Latest news with #fascist
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
From Canada to Finland, a US neo-Nazi fight club is rapidly spreading across the globe
More than a dozen men wearing black masks and sunglasses – obstructing any open source investigators from easily identifying them – appeared in a Telegram video in front of city hall in London, Canada, in June. 'Mass deportations now,' the men yelled in unison, holding up banners with the same slogan. 'No blood for Israel.' While this type of scene with masked men chanting is a relatively common occurrence in the US, this incident in Canada illustrated the underbelly of a surging global movement: neo-Nazi 'active clubs', American-born neofascist fight clubs, are rapidly spreading across borders. London, a larger Canadian city in what is a rust belt in the province of Ontario, has had a long history with the Ku Klux Klan dating back to the 1920s and a racist murder of a Pakistani-Canadian family in 2021. But the arrival of an active club, which has also shown itself in other nearby towns and cities like Toronto (the country's largest metropolitan area), is a relatively new development. 'Welcome to Hamilton, our city,' one Telegram post from the same Canadian active club wrote with its symbol posted on a sticker beside a sign for one of Ontario's largest cities. 'Folk-Family-Future!' Around the world, Canada isn't the only country being introduced to these clubs, which are fitness and mixed martial arts groups operating out of local gyms and parks that espouse neo-Nazi and fascist ideologies. Already proliferating across the US in a number of states, active clubs openly take their historical cues from the Third Reich's obsession with machismo and their modern inspiration from European soccer hooliganism. Recent research published by the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) has shown that since 2023, these clubs are newly sprouting in Sweden, Canada, Australia, Switzerland, the UK, Finland and for the first time, in Latin America with two chapters in Chile and Colombia appearing. According to the GPAHE research, there are now chapters in 27 countries, with new youth wings – akin to Hitler Youth-styled clubs – are surging stateside and abroad, 'metastasizing' across western countries and recruiting young men into toxic, far-right ideologies encouraging race war. 'The Active Club model was designed by Rob Rundo,' said Heidi Beirich, founder of GPAHE, referring to an infamous neo-Nazi and New Yorker who pleaded guilty in 2024 to conspiracy to riot at 2017 political rallies in California. Around that time, Rundo was also the leader of the Rise Above Movement, a neo-Nazi gang that had four of its members charged for their role in the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, but later pivoted to spreading the idea of active clubs among followers as the new nerve centers for fascistic indoctrination and recruitment. 'As far as we can tell, Rundo isn't directly involved with chapters of the movement in a systematic way, but the chapters are inspired by him and the ideology he stands for,' said Beirich. Beirich explained that although Rundo isn't likely to have a hand in these groups, it meshes with his original vision of active clubs being 'autonomous and local'. But many of these chapters of active clubs in countries with large populations of white people – some of whom openly have gravitated towards racist, nativism in recent years – promote each other as a global struggle and are linked in a network of accounts on the Telegram app. One set of accounts, in particular, that have become the sort-of tastemakers among neo-Nazis online, have promoted several local active club chapters across the world and applauded those they think are creating the effective models to emulate. The same accounts admire the work of Thomas Sewell, a well-known and violent Australian neo-Nazi, who has been promoting active club-styled groups in his country: 'Their organization should be what every dissident group across European civilization seeks to emulate,' said one admiring post about Sewell and his crew. Beirich said Sewell, who previously admitted to have personally tried to recruit the Christchurch mass shooter to one of his past groups, is aligned with Rundo's politics. 'Sewell, just like Rundo, is a violent neo-Nazi recruiting new members to prepare for violence against both political enemies and the communities he targets, such as immigrants, Jews and the LGBTQ+ community,' she said, adding that he was 'hosting MMA-style training and tournaments' to attract new followers. The Ultimate Fighting Championship and the combat sports that fall under its purview, have become a locus for the far right. Likewise, Sewell and Rundo have promoted learning these sports as a means of becoming street soldiers, akin to modern-day brownshirts, for their movement. Other organizations, which are more obviously political and engaging in public displays of activism, have seen this model of trained violence as a means of recruiting and solidifying their ranks. Patriot Front, an American proto-fascist hate group known for public marches and propagandizing natural disasters, has outwardly linked itself to the active club movement. Its leader, Thomas Rousseau recently posted a group image with himself and others doing 'grappling and striking' training at a martial arts gym in north Texas. Beirich described how members of Patriot Front 'often work closely with Active Club chapters' including participating in their mixed-martials training. On Telegram, active club chapters regularly share Patriot Front propaganda. 'Join Patriot Front if you are in America,' one active club adjacent account posted on Telegram, with nearly three thousand views.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Self-Described Fascist Begs for Donations After Claiming Viral Debate Got Him Fired
