defending the Atlanta Forest.

 

 

 

 

 

Aryan Compartmented Elements and Michael “Doc Grimson” Brown Exposed

  • November 23, 2022 1:57 am

from CVAntifa

In the early days of November, a Telegram channel called Aryan Compartmented Elements (ACE) became known to researchers through various channels. ACE’s name is a reference to Army Compartmented Elements, a nickname used by the 1st Special Operational Detachment in the US Army, better known as Delta Force.

ACE is adjacent, if not directly involved with, other groups in Terrorgram. These groups venerate neo-Nazi mass shooters and the group seems poised to join the ranks of their pantheon of “Saints“. Most of ACE’s content consists of them discussing doing reconnaissance and destroying people’s property. Multiple pictures posted show them stalking who they consider to be leftists and of them looking at targets in crosshairs. It seems clear that they intend to commit acts of mass violence.

 

Multiple of these targets include schools. We have determined that the schools pictured are the Universal Technical Institute in Exton, PA and Harrisburg Community College. If you are in touch with individuals attending either of these institutions, please contact them to let them know about these threats.

 

 

Researchers were able to find holes in ACE’s security almost immediately. In one of the “degenerate assets” photos, there was an attempt at redacting information, but they forgot to scrub one thing. We spotted it immediately:

 

It reads: Lower Saucon Township. That led researchers to begin looking closer into the Lehigh Valley and surrounding area of PA.

Through a random stroke of luck, we were able to spot one major misstep. We noted that there was a comment on an ACE post made by telegram user Leo Solaris OTMO, also known as Luke Kenna (more on him later.) On this comment there was one like. The user who made the like has the username, “Doc Grimson”. When expanding the profile of Doc Grimson, all his personal details were laid bare, which led us directly to Michael Brown.

The chat function has since been removed from Aryan Compartmented Elements (ACE) Telegram channel and all the comments deleted.

 

Michael “Doc Grimson” Brown is the owner of Black Market Tactical (BMT) and Black Market Strength and Conditioning (BMSC), companies which are registered to his home at 15 Fox Ridge Road in Glenmoore, PA. His companies provide various tactical trainings and sell his homemade knives and other tactical gear.

 

On the BMT website, Brown lists his location as Exton, PA. Multiple photos posted to the ACE channel were specific to the Chester County, PA region and the larger Lehigh Valley. There have been many towns that Brown has been traced to in the area through simple Google searches. Using the ACE channel, Brown has even posted video of what appears to a school sporting event. We were able to geolocate the event to Downingtown, PA (Chester County) using the phone number on the scoreboard and the reflection in the puddle. This doesn’t seem like the kind of man who should be teaching anyone about opsec and covert reconnaissance training…

 

Brown isn’t new to stalking. He has numerous serious stalking and assault charges that have put him on the FBI’s radar.

ACE has been consistent at posting field notes from their nighttime recon missions but will delete the information after a few days. The format and tone of writing is heavily influenced by military operations. According to the ‘about us’ section on Black Market Tactical:

Doc worked as an 911 EMTB and Paramedic in suburban Philadelphia for approx 10 years and also served as a warrant service officer for Montgomery County, PA.

Doc served as the Lead Medical SME and combat skills instructor for the USAF Air Advisor Academy at JB MDL in support of the GWOT for approx 6 years. 

His experience in being an SME and instructor for the US Air Force gives clarity to the *tactically ascertained* style of his writing. At this time, we have not been able to confirm if he has served in the military or not. We were also not able to locate a CAGE code, something which is required for all military contractors, to verify that he has provided training. There is evidence on his website of him training soldiers, however.

A picture from Michael’s website showing him training soldiers.

 

Michael Brown offers high-cost training programs through BMT. During our investigation, we uncovered the best piece of evidence we could have hoped for. There is an image from his website for a ‘Protocol Immersion Course’ costing a mere $2,999 to spend 48 hours training with Brown (lol).

