'Neo-Nazi' Group Plans Anti-Israel Rally and Concert in DC

CNSNews.com ^ | August 22, 2002 | Jeff Johnson

[rmlew]

'Neo-Nazi' Group Plans Anti-Israel Rally and Concert in DC
By Jeff Johnson
CNSNews.com Congressional Bureau Chief
August 22, 2002

Capitol Hill (CNSNews.com) - A coalition calling itself Taxpayers Against Terrorism plans to gather at the U.S. Capitol Saturday to "rally against terrorism" and "the U.S. government's support for Israel," but religious and civil rights groups say the rally's real purpose is to incite hatred, bigotry, and violence.

A flyer promoting the rally and "Rock Against Israel" concert boasts that the event will be "the largest gathering of White Nationalists in our nation's capital since World War II."

"Just as Jews - whether they are in Israel or New York - identify themselves as being Jews and would prefer to work for the interests of the Jewish people," said Billy Roper, coordinator for the Taxpayers Against Terrorism coalition, "white nationalists are persons who, regardless of where they might be, would prefer to work for the interests of their own people."

Roper blames the Sept. 11 attacks on American support for "the terrorist state of Israel."

"U.S. tax money helps buy the bullets that go into Israeli guns that murder Palestinian women and children," he claimed, "and that's why the U.S. is a target for terrorism."

During a briefing at the National Press Club Wednesday, Wade Henderson, executive director of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, accused the coalition of hiding their real agenda behind the veils of patriotism and national security.

"What they are really rocking against is the very notion of America itself," said Henderson. "This is an organization whose members will be preaching hatred of other people because of who they are, where they worship, who they love, or the color of their skin. This, of course, is the antithesis of what we stand for as a nation."

Devin Burghart, director of the Building Democracy initiative at the Center for New Community, said Taxpayers Against Terrorism is merely a front group for the National Alliance, "the largest, best organized and, in fact, most dangerous neo-Nazi organization in the United States."

In addition to coordinating Taxpayers Against Terrorism, Roper serves as deputy membership coordinator for the National Alliance.

Burghart believes the group's white nationalist "interests" are less than innocent.

"They have transformed their recruiting strategies and developed a new mission," he said. "That mission is, simply put, the eradication of Jews and people of color from the planet."

The Alliance was founded in 1974 by William Luther Pierce III, author of The Turner Diaries, the book said to have inspired Timothy McVeigh's 1995 bombing of the federal courthouse in Oklahoma City.

Because Pierce died on July 23, additional supporters of his white supremacist beliefs are expected to attend the rally.

Burghart believes Saturday's events are a continuation of the Alliance's strategy to use music and related products to recruit young people, bypassing parents who might disagree with their message. He noted that the group even owns its own record company.

"Resistance Records has an estimated income of over $1.3 million a year," he said, "with the release of a variety of compact discs in a variety of different musical genres targeting a variety of different youth music subcultures, all designed to promote the most extreme forms of hatred and bigotry you can imagine."

One of the Resistance Records bands scheduled to perform at the "Rock Against Israel" concert is "Intimidation One."

"Die Jew. I hate you. You are nothing but a fool. Line you up and cut you down. Where you belong is in the ground," state the lyrics to one of the group's songs. "Slam you down into the ground, you filthy slimy s---. Break your nose and your toes, and split your f------ lip."

Despite the self-described "racist" views of the rally's organizers, Roper believes they will receive support from many people of Arab descent and others who support the efforts of Palestinians against Israel.

"They might have some very real and significant philosophical or ideological differences with us on certain other issues, and that's fine," he said. "Despite the differences that we might have ideologically, racially, and culturally, we have one thing very much in common and that is the belief that it is not in the interest of America to continue to support Israel."

But if most people are willing to look past the Alliance's "racist" beliefs, Henderson asks, why would they promote the rally and concert under the name of another group?

"What we are seeing here is an organization that has repositioned itself so that, somehow, it purports to represent mainstream America, preying on the fears and anxieties of the white majority," he said. "The fact that this is a group that now calls itself 'Taxpayers Against Terrorism' tells you how it intends to morph and project itself in the wake of the tragedies of 9/11."

While Burghart is calling on opponents to stay away from the rally, one group does plan to be nearby to counter the Alliance's "propaganda."

"As a nation and as a people, we have to support youth and youth organizations that promote diversity and understanding," said Robin Chen Delos, the 19-year-old co-founder of Stop Hate, Inspire Neighborly Engagement (SHINE). "SHINE is encouraging young people, the religious community, and labor in the D.C. area to come out and peacefully oppose the neo-Nazis on Saturday."