A man who admitted to being a fascist during a debate claims he's been fired from his job after sharing his 'traditional' right-wing political views, and is now asking for handouts. The man, who identifies himself as 'Connor' in a fundraiser asking for donations but uses the pseudonym Pinesap, was one of '20 far-right conservatives' who debated progressive broadcaster Mehdi Hasan as part of Jubilee's 'Surrounded' series. During the debate—which has been viewed almost 4 million times on YouTube alone—Connor said he believes in 'autocracy' and was asked by Hasan if he's a fan of the Nazis. 'I, frankly, don't care being called a Nazi at all,' Connor answered. Connor, who identified himself as a Catholic, also complained that the Nazis 'persecuted the church a little bit.' Asked about the Nazis' persecution of Jews specifically, Connor added: 'I certainly don't support anyone's human dignity being assaulted.' 'There was a little bit of persecution and stuff like that, which is bad,' he added, when Hasan pressed him on Jewish persecution again. 'We may have to rename this show,' Hasan said, 'Because you're a little bit more than a far-right Republican.' 'Hey, what can I say?' Connor replied with a smile. When Hasan suggested Connor could describe himself as a 'fascist,' Connor said: 'Yeah, I am,' before laughing maniacally and receiving applause from others in the debate. Connor now claims he was fired for his views and has launched a fundraising page on GiveSendGo, a Christian crowdfunding site which has faced criticism for hosting extremist causes. 'I'm raising money as an emergency fund and for other expenses while I look for a new job,' the page reads, without providing details of the role or company he was supposedly fired from. 'Unfortunately, voicing fully legal traditional right-wing political views results in real consequences. This is cancel culture and political discrimination on full display.' The page has already blown past its original $15,000 goal, with contributions hitting just under $20,000 as of Tuesday morning. 'We need a white nation! It's our only future! Vive le Fascisme,' one donor wrote while contributing $88. The number 88 is a coded far-right symbol used by neo-Nazis and white supremacists, which stands for 'Heil Hitler' as H is the eighth letter of the alphabet. 'We are rising and must look after one another,' another anonymous donor posted while chipping in $15. Connor discussed getting fired, without naming the company or his job title, during an appearance on the Rift Report podcast on Monday. 'Well, unfortunately, I lost my job as a result. And no one really is to blame for that,' he said of the debate. 'It's just the culture that kind of exists currently surrounding the manner in which you're canceled for voicing [...] any heterosexual, Christian, sort of moral belief that goes beyond sort of the secularism and the relativism that we're so used to in our time.' Connor did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast. Solve the daily Crossword
Forbes
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
Mehdi Hasan's Viral Jubilee Debate With Far-Right Conservatives, Explained
Topline Left-wing journalist Mehdi Hasan debated 20 far-right conservatives in a video that has gone viral on social media, largely due to shocking statements made by some of his opponents, including one who admitted he identifies as a fascist and doesn't care about being called a Nazi—and who has since lost his job, which Forbes confirmed through an employer. Mehdi Hasan's debate video for Jubilee has gone viral. (Photo byfor ... More Crooked Media) Getty Images for Crooked Media Key Facts The video, part of a controversial video series produced by media company Jubilee, has garnered 4 million views since its publication Tuesday and has racked up millions more views across X and TikTok. The nearly two-hour debate covered hot topics ripped from the headlines: Whether President Trump was defying the constitution, the value of immigrants to the U.S. and U.S. involvement in Gaza. Some inflammatory claims made by the participants have gone viral, including one from a man who identified himself as Connor, who responded, 'Yeah, I am,' after Hasan suggested he may be a fascist, to applause from the other participants, and also said he didn't care about being called a Nazi, voiced opposition to democracy and free speech, and advocated for autocracy by rulers who uphold Catholic teachings. One day after the Jubilee debate, Connor (who has not returned interview requests from Forbes) claimed in an interview on RiftTV he was fired from his job as a result of the debate, which he blamed on the 'manner in which you're canceled' for voicing 'heterosexual, Christian, moral beliefs.' VeUP, a cloud engineering firm, confirmed to Forbes the man had been a subcontractor, stating