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Aug 10, 20

This Week in Fascism #69: Portland Pipe Bomb Attack; #AllOut for Stone Mountain

Welcome, fellow antifascists!

We took a few weeks off, but we are happy to be back! This week, we’ve got a pro-Trump ex-Navy SEAL being linked to a pipe bomb attack on Black Lives Matter protesters, Patriot Front founder Thomas Rousseau arrested for stickering, Teespring banning antifa t-shirts, doxxes of far-Right goons attacking protesters around the country, a Nazi’s love life getting shut down by antifascists, plus, how you can help counter a far-Right rally in Stone Mountain, Georgia on August 15th.

Without further ado, let’s begin!

News

Portland Protesters Claim that Louis Garrick Fernbaugh, Ex-Navy SEAL, Behind Weekend Pipe Bomb Attack on Protesters

In the early hours of Saturday, August 8th, 2020, protesters and journalists report that a man (and reportedly one accomplice) threw three pipe bombs, two of which exploded, at a crowd gathered in a Portland, Oregon park. The bombs landed clear of the crowd, and as of this writing, no one appears to have been injured. Two exploded, one did not.

Twitch streamer ShaybieCo and researcher Nick Lee caught the explosion on video. Protesters immediately shined flashlights on the bomber, who threw the bombs from a wooded area near the protest site and reportedly appeared to be wearing night-vision goggles.

Photographer What Riot followed the suspected bomber and confronted him. “Hey, you want to stop there?,” What Riot asked the man who was clearly looking to make a quick exit and appeared to be running on adrenaline. “Why are you throwing pipe bombs at people? With night-vision goggles?” The suspected assailant replied, “Look, man. I’m not the guy you want to fuck with.” What Riot replied, “Why are you throwing bombs at people?” The man stated, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m not the guy you want to fuck with.” According to an interview in the Willamette Weekly, the man then reached behind his back, possibly for a firearm, and What Riot stopped the recording.

On social media, the suspected pipe-bomber was quickly identified as Louis Garrick Fernbaugh, a former Navy SEAL and President of HVT Targets, which manufactures and sells shooting range targets, including a “PDXANTIFA” target, which attempts to depict an antifascist, but curiously features camouflage and what appear to be cybernetic tubes running down the arms. Get to the antifa chappa!

Further confirming Fernbaugh’s identity, one researcher even found a video showing Fernbaugh in the same Nike outerwear pullover he was wearing during the attack.

According to OPB:

Fernbaugh was a brand ambassador for Red Frog Team, a female-owned small business that teaches gun safety to women, according to the company’s owner.

“The company ordered a cease and desist a year and a half ago for any affiliation with him,” said Shannon Monihan, Red Frog Team’s owner, “because there were issues and I needed that person not affiliated with this company.”

At OPB’s request, Monihan reviewed the video of the moments after the Laurelhurst Park explosions. She said the man captured on camera in the area is Fernbaugh. .

“He’s not affiliated with Red Frog,” Monihan reiterated. “Yes, that’s Garrick Fernbaugh in the video.”

Prior to establishing HVT Targets, Fernbaugh spent 20 years as a Navy SEAL, then an independent paramilitary contractor in Afghanistan. He and his wife separated in 2013, and court documents show allegations that he perpetrated domestic violence.

Numerous photos and videos posted on social media of Fernbaugh appear to match the person in the video posted after the explosions. A former law enforcement official who recognized Fernbaugh’s voice on Keeler’s video said he was certain enough that it’s Fernbaugh that he planned to contact the FBI. A former acquaintance who has known him for several years also confirmed that it is Fernbaugh in the video.

Fernbaugh’s LinkedIn page ironically includes endorsements for “Counterterrorism.” In addition, he left a comment on social media, claiming to have “infiltrated ANTIFA in downtown PDX 3 nights ago.”

Fernbaugh’s Facebook page shows him posting anti-Semitic propaganda, including a poster for the Nazi era film Der Ewige Jude (“The Eternal Jew”). Researcher Alexander Reid Ross found that Fernbaugh had written for Veterans Today, a pro-Assad outlet whose contributors have ties to the National Socialist Movement, a neo-Nazi group.

As of this writing, Fernbaugh has not been arrested. Interested readers can monitor the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office Inmate Data page for booking data.

Ironically, hours before the bombing, the White House’s official Twitter account issued a statement on the Portland protests. “Left-wing violent extremism is a serious threat to American lives and American freedom. President @realDonaldTrump on the violence in Portland.” The account attached a video clip of Trump speaking about the ongoing anti-police protests in Portland. “Left-wing violent extremism poses an increasing threat to our country…. It’s an ideology we have to stop,” said Trump.

Pro-Police Goons Attack Black Lives Matter Demonstrators in Colorado

Violence broke out in Fort Collins, Colorado, when pro-police goons attacked Black Lives Matter demonstrators. According to The Daily Mail:

Shocking video posted to social media from the Fort Collins, Colorado, protests shows an all-out brawl as the police supporters pummel Black Lives Matter demonstrators they claimed had attacked a veteran in a wheelchair.