Roper said he is concerned that those attending the rally might be attacked by their opponents.

"We are, on average, more intelligent, better educated, and more eloquent than they are," he charged. "They've always refused [to debate] because they know that they would lose.

"[So] they attempt to silence us and to deny us our First Amendment right to freedom of speech by violently confronting us and using intimidation tactics," Roper continued. "They will try to physically and violently keep us from reaching the Capitol, and that should prove interesting."

U.S. Capitol Police are expecting 800 to 1,000 people to attend the rally. Roper believes an additional 700 to 800 people will gather in the area of Union Station to support Israel and oppose his group.

Henderson hopes the news media will not dismiss the rally and its organizers.

"The media and, unfortunately, even some of our leadership fail to appreciate the significant threat posed by groups like [National Alliance]," he said. "Our job is to call attention to the significance of the problem."

Miles Joyner, a 13-year-old member of SHINE, summed up his feelings about the National Alliance's message.

"It's not hip," he said. "Love is a better message than hate."

E-mail a news tip to Jeff Johnson.

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[rmlew]

Despite their name, it is clear that this Neo-Nazi groups is allied in purpose with terrorists and leftists. I'll have to post some e-mails by leftists groups about this rally. They don't know who they hate more, Israel or Nazis. It does through their arguement that Sharon is a nazi for a loop. A pox on both their houses.
It's a good thing that I can't get down there. Otherwise, they would need riot police.

[TonyBanks]

To quote the immortal words of South Park.

Cartman: "Kyle, all those times I said you were a dumb, stupid Jew, well, I was wrong, you're not a Jew."

Kyle: "Cartman, I *am* Jewish!"

Cartman: "There, there, don't be hard on yourself, Kyle."

Not that it fits, but it's just the first thing that came to mind.

[hchutch]

Same here.

The neo-Nazis disgust me to no end.

[TLBSHOW]

do you think the Bush WH will be taken by surprise with this protest? Like they were in Portland.

[bok]

I've heard a Canadian civil rights group will show up at this rally and it's my opinion they should mind their own business, let the American citizens counter this rally if they so please to do so. There can be no doubt arabs see the united states support of israel as a thorn in their side. I would just as well have the united states minimize their involvment in the mideast with its poisonous venom, too many pander groups in this country and that's not what this country should be about, it should be about putting american citizens first.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Will Cynthia McKinney be speaking at this event?

[Dale 1]

Is this rally this weekend? (Aug 24, 25) If so, it’s extremely low-key. I’ve seen nothing about it. One nice thing is that Reno is gone and the Ashcroft crew will probably use the occasion to collect names and photographs for future reference.

[Clemenza]

Neo-Nazi' Group Plans Anti-Israel Rally and Concert in DC

...followed by oil wrestling in DuPont Circle, sponsored by the Ernst Rohm Society.

[TLBSHOW]

AND FROM THE LEFT WING NUTS IN ENGLAND COMES THIS GEM WHICH HAS THE DU SO HAPPY.

Americans losing faith in Bush on Iraq

Matthew Engel
Saturday August 24, 2002
The Guardian

President George Bush found himself dealing with an unaccustomed degree of dissent yesterday with the publication of a poll showing growing opposition to an invasion of Iraq and a near-riot outside the hotel in Oregon where he was speaking.
The poll results, showing a bare majority of Americans in favour of using ground troops to attack Iraq, were published after the Portland police used pepper spray to break up a demonstration outside the site of a Republican party fundraising rally.

About 500 protesters were ordered to move after they pushed down a barricade. Riot police moved in, using the aerosol sprays and pushing the protesters with batons.

The protest, a rarity on this scale in American cities in the past 20 years, was held after Mr Bush announced his new plan to loosen controls on logging in national forests.

The demonstrators were protesting against this policy and the plan to invade Iraq. Some carried placards saying "Drop Bush, Not Bombs". There were five arrests.

Electorally, Oregon is one of the most closely contested states in the country, but Portland is a famously liberal city with a strong contingent of activists and ageing hippies - Mr Bush's father used to refer to it, oddly, as "Little Beirut" - and the demonstration does not necessarily signal a return to more combative times in more typical American cities.

None the less, yesterday's events were the most visible sign of angry dissent in the US since the initial post-September 11 activism on some campuses was drowned by the tidal wave of patriotism.

The poll, published in USA Today, showed 53% of Americans answering yes to the question "Should ground troops be sent to the Persian Gulf to remove Saddam Hussein from power? and 41% against.