his employment was 'not terminated by VeUP, but by the core contractor.' Connor has since posted a fundraiser on a Christian fundraising platform seeking $15,000 in emergency funds while he seeks a new job, and as of Tuesday morning, he has raised more than $29,000, with some comments from donors including, 'It's ok to be white,' and 'We need a white nation! It's our only future! Vive le Fascisme!' What Moments From The Debate Have Gone Viral? One clip from the debate, in which a participant tells Hasan he's 'going to have to go'—meaning he wants Hasan, who is an immigrant, to leave the United States—garnered 10 million views in a post on X. In another clip that garnered 4 million views on X, a participant told Hasan he feels his 'entire race,' referring to white people, is facing a 'genocide' in the United States. In a moment from the debate that garnered 4 million views on TikTok, Hasan pressed a participant over her views on immigration, prompting her to admit her parents are immigrants to the United States, but 'at this moment' she does not 'accept that immigrants are Americans.' What Has Hasan Said After The Debate? Hasan has said in posts on X after the debate was uploaded to YouTube that he did not know some of the participants would be 'actual outright open fascists,' adding in another post, 'Jubilee cast these folks, not me!' At the end of the Jubilee video, Hasan said he enjoys debating people but tries to 'avoid bad faith folks,' adding he believes some of the participants in the video were debating in bad faith. 'Free speech doesn't mean you need to give credibility or oxygen or a platform to people who don't agree in human equality,' he said. Chief Critics Some viewers have criticized Jubilee, accusing the media company of platforming people who lack basic decency. In one post that garnered 44,000 likes on X, a user accused Jubilee of 'lying to its guests,' referencing a post by Hasan saying he was unaware of how far-right the guests would be. In another post that garnered 30,000 likes, a user said Jubilee should be 'demonetized' on YouTube, accusing it of 'knowingly spreading Nazi propaganda.' Last year, when a different Jubilee debate video went viral, a Vox journalist said the questions appear 'primed to become 'rage bait' clips meant to get viewers excited or angry, to the tune of millions of clicks.' Matt Bernstein, a left-wing activist and podcaster with millions of social media followers, said he previously turned down an invitation to appear on Jubilee and said he does not believe a "channel that gives a platform of millions to people who self identify as 'fascist' should be allowed to monetize its videos' on YouTube. Who Is Mehdi Hasan? A former MSNBC host, Hasan left the network last year and launched his media company Zeteo, which he previously told Forbes is an independent organization through which he will speak 'bluntly about racism, fascism, genocide and more.' Hasan hosts multiple podcasts for Zeteo as well as the 'Head to Head' podcast for Al Jazeera, and works as a columnist for The Guardian. He is the author of a 2023 book, 'Win Every Argument,' about how to succeed in debates. What Is Jubilee? Jubilee is a media company mostly known for its YouTube channel, where it has 10 million subscribers and primarily posts videos that attempt to challenge social taboos and norms. One of its most popular video series is the format Hasan participated in, in which one person of a certain political belief is made to debate more than a dozen people with opposing beliefs. Last year, a video of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk debating 25 college students described as liberal racked up 30 million views, making it one of Jubilee's most popular uploads. Other popular video series include 'Odd One Out,' in which a group of people are challenged to find which one does not share a common characteristic—like six vegans trying to find the one meat eater—and 'Middle Ground,' where people of opposing political views try to find beliefs in common. Further Reading '1 woke teen vs. 20 Trump supporters': The new age of viral political videos (Vox) 'Memeification of Politics': What to Know About Jubilee Media's Viral Debate Show Surrounded (Time)
Daily Mail
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Self-declared far-right fascist proudly shares his beliefs on popular podcast... then begs for cash after firing
A man who openly identified as a 'fascist' during a political debate with former MSNBC star Mehdi Hasan has raised over $26,000 on a Christian crowdfunding site after claiming he was fired for voicing his far-right political beliefs. The man, only identifying himself as Connor, had bragged to Hasan on Sunday how he was a 'fascist' and wholeheartedly believed in 'autocracy.' The assertion, delivered during an episode of the YouTube debate series Surrounded, left Hasan briefly at a loss. Hasan, in turn, said he did not 'debate fascists', and shut the conversation down. The very next day, 'Connor' was begging for a buck on on GiveSendGo, where, as of writing, he has already racked up almost $30,000. 'You're braver than most and also 100 percent correct,' a caption for one donation reads. 'Keep strong and keep speaking the truth,' someone who gifted the conservative $50 said. 