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Jul 2, 24
Filed under: Analysis, Anti-fascist, US
A look at the international links between US based neo-Nazi formations and European fascist groups and the escalating threat that they pose.
On May 9th, fascists in France held their annual march in commemoration of the death of Sebatstien Deyzieu, a member of the reactionary street fighting Group Union Défense (GUD), and in protest of VE Day on May 8th, which marks the defeat of the Nazis in 1945. This march drew reactionaries from all over Europe and the US, notably members of the Patriot Front, Active Clubs, and Will2Rise network.
This march drew around three times as many people, compared to last year, with around 1,000 participants. This event serves as a more visible tip of the contemporary fascist iceberg and seems to indicate a re-invigoration of these networks after the disunity sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the reorientation of Azov’s activities. Part of these emerging fascist networks were, in part, built by Azov, over the last ten years, as a part of MMA programs and other outreach.
For example, slogans of Azov’s now defunct ally, Bastion Social, were again at this years May 9th march in Paris. We also see groups like the Italian fascists of CasaPound and the the French fascists of “Jeunesse Squadriste,” (a reference to Mussolini’s “squadre d’azione”), who took part of the May 9th march, once again visiting and fighting alongside their compatriots in Ukraine.
It seems important to highlight the rise of the Active Clubs across the US and even Europe as a part of an effective capacity building strategy in lieu of being able to hold the streets. The Active Clubs and Will2Rise come out the the legacy of the Rise Above Movement who came into the spotlight for their street violence during the post-Trump street clashes of 2017. Recently they’ve come into closer alignment with Patriot Front and the neo-Nazi White Lives Matter (WLM) network. It’s no accident these Active Clubs, who have their roots in reactionary street fighting, find themselves marching alongside historic groups like GUD, who helped pioneer post-war far-Right violence, having been formed to repress the rebels of May ’68 in France, and have seen a revival of sorts alongside Acition Francaise.
It seems a sound analysis that once these formations feel confident enough, they will return to repressive activity. And even groups like Patriot Front who are now very intertwined with the Active Clubs, and who seemingly have a sort of revolutionary fascist trajectory, are still deeply reactionary in their disposition and likely to see repressive street violence as the next phase after this incubation period. Patriot Front leader Thomas Ryan Rousseau and RAM/Will2Rise leader Robert Rundo‘s legal troubles have certainly been something of a hindrance, but it’s clearly not enough to stop their movements in their tracks.
Patriot Front, who changed their name from Vanguard America after marching in Charlottesville, their ranks including murderer James Alex Fields, not only made a showing in France on May 9th, but also used the trip as an opportunity to network with the German neo-Nazis of Der III. Weg.
Telegram post from Patriot Front on the group collaborating with neo-Nazi Active Clubs.
Patriot Front’s activity at home is escalating as well. Patriot Front has intertwined itself with the the Active Clubs’ efforts and in some ways these methods are an importation of the fascist and neo-Nazi fight clubs of Europe, but now their forms are also inspiring and generating activity in Europe as well. Having had a few “epic fails” including opsec mistakes, being embarrassed in the street, and so on, Patriot Front has seemingly bounced back to some extent. They are resuming stenciling campaigns, flash mobs, flags waves, and so on, but they’re also putting on gatherings, engaging in disaster relief efforts, and revamping their propaganda to include more quotes from the American founding fathers. Their events include music, formation training, sticker distribution, medium scale food prep, grappling demos, and so on, scenes not unlike left-wing and anarchist gatherings, Azov’s youth events, or the cultural movements that lead to neo-Nazi armed struggle formations like the National Socialist Underground in Germany during the post-war period.
Post on Telegram from the New England Minutemen, a re-brand of NSC-131.
Notably on May 19th a small protest by the newly formed New England Minutemen has revealed that the Nationalist Social Club-131 (NSC-131), has also committed to a pivot similar to Patriot Front’s, embracing colonial era American patriotic imagery. Ironically, this pivot is most likely in direct response to a second member of NSC-131 being arrested and charged with possession of child pornography and other continued legal trouble. Regardless, this rebrand speaks in part to the willingness of swastika flag waving neo-Nazis to embrace the Patriot Front style branding.
As we see a rise of Active Club and Patriot Front activity in the US, back over in Europe we also see new fascist-aligned nationalist formations like Núcleo Nacional in Spain and a steady current of right-wing football (soccer) ultras all across Europe, but this activity has been met by escalated antifascist activity. Clockwork Crew Active Club neo-Nazis who were taking part in a WLM event were routed in California with their vehicle being damaged in April, huge demos in Italy burned Azov and CasaPound flags, and in Berlin, a Der III. Weg neo-Nazi was stabbed by antifascists outside of his house. As this article goes to print, massive antifascist demos are happening in Germany, as people hit the streets against a conference of the neo-fascist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which has made gains in recent elections. Also in France, people are mobilizing in the face of far-Right and fascists groups on the rise there.
If the constellation of neo-Nazis in the so-called US that include Patriot Front, the Active Clubs, and White Lives Matter they are allowed to normalize their presence and activity, they will continue to escalate their tactics to the point of engaging in violent attacks and street level repression. Moreover, if they are allowed to pull off their attempts at rebranding around generic patriotism, we may see their numbers and street power balloon into something comparable to groups like the Proud Boys during the peak of MAGA.