This contrasts with the majority of 61-31 when the question was asked two months ago and 74-20 in November.

Some analysts believe this is still provides a satisfactory base on which to swing support behind the president, as is traditional when war actually breaks out.

The poll also showed that 94% believe that President Saddam either has weapons of mass destruction or is developing them, 86% believe he is supporting terrorist groups intending to attack the US, and 53% believe he was involved in the September 11 attacks.

The president's own popularity rating is now 65%, still strong but no longer sensational.

But there are growing signs of White House frustration with its inability to take command of the Iraq argument. The president's normally imperturbable spokesman, Ari Fleischer, has attacked reporters for being obsessed with the subject in their coverage of Mr Bush's meeting with his defence team in Texas on Wednesday.

"It reached an absurd point of self-inflicted silliness that goes beyond the usual August hype," he said. "There have been meetings about Iraq in the past, there will be meetings about Iraq in the future." This one, he said, was not such a meeting, "and the press didn't care".

He added: "The president's opinion is the press looks silly."

This sort of attack suggests that Mr Fleischer's own iron grip on Washington news management is beginning to falter. Given the conflicting signals about Iraq coming from the administration, his job is certainly getting harder, and his line has to jostle increasingly with contrary voices.

The latest comes from Madeleine Albright, Bill Clinton's secretary of state, who told the News Hour programme that Iraq was "not a direct threat to the United States" and that sanctions were effectively containing President Saddam. http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,779999,00.html

[Stultis]

You just know there will be a handfull of birkenstock clad, yogurt swilling, granola munchers who will show up at this event, thinking it an opportunity to support the poor, oppressed Palestinians.

I would love to be able to watch as it dawns on them what they've walked into.

[rmlew]

I expect to see a positive commentary on this at Liberty Forum.

[rmlew]

do you think the Bush WH will be taken by surprise with this protest? Like they were in Portland.
The Bush WH will not be taken by surprise.
They were not taken by surprise today. Rather the Potland PD screwed up. I suspect it was politically motivated by the mayor to embarass Bush.

[TLBSHOW]

the bush WH sure was taken by surprise.

[TLBSHOW]

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - The violent demonstrations against President Bush ( news - web sites) caught White House planners by surprise, a presidential spokesman said Friday.




It's not unusual for presidents to be confronted by small protests when visiting outside Washington, D.C. But demonstrations that result in the kind of skirmishes with police that erupted here Thursday night have been rare.

"We did not have any inkling" that such protest would occur, White House press secretary Ari Fleischer ( news - web sites) told reporters.

More than 1,000 people turned out to scream anti-Bush slogans, tag buildings with graffiti and challenge police at barricades around the hotel where the president held a fundraiser for Sen. Gordon Smith ( news, bio, voting record).

Among other issues, the protesters said they were upset with Bush's plan to relax environmental standards for logging, a possible war with Iraq, the U.S. stand on the Palestinian question and what they called rampant government corruption.

The group blocked buildings, and Republican donors trying to get to the hotel were taunted and jostled. Many had to be escorted in by police, who later used pepper spray and rubber bullets on the crowd. Six people were arrested.

Fleischer said Bush saw the protests from his limousine when he arrived at the hotel. The protest lasted for seven hours.

There were clues the demonstration could get nasty on the Web sites of groups involved.

Preparations for the protest were posted on the Internet as early as Aug. 7 and continued constantly under such headings as "Tear gas canisters cause severe thermal burns," "Bush to visit beautiful Portland in August, you should too," and "What happens if you're arrested for civil disobedience?"
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020823/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_protesters_11

[ppaul]

the bush WH sure was taken by surprise.

Nope.
It was taken as a result of the electoral college and a Supreme Court decision.

[Aric2000]

The protest, a rarity on this scale in American cities in the past 20 years

What? this guy been living under a rock? What an agenda this guy has got!!

[Cachelot]

Despite the self-described "racist" views of the rally's organizers, Roper believes they will receive support from many people of Arab descent and others who support the efforts of Palestinians against Israel.

Yeah, well... old news. Perhaps a couple of Pali suicide bombers will grace the event with fireworks in the middle of the teeming throng of filth. That would be new news.

[OldFriend]

Cynthia McKinney, the guest speaker?

[Smile-n-Win]

[Ari] added: "The [P]resident's opinion is the press looks silly."

Cool! I share your opinion, Mr. President!

[OldFriend]

Maybe the writer doesn't consider Seattle to be part of America. On that point, I'd have to agree!!!