This listing has since been removed, but archives show that a photo used in that sale is the same as a photo posted to ACE telegram. While Michael Brown may have deleted the posts from ACE directly, they still live on in other chats, such as Church of Aryanity where both he and Luke Kenna frequently share ACE posts.

A photo posted on ACE shared by Michael in the Church of Aryanity telegram chat.

 

The same photo on the Black Market Tactical website

 

If any more proof was needed, we were able to identify this generic skull vector as a key asset that crosses all of his platforms. It’s on his merch, it’s on his website, it’s on his YouTube, it was on his Instagram, and it just so turns out it’s used in ACE as well.

 

 

Luke Winchester-Kenna:

We first put out info on Luke Winchester-Kenna last year in the wake of a mass shooting perpetrated by one of his online acquaintances in Denver, CO. For more detailed background and information on Winchester-Kenna, we suggest reading our original article here. Luke has links to several previous articles we have written on Wolf Brigade Gym, Operation Werewolf, and Rural Nexion.

Luke and Doc holding a BMSC flag.

 

Kenna is very closely associated with Black Market Tactical and Michael Brown. Before our original article came out, he frequently posted tagging BSMC and BMT on his Instagram page. Posts made on Doc’s telegram also reference Tyr Tactical. Tyr is a tactical training business located inside of Luke’s wife’s racist new age crystal shop, Freya’s Forest in downtown Gloversville, NY. Much to the dismay of Luke, his hometown newspaper even wrote about he and his wife as being radical neo-Nazi extremists. Brown and Kenna recently held a “Warrior’s Lodge” that was located ‘somewhere in the Adirondacks’ near Saratoga, NY. Saratoga Springs is roughly 40 minutes from his home in Gloversville. It’s unknown how many men attended this, but there is evidence that there was at least 5.

Luke Kenna is present in many fascist Telegram chats using the name Leo Solaris OTMO. OTMO signifies the rank of Knight in the white nationalist Church of Aryanity. We were able to determine Leo was Kenna because of posts he made shilling for his company, Tyr Tactical.

The Church of Aryanity, a “religion” established by Aaron Chapman of Traditionalist Workers Party ( prior to the Night of the Wrong Wives) and Colton Williams. For those interested in learning more about the this organization, we encourage they check out this recent article from SoCal Research Club and Left Coast Right Watch that details the group’s ideology and history.

As recently as November 17 of this year, Kenna posted in the Church of Aryanity Telegram channel that he was “slowly and methodically building a temple on secure private land to serve as the auxiliary church of New England.” We think it’s safe to connect these dots and say that the “auxiliary church” is likely at the same location where the Warrior Lodge was held.

We aren’t sure how legit this is, but it seems to be in-line with the ideas of Militant Ruralism, about which have written extensively in previous posts. This is a neo-Nazi ideology that centers around building rural compounds to serve as bases of struggle in a coming race war. This ideology ties Kenna and Brown to a nationwide network of extremists operating compounds like Rural Nexion and Donnybrook Farms. Kenna was present in Rural Nexion’s telegram channel, and Brown proudly displays a sign made and sold by the group.

Rural Nexion sign in Brown’s garage

 

Alabama Arson:

On November 6, the Aryan Compartmented Elements (ACE) Telegram channel, the operators claimed to have been responsible for burning down the home of a school administrator who had added LGBTQ books to the library. They posted a somewhat redacted video of the arson.

ACE post detailing the arson

 

When looking for reports for an arson matching the description above, the only one we were able to find was the burning of a school superintendent’s house in Boaz, Alabama. While we cannot be certain that the claimed arson is the same one described, details from the redacted video seem to match up to publicly available photos of the burned out house.

Burned out house in Boaz, Alabama

 

It seems strange that a duo of Nazis from the Northeast would torch a house in Alabama. However, it appears the pair have a local connection. Ian Michael Elliott is a member of Patriot Front who was exposed by Atlanta Antifascists last year. He lives one county away from the arson in Harvest, Alabama. Ian is also a member of the Church of Aryanity and was present in the Church of Aryanity chat using the handle Varangian where ACE propaganda is frequently shared.

