Far-Right Groups, Including The Proud Boys, Are Rallying In D.C. This Weekend

[mahatmakanejeeves]

JUL 3, 3:22 PM

Far-Right Groups, Including The Proud Boys, Are Rallying In D.C. This Weekend
Rachel Kurzius

With all eyes focused on preparations for the president’s forthcoming July 4 celebration on the National Mall, another potential conflagration planned for the holiday weekend in D.C. has somewhat escaped broader notice—one that includes prominent far-right groups and online personalities who will face a counter protest organized by local D.C. organizations.

The “Demand Free Speech Freedom Rally” is slated for Saturday, July 6 in Freedom Plaza at noon. Coming on the heels of the Trumpified Independence Day celebration, some of the president’s more extreme supporters are expected to attend. ... The event is being billed as a defense of free speech and it is slated to include prominent far-right personalities who have been banned by Twitter, including anti-Muslim activist Laura Loomer and and alt-right personality Milo Yiannopoulos. The permit for the event has been approved by the U.S. Park Police.

The rally also prominently features a number of people associated with the self-identified “Western chauvinist” group Proud Boys. The current leader, Enrique Tarrio, is listed as a supervisor on the permit, according to the Daily Beast. And the advertised speaker list includes the the Proud Boys’ founder Gavin McInnes and former Trump advisor Roger Stone, who has close ties to the group. Proud Boys rallies have featured a number of violent incidents since the group was founded in 2016.

Other advertised speakers have since said that they are not participating or are reevaluating whether to be a part of the rally, the Daily Beast reports, including Mike Cernovich and Jack Posobiec (both of whom pushed the “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory.) ... Other less prominent speakers on the bill include six candidates for Congress, YouTuber Joey Salads among them, and Ramin Parsa, a Christian pastor who started a GoFundMe after his arrest at the Mall of America last summer. ... “We’re letting speakers know they should focus on tech censorship,” says Luke Rohlfing, a prominent Proud Boy and one of the event’s organizers. “It’s going to be very exciting.”
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This story has been updated with comment from Luke Rohlfing and to clarify Petrohilos’ role on Inauguration Day.

[BigmanPigman]

1. Oh goodie, Milo will be there with the Boyz.

I hate his come hither look. Does he think he is princess Di reincarnated?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

2. "I'm covering today's far-right rally in DC, where Proud Boys and other right-wing activists...."

I’m covering today’s far-right rally in DC, where Proud Boys and other right-wing activists are gathering across the street from a couple hundred counter protesters.

Link to tweet

Another speaker for the far-right dropped out of the rally this morning: hapless conservative operative Jacob Wohl messaged me to make sure I knew he wasn’t speaking, despite being on the agenda. Wohl claims he left town on business.

Link to tweet

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. Far-Right Rally Kicks Off As Protesters Outnumber Participants

JUL 6, 12:51 PM

Far-Right Rally Kicks Off As Protesters Outnumber Participants

The “Demand Free Speech Freedom Rally” kicked off at noon Saturday at Freedom Plaza with renditions of the national anthem and “God Bless America”. The event’s theme is tech censorship, and many of the featured speakers have been kicked off of platforms like Facebook and Twitter. The organizers represent a constellation of far-right groups, including the Proud Boys.

Speaker Greg Aselbekian, who had been kicked off Tinder, took the stage to talk about the flag burning by the White House on July 4. He spoke about how disgusting it was to burn a flag, before transitioning into comments about the beauty of free speech. Others in attendance included Milo Yiannopoulos, Laura Loomer and Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes

Shortly after the rally was announced, local groups in D.C. began organizing a counter demonstration under the banner “All Out D.C.” Participants gathered in Pershing Park, across the street from Freedom Plaza where the overflow crowd took part in a dance party as the rally began.

Protesters included members of Code Pink, Black Lives Matter and antifa groups.
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