'Nothing Connor said was wrong and I'm tired of having to pretend I don't agree,' scathed someone else. Others offered blessings after Connor had introduced himself as a Catholic, during an advertised debate that saw Hasan face off against him and 19 other 'far-right conservatives' as part of Jubilee's 'Surrounded' series. There, after quoting Nazi political theorist Carl Schmitt and praising Spanish dictator Francisco Franco, Connor found himself being pressed by Hasan on whether he was 'a fan of the Nazis' 'I think that there was a little bit of persecution and stuff like that, which is bad,' Connor answered, referring to the regime's persecution of Jewish people. He went on to slam the Nazis' treatment of the Catholic clergy, some of whom were sent to concentration camps along with six million Jews. 'I, frankly, don't care being called a Nazi at all,' he added A stunned Hasan could only say in response: 'We may have to rename this show, because you're a little bit more than a far-right Republican.' A grinning Connor quipped: 'Hey, what can I say?' - before being met with Hasan's reply: 'I think you can say, "I'm a fascist."' 'Yeah, I am,' Connor said with a lighthearted laugh, before being met with applause from others in attendance. Within hours, the same man was asking for financial help from onlookers for being 'unfairly cancelled', without providing details of the role or company he was supposedly fired from. He has raised nearly $30,000 Daily Mail has reached out to 'Connor' - who operates several conservative commentary pages on platforms like X and Instagram - for comment Within hours, he was asking for help without providing details of the role or company he was supposedly fired from. 'I'm raising money as an emergency fund and for other expenses while I look for a new job,' he said. 'Unfortunately voicing fully legal traditional right wing political views results in real consequences,' he continued, calling the occurred 'cancel culture and political discrimination on full display. The page originally sported a $15,000 goal but seems poised to collect more. 'We need a white nation! It's our only future! Vive le Fascisme,' another donor wrote.
Telegraph
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Trump is ruling America like a petty, vindictive mob boss
Is Donald Trump an American Hitler – or an American version of Lewis Carroll's Queen of Hearts? US District Judge Beryl Howell recently blocked an executive order by the President that targeted the Democratic-affiliated law firm of Perkins Coie. It would have banned its lawyers not only from doing business with the federal government, but even from entering federal buildings. Judge Howell observed: 'This may be amusing in 'Alice in Wonderland' where the Queen of Hearts yells, 'Off with their heads!' at annoying subjects … and announces a sentence before a verdict. But this cannot be the reality we are living under.' Ever since the celebrity property developer descended the golden escalator in Trump Tower on June 16 2015 to announce his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, many have warned he would become a fascist dictator and predicted that he and his followers would replace democracy in America with an authoritarian police state. But the comparison between Trump and dictators like Mussolini and Stalin was always absurd. Unusual as he is compared to other American presidents, Trump resembles a figure familiar in American local politics in all regions of the country: the sleazy city mayor who, without using direct coercion, strong-arms others into doing his will. Trump has yet to dissolve Congress with a whiff of grapeshot in the manner of Cromwell, or to send members of the opposition party, not just illegal immigrants, to the new 'Alligator Alcatraz' detention centre in Florida. The progressive Democrats and Never-Trump Republicans who think they live in Weimar America will continue to be disappointed when there is no Reichstag Fire or Enabling Act. At the same time, however, there are plenty of examples of Trump abusing his authority in petty and vindictive ways, to extort concessions, including cash, from rich and powerful institutions, or threatening to do so. On Sunday, July 21, the President of the United States, who apparently has nothing more important to deal with, threatened to withhold approval for a new stadium deal for Washington's National Football League team. In 2022, under pressure from woke progressives, the team changed its name from the Washington Redskins to the Washington Commanders (wits at the time suggested that the Washington Red Tapes would have been more appropriate). Trump ran as a foe of political correctness, so there is nothing wrong with him scoring points with his supporters by expressing his preference for the old name, and also for the Cleveland Indians, now the Cleveland Guardians. But Trump crossed a line when he announced on Truth Social, his personal social media site: 'I may put a restriction on them that if they don't change the name back to the original 'Washington Redskins,' and get rid of the ridiculous moniker, 'Washington Commanders,' I won't make a deal for them to build a Stadium in Washington.' This kind of threat evokes crooked mayors, not fascist dictators, along the lines of: 'The city will be glad to grant the contract, if you do what I tell you to do.' And it is only a step removed from the more menacing deal offered by the local mafioso: 