Ian Michael Elliott

 

The connections don’t stop there. In a Patriot Front training video obtained by Atlanta Antifascists, Ian can be seen training while wearing a Black Market Strength and Conditioning shirt. He can be seen posing in the photo below with Luke, Michael, and other Black Market Tactical associates during one of their training sessions. We are actively seeking IDs on the other men pictured in this photo.

 

 

Ian wearing a BMSC shirt during Patriot Front training.

Ian wearing a BMSC shirt during Patriot Front training.

 

While it is possible the arson is not associated with Aryan Compartmented Elements (ACE) or Ian Michael Elliott, we feel that the amount of circumstantial evidence is too high not to mention here. Despite these individuals’ complete and total clownishness, they have the potential to put people in very real danger.

 

On OPWW:

All of the men discussed above have deep connections to Operation Werewolf. In 2020, we began circulating a a piece entitled The End of Operation Werewolf urging researchers to pay more attention to the group given the high potential for disaffected members to engage in acts of extreme violence. We published that piece in 2021, in the wake of the Denver shooting. We still think the sentiments expressed within it are important. Check it out here.

 

Conclusion:

The individuals mentioned in these articles are incredibly dangerous, and we want to bring maximum awareness of them and their behavior to the communities they threaten. If you know anyone in these communities, please send them this article.

We also want to pay specific attention to the concerning trend of violence against Queer people that these individuals are following. The victim of the arson was targeted for the same reasons that are vitriolically spewed by Tucker Carlson every night. We are finishing up this article the day after a mass shooter murdered 5 people at a Queer club in Colorado Springs. The connections between fringe lunatics like these and the mainstream far-right are evident. Wherever you are, work in solidarity with the LGBT community to defend it from people like this.

This work wouldn’t have been possible without help from good folks at White Rose Australia and other anonymous researchers. Please check out their work at thewhiterosesociety.writeas.com.

Noisy Philly Counter-Demo Challenges ‘TERFs’ at Independence Hall

  • November 22, 2022 1:20 am

from Unicorn Riot

By Dan Feidt, Unicorn Riot November 21, 2022

PHILADELPHIA, PA — On Sunday, November 13, 100+ counter-demonstrators tried to drown out about 30 protesters who were demonstrating against transgender people’s access to medical transitions, recognition of chosen gender and other rights near Independence Hall. The counter-demo side characterized them as “TERFs” or ‘Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminists.’ Philadelphia Police and U.S. National Park Service Park Rangers separated the crowds using bicycle police and portable barricades. Inside the barricades, several men, mostly masked up concealing their identities, paced around and eyed the crowd; they were widely suspected to be Proud Boys providing security according to a counter-protester. However, their identities are unknown.

Over almost three hours, Unicorn Riot interviewed nearly a dozen hoarse but spirited attendees. In this 29-minute video, we hear about why they consider noisy counter-demonstrations strategically significant, as well as reactions to how the recent U.S. elections largely — but not entirely — refuted anti-transgender politicians and messages.

[Video Link]

Some interviewees believed that John Fetterman, the current lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, who will soon be seated as a U.S. senator, would protect their rights. Another interviewee said that democracy and electoralism create situations where groups are enabled to spread messages about taking away rights from transgender people.

While there was at least one round of counter-demonstrators splashing the anti-transgender demonstration with water, no arrests transpired during our time observing the event.

Marquee speaker linked to white supremacists

The marquee anti-trans speaker was British activist Kellie-Jay Keen Minshull, who has also been known by the name “Posie Parker.” Keen Minshull appeared on a podcast with white nationalist French Canadian Jean-Francois Gariepy. An ardent ‘white ethnostate’ supporter, Gariepy has made videos with key Neo-Nazis including Richard Spencer, David Duke and Mark Collett. Several Philadelphia counter-demonstrators highlighted this shared media connection between Keen Minshull and Duke, although they have not appeared side-by-side.

Connections between “gender-critical feminists” like Keen and far-right white supremacists have been turning up for years, and the far-right has tried to leverage opposition to transgender rights to expand its movement. More about Gariepy’s long history with far-right circles and accusations of abusing a minor has previously been documented.

In 2019 Keen Minshull praised high-profile English racist ‘Tommy Robinson’ of the English Defense League who has been supported by the Philadelphia-based think tank Middle East Forum, The Guardian reported in 2018. Robinson’s real name is Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon; he is banned from entering the United States and has been convicted of fraud, in addition to drug and public disorder offenses.

 

Kellie-Jay Keen Minshull (“Posie Parker”) appeared with white nationalist French Canadian Jean-Francois Gariepy (YouTube/PinkNews.co.uk)

After the anti-trans protesters left the area, they were forced to leave the nearby Khyber Pass Pub by employees who became aware of their bigoted views. The pub “is a punk and metal institution … they aren’t to be fucked with by bigots and fascist[s],” one observer noted.

[Twitter Link]

Graffiti in Memory of Jennifer Laude in South NJ

  • October 12, 2022 1:13 am

from Jersey Counter-Info

Trans and queer anarchists in so-called southern New Jersey stand in solidarity with our siblings in the Philippines. We remember and lift up the memory of our international trans sister, Jennifer “Ganda” Laude, who was hate-crime murdered by U.S. Marine and transphobe Joseph Scott Pemberton on this day October 11, 2014. Pemberton poses a serious risk to communities everywhere as an “international pig” who got away with murder with the help of the U.S. military.

When the police murder with impunity domestically, marginalized people and those who stand in solidarity rise up, burn shit down, demand action, and force those in power to bow before the people. We remember and don’t give the state or its agents an inch. We must respond the same way when “soldiers”, international pigs, act the same way. We cannot make excuses for international pigs and their violence simply because it’s not directly in our faces every day.

With this in mind, we stand in solidarity and in power with Ganda, the larger trans and queer Filipino/a/x community, and trans and queer anarchists in the Philippines.

Death to Imperialism!

Death to Capitalism!

Death to the State!

For Trans and Queer anarchy!

– some anarchists

 

NJEHA Fascists Storm Bordentown NJ Pride

  • August 5, 2022 1:24 am

from Jersey Counter-Info

 

Anonymous Submission to Jersey Counter-Info

This past Saturday, July 30, 2022, Bordentown NJ held the city’s first ever community queer pride, which had been rescheduled from June due to inclement weather. The event had been publicly advertised for well over a month and the event plans broadcasted over varying news sites and social media.

Somewhat unexpectedly, five fascists, including Dan D’ambly and Ron Sheehy, from New Jersey European Heritage Association (NJEHA) showed up at Bordentown to disrupt the event and harrass queer community members. While it should be expected at this point for queerphobes of all types to be present at pride/queer events regardless of whether their presence is advertised or not, this shows an overall shift in fascist tactics throughout the state. As covered previously by Jersey Counter-Info, fascists and transphobes as of late have been publicly harassing public forums and event organizers/participants before events. After the said online harassment occurs the transphobes and fascists then turn up at events to continue their assault in person.

The deviation from this prior pattern tells us a few things, but primarily that certain fascist groups are becoming more security minded and using varied protest tactics to their benefit. Excluding NJEHA, all other fascist or transphobic groups in the region such as informal groups led by Terry Beck and White Lives Matter NJ, have been organizing very publicly against the queer community and organizations. There is likely a variety of reasons as to why they use this tactic, whether they are trying to build their organization bases or strike fear into the queer community in advance of an event. Regardless of their reasoning however, their pattern of behavior has enabled the anti-fascists to be able to respond swiftly and shut down the majority of their events, keeping the public safe and taking fascists head on in the streets. Similarly, NJEHA used these kinds of tactics in the past and were also largely unsuccessful. NJEHA’s shift in tactics shows they are becoming aware of operational security concerns and are learning from their past experience. Keeping their plans closed and amongst themselves they were able to avoid having masses of people counter-protesting against them, eliminate the added pressure of public commentary on social media, and have no interruptions in their planning phase.