'Nice store you have there, it would be a pity if something happened to it.' Unfortunately in the first half year of his second presidential term, Trump has made many offers that evidently couldn't be refused. Trump has sued major media corporations for negative coverage or alleged election bias. With the implicit loss of their broadcast licenses and other privileges held above their heads, ABC News, Paramount, the parent company of CBS News, Meta, and X (formerly Twitter) have all agreed to settle Trump's lawsuits against them, reportedly by donating up to $63 million combined to the nonprofit fund for Trump's future presidential library, according to a CBS News calculation. Now Trump is suing the Wall Street Journal and its owner, Rupert Murdoch, for $20 billion, following the publication of a report that claimed he sent a bawdy birthday card to Jeffrey Epstein. He is even suing his own niece, Mary Trump, claiming she took part in an 'insidious plot' with the New York Times to report on his finances in 2018. In addition to harassing his critics and squeezing money for his Pharaonic monument out of major American media companies, the Mayor of America has shaken down major law firms for 'voluntary' donations to causes he and his allies favour. In the spring, abusing another tool of the presidency – the executive order – Trump threatened penalties against a number of law firms that were known for helping Democrats or that employed lawyers who had been used against Trump in federal or state litigation during the Biden years. On March 20 Trump announced on Truth Social: 'Today, President Donald J Trump agreed to withdraw his March 14, 2025 Executive Order regarding the Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP law firm ('Paul, Weiss'), which has entered into the following agreement with the President: … Paul, Weiss will dedicate the equivalent of $40 million in pro bono legal services over the course of President Trump's term to support the Administration's initiatives, including: assisting our Nation's veterans, fairness in the Justice System, the President's Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, and other mutually agreed projects.' To date, federal judges – including Judge Howell, the Lewis Carroll fan – have blocked the enforcement of Trump's executive orders against the law firms Perkins Coie, Jenner & Block, WilmerHale, and Susman Godfrey. In his opinion striking down the order against WilmerHale, Judge Richard Leon, who was appointed by Republican president George W Bush, wrote: 'The order shouts through a bullhorn: If you take on causes disfavoured by President Trump, you will be punished!' Leon concluded that to rule that Trump's executive order was constitutional 'would be unfaithful to the judgement and vision of the founding fathers!' Undeterred by these legal setbacks, Trump has continued to do his imitation of the Queen of Hearts. Recently he has gone so far as to threaten to strip US citizenship from critics. When he broke in public with his former ally Elon Musk, Trump said that he would 'have to take a look' at denaturalising Musk, an immigrant from South Africa. Trump, who for years spread the baseless rumour that Barack Obama was not a legal American citizen by birth, has also questioned whether Zohran Mamdani, the Ugandan-born socialist who won the Democratic mayoral primary election, should be deported. 'A lot of people are saying he's here illegally,' Trump said, and promised that the administration would 'look at everything'. Then there's Rosie O'Donnell, a media celebrity with whom Trump has feuded in public for two decades. After O'Donnell declared that she had moved to Ireland and was seeking Irish citizenship to protest Trump's second election to the presidency, Trump told his followers via Truth Social: 'Because of the fact that Rosie O'Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship. She is a Threat to Humanity, and should remain in the wonderful Country of Ireland, if they want her. GOD BLESS AMERICA!' Trump doesn't have to resemble Hitler for a statement by a president that an individual American citizen 'is not in the best interests of our Great Country' and is 'a Threat to Humanity' to be chilling. In reality, the president of the United States under the American constitution does not have the power to strip any US citizen of citizenship. At the same time, of course, the president almost certainly does not have the power under the constitution to use executive orders to pressure law firms into paying for pro bono projects he favours, or to use lawsuits to raise money for his presidential library from media corporations. Nor is there any law that authorises the president to block a stadium deal for a National Football League team unless it adopts the name he prefers. All of these petty, personal abuses of power fall in the crooked-mayor category, not the authoritarian dictator category. Genuine tyrants do not sue their critics, who are silenced by more effective methods. And the use of threats by officials at all levels and all branches to extort campaign donations or other favours from firms is as old as the American republic and not unknown in other democracies. Even so, the plurality of the electorate who put Trump into the White House for a second time deserve better than this. They voted for a president – not a Queen of Hearts.