With NJEHA’s presence at Bordentown pride not advertised, the antifascist response was unorganized. While there were some counter protestors to confront NJEHA the overall response was nowhere near what it should have been. NJEHA members were heckled and addressed by those there but were not disrupted to the point where they were forced to leave or thrown out by the public’s response. They were largely able to do what they came to do and which is a failure of anti-fascists in New Jersey. NJEHA felt enough safety in their actions on July 30, 2022 that they posted propaganda pictures after Bordentown pride on their public telegram account garnering thousands of views. With all of this added together, NJEHA’s actions on July 30, 2022 can be considered a failure of anti-fascists in the region.

Antifascists in this region should adapt to these new tactics and be better prepared for future events where fascists like NJEHA show up.

To NJEHA and other fascists and bigots reading this: Do not mistake this pause as proof of your safety. We are watching.

 

– some antifascists

NJEHA member Dan D’ambly pictured at Bordentown Pride July 30, 2022.

Dan D’ambly is 64 years old and lives at 1102 Blossom Circle in apartment 305 in Dayton NJ. He has two vehicles, a dark colored older model Toyota and a gold colored Cadillac.

NJEHA member Ron Sheehy pictured at Bordentown Pride July 30, 2022.

Ron Sheehy is 55 years old and lives at 207 6th Street in Barnegat NJ. He has a 2012 Jeep

Neo-Nazi Publishers “Antelope Hill” of Green Lane, PA Exposed

  • July 31, 2022 1:48 am

from Philly Antifa

Dmitri Loutsik, Vincent Cucchiara and Sarah Cucchiara, proveyors of neo-nazi publishing house Antelope Hill.

The Southern Poverty Law Center recently published a story on their Hatewatch blog exposing the principals behind the Pennsylvania-based White Nationalist publisher “Antelope Hill Publishing.”

Antelope Hill is being run by Vincent and Sarah Cucchiara (née Nahrgang) of 134 Main St., Green Lane PA and Dmitri Anatolievich Loutsik of Lehigh Valley, PA.

Vincent Cucchiara of Antelope Hill Publishing
Sarah Cucchiara of Antelope Hill Publishing. Unsurprisingly, both she and Vincent were involved in anti-choice organizing.

The article goes into great detail about the history of Antelope Hill as well as their ties to the neo-nazi National Justice Party and The Right Stuff podcast.

In addition, check out this thread by AnonCommieStan on twitter, which details other individuals associated with Antelope Hill as well as reveals that Vincent Cucchiara works as a real estate agent at EXP realty. Sarah Cucchiara was, alarmingly, working as a public school teacher until she was fired for racist facebook posts.

[Twitter Link]

Publishers like Antelope Hill do not seem like urgent threats when compared to companies of fascist Stormtroopers operating all over the U.S., but Antifascists should remember the lessons of Resistance Records or Micetrap Distributions. Both of which operated with impunity for years and helped indoctrinate new individuals into Fascist movements. The ripple effect of harm done by those individuals is incalculable. While we don’t advocate for government censorship of these kind of companies, we do think there should be financial, social and personal consequences for profiting off such books as “Hitler: In His Own Words” and using your home to form neo-nazi political parties with Mike Enoch.

As with any political movement, there are factions in Fascism that usually can be divided into Militant Vanguardism and Incremental Entryism. For example, nazi Boneheads vs. Suit-and-tie nazis attempting to infiltrate local GOP groups.

However, like in most political movements, individuals themselves will move between these factions over a lifetime and work with both. Ultimately, the factions are working towards the same or similar goals. While the militant fringe nazis will openly provoke a response with their constant terror attacks, the suit and tie types, in the past, have flown under the radar for many Antifascists.

A prime example of this is the American Renaissance conference, organized annually by Jared Taylor and other “intellectual” racists. While groups like One People’s Project and local Antifascists have long raised the alarm and protested the conference, it took years before any larger responses were mobilized. Yet Amren has been as damaging as any regional bonehead crew or Patriot Front cell.

This is not to turn our nose up at confronting the Fascist stormtroopers, whose role in trying to “control the streets” should also not be understated. The cold reality is we must fight them on both front. We are paraphrasing, but there’s an old quote that goes…”They have a political agenda that must be confronted politically. They also have a physical agenda that must be confronted physically.”

There will always be trendy leftists, who didn’t have the time of day for Antifa before we started getting media and political slander hurled from all directions, who will either dismiss the fascist militants as “idiot thugs” while also dismissing the fascist intelligentsia as “nerd internet nazis.” The reality is they aren’t going to fight fascism, and their insecurity around that compels them to try and discourage others who do.

Publishers like Antelope Hill, podcasts like The Right Stuff and Daily Shoah and their affiliated parties are equally a threat to our communities as any network of Nazi bonehead crews or Attomwaffen terrorists. They are all part of the same movement. Which seeks to “correct” the demographics of the U.S. through mass murder and deportation, destroy the left and feminist movements here, and impose a far right, ultra-authoritarian nationalism. A society of forced conformity through rigid gender and sex roles and eugenics. A nation of militarism and slavery, with themselves at the top.

That’s the world that our enemies want. Moreover, it’s the world we are headed towards if we fail to stop them. On all fronts.

Eternal War on the Hitler Youth (and all fascists),

Big Brick Energy: A Multi-City Study of the 2020 George Floyd Uprising

  • July 24, 2022 1:53 am

from Its Going Down

A critical overview and analysis from Unity and Struggle on the George Floyd rebellion. Check out a booklet version here.

by: Ever, Lamont and Chino
photos: Lorie Shaull, Creative Commons

Introduction

The 2020 George Floyd uprising was a major event by whatever measure you use. It deepened the generational Black revolt that began with Black Lives Matter in 2014. It marked the most profound challenge to racial capitalist rule since the 2008 financial crisis. It saw the National Guard deployed to multiple U.S. cities for the first time since the 1960s, and by one estimate, it was the costliest wave of civil unrest in the postwar period.(1) The uprising was rich with lessons, and it will shape a generation of us who moved in the streets.

But rigorous analysis of the uprising remains limited. Many of us haven’t had time to reflect on it deeply: individuals and organizations have had to navigate state repression, sectarian infighting, interpersonal harm shaped by gender and race, and all kinds of tragedies stemming from the ongoing pandemic. More often, clusters of friends and comrades have drawn conclusions from local experience, and lefty commentators have produced think pieces that draw single themes out of the uprising, or spin it to fit their dogma.

Big Brick Energy takes a step beyond anecdotes and hot takes. For a year, members of Unity and Struggle studied the uprising by interviewing fifteen comrades in five cities, compiling news coverage from the same cities, and surveying official reports from local governments and police departments in seventeen cities nationwide. (For more on our methods, see Appendix A.) We drew out common dynamics across locations, identified tactics and strategies that the movement and the ruling class used, explored what worked or didn’t, and highlighted important challenges and questions that a future uprising will likely encounter.

Generally, the uprising involved a common sequence of moments unfolding at different speeds and intensities, based on national trends and local turning points. When the rebellion erupted, it decisively defeated the police and paralyzed the local ruling class, usually for several days. People launched waves of protests and looting, and improvised tactics from community self-defense groups to small autonomous zones. Different factions of the state (and white mobs or fascists) reacted in conflicting ways, but eventually settled on a mix of repression and cooptation that was able to contain the unrest. The movement was channeled into nonviolent protest and legislative reforms, which yielded much shallower gains than most of us hoped for.

Within this story there are many variations and nuances, and lessons to be learned. Below we draw out aspects of the uprising that carry implications for our tactics, strategy, and race politics.

New Jersey Proud Boy Spotted in the Pinelands

  • July 5, 2022 1:52 am

from Jersey Counter Info

 

Anonymous Submission to Jersey Counter-Info

An unidentified New Jersey Proud Boy and what seems to be his significant other were spotted on July 3rd at approximately 1:30pm at an Acme Supermarket, located in Pemberton Township, NJ.

The Proud Boy pictured was notably not trying to blend in or subtly flag his membership, and instead seemed to be inviting the public to do or say something.

His presence in the area was also somewhat odd given the timing, as a number of regional and out of town Proud Boys were in Philadelphia for a “Patriot” rally at the exact same time where they were propped up by the cops and allowed to open carry firearms, which is illegal in Philadelphia. While the direct connection between the Proud Boys in Philadelphia and the Proud Boy spotted in Pemberton cannot be 100% confirmed at this time, he and his partner were observed buying a large quantity of hot dogs, burgers, and other BBQ supplies presumably for some kind of timely get together. At this time it is unclear whether this was to support other Proud Boys in Philadelphia after the rally on July 3rd or for a Proud Boys get together for the 4th of July.

Unlike his fellow chuds in Philadelphia, this unidentified Proud Boy did not cover his face or any distinct markings on his body. As pictured, he has a large black spiderweb tattooed on his left elbow, has brown hair, and a full beard.

He is approximately 5′ 9″, 200 lbs, in his 30’s-40’s, and has a stocky build. If you recognize him, please submit any information about him to Jersey Counter-Info or to One People’s Project.

Plan C Stickers Put Up In Camden County, NJ

  • June 27, 2022 1:21 am

from Jersey Counter-Info

Plan C stickers were put up in several public restrooms in Camden County, NJ in light of the recent news of the US Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Neo-Nazi Publishing House Exposed in Pennsylvania

  • June 16, 2022 1:46 am

from It’s Going Down

[Twitter link]

Hatewatch at the Southern Poverty Law Center has published a report exposing a neo-Nazi publishing house in Pennsylvania:

Hatewatch’s research and analysis reveals that Vincent Cucchiara, 24, and Sarah Elizabeth Cucchiara (née Nahrgang), 25, a married couple residing in Green Lane, Pennsylvania, are two of the individuals behind Antelope Hill. The pair have appeared as pseudonymous spokespersons for the company on numerous far-right podcasts, with Sarah Cucchiara billed under aliases as the company’s editor-in-chief since mid-2021. Hatewatch’s investigation indicates that a third person, Dmitri Anatolievich Loutsik, 25, has played a less public role in the company’s operations. Loutsik appears to have first relocated to Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley in 2021, and in late April he bought a house in nearby Harleysville, Pennsylvania, with Vincent Cucchiara assisting as the buyer’s agent.

Since 2020, Antelope Hill has profited from hate by translating historical works by 20th-century Nazis and fascists, offering a publishing platform to contemporary white power propagandists and shipping books around the world using selling platforms including Amazon. This year, they achieved wider prominence when one of their authors, the pseudonymous Raw Egg Nationalist, appeared in a preview for an upcoming Tucker Carlson documentary on masculinity, which is set to air on Fox Nation in June.

The Cucchiaras and Loutsik have a long, shared history as far-right activists, stretching back to their time together as students at Penn State University in the late 2010s. The publishing operation is one aspect of their ongoing participation in the white power movement. Specifically, Hatewatch has found considerable evidence of close cooperation between the Antelope Hill principals and a network of far-right actors associated with the white supremacist National Justice Party (NJP) and The Right Stuff (TRS) podcast network.

3%ers in Bethlehem, PA

  • June 14, 2022 1:50 am

from Twitter

Yesterday, local Three Percenters counter protested a March for Our Lives Event in Bethlehem, PA. The Three Percenters are a “Patriot Militia” intent on overthrowing the federal government. Local activists in attendance provided us with photos to freely distribute.