Moments before, the pro-police group, decked out in American flags and carrying Trump 2020 flags, where seen pushing back the counter-protesters blasting them as members of Antifa and ‘Commie scum’.

Claims that the BLM protesters attacked a man in a wheelchair seen earlier in the footage cannot be confirmed in the video.

Matt Gaetz Gives Tax Payer Money to White Nationalist Speech Writer Fired from White House for Attending Alt-Right Conference Alongside Richard Spencer

Florida Republican Matt Gaetz, best known for his love of DUI’s and for bringing holocaust denying troll Chuck Johnson to the State of the Union, is once again in hot water. The newest scandal spurs from Gaetz supposedly spending thousands of taxpayer dollars on an LLC linked to a white nationalist and former Trump speech writer who was fired for attending an Alt-Right conference alongside Richard Spencer.

From Politico:

The Florida Republican concedes that he improperly sent $28,000 in taxpayer funds to a limited liability company connected to the speech-writing consultant, Darren Beattie, a former White House aide who was ousted after appearing at a convention known as a forum for racist and white supremacist views. Gaetz’s aides said it was a clerical error that they are now working to reverse. House rules explicitly prohibit spending taxpayer dollars on speech-writing consultants.

The payments were to Beattie, according to multiple sources familiar with the arrangement. Gaetz announced hiring Beattie as a speech-writing adviser in April 2019, but he was never added to Gaetz’s congressional payroll, according to House disbursement records. Instead, Gaetz paid him through the Wyoming-based LLC.

The agreement involving the speech-writing consultant appears to have begun after Beattie was ousted from the Trump administration after his appearance at the H.L. Mencken Club Conference. The Southern Poverty Law Center calls attendees of the conference “a band of white nationalists, pseudo academic and academic racists.” Gaetz announced on Twitter that he would hire Beattie — who holds a doctorate in political science from Duke University — as a special adviser for speech writing last April.

Armed Vigilantes Block Protest March on Home of Seattle Police Chief

On August 1st, hundreds attempted to march on the home of Seattle police chief Carmen Best but were blocked off and confronted by armed individuals. Backed by local Sheriffs, neighbors claimed that protesters attempted to break windows and were “aggressive,” a false claim which was amplified by local officials and picked up by various media. Check out a thread on the march, here.

Proud Boys Rally in Support of Police in Seattle, WA

Members of the Proud Boys, a far-Right, pro-Trump street gang with direct ties to both white nationalists and the Republican Party, rallied in support of the police in Seattle, Washington this weekend. Members of the far-Right group were confronted by counter-demonstrators and eventually left the rally, according to reports on social media.

Patriot Front Leader Thomas Rousseau Arrested for Defacement of Government Property

Patriot Front founder Thomas Rousseau and his weird ponytail (“fash-bun”) were arrested Saturday, August 1st, 2020, for placing up neo-Nazi stickers, leading to Rousseau being charged with Criminal Mischief. Also arrested were two other men, Graham Jones Whitson and Cameron Rathan Pruitt. Read a full report with more info on The Informant.

Antifa International Banned By Teespring

Antifa International recently had their fundraising merchandise taken down by on-demand t-shirt printer Teespring.

“The listing was removed for the use of ‘Antifa’ which is in violation of our acceptable use policy and not permitted on Teespring.com,” said the company in an email to Antifa International.

Antifascists on Twitter quickly found many examples of racist, hate group, and far-Right merchandise on Teespring. Teespring continues to host t-shirts featuring anti-Semitic memes, far-Right Kek flags and Totenkopf masks sold as “Siege Necessities,” by a shop called “The Angry Goys.”

“Teespring is not a fascist company. Due to the recent increase of violent Antifa content, we have removed all Antifa related listings until we are able to review the intent behind the designs. Reviewing this content will take some time, so we appreciate your understanding,” the company’s Twitter account stated.

Doxxes

35 year old former Iraq War veteran, Marine Corps Sniper, and Neo-Nazi Raymond Tyler MacAnally (aka, Tyler MacAnally)

Mboro Antifascist Action identified the neo-Nazi behind the account Tyler0317 on Discord as Raymond Tyler MacAnally. Tyler is a 35 year old Iraq War veteran and was a Marine Corps sniper.

It’s not unusual for men in the military to become radicalized by the far-Right. In Tyler’s case, Mboro AFA identified that he is a member of SPLC-identified hate group Identity Evropa/American Identity Movement. Tyler has admitted that he attended the deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, VA in 2017, that resulted in the death of leftist activist Heather Hayer, and the injury of dozens of other counter-protester. Photo and video evidence of him at that rally have been archived.

Photo evidence also suggests he was behind a massive flyering campaign throughout Tennessee and Kentucky during 2017 and 2018, including cities like Murfreesboro, Middle Tennessee University, Smyrna and Madison, Antioch and Lebanon, and the University of Chattanooga (Tennessee), and Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, KY.

Mboro AFA are aware that at one time we was operating a Marketing enterprise based out of his mother’s house in Smyrna, TN. They also indicate that he was an owner of a Home Inspection company in Murfreesboro, TN which is where Tyler lived until he sold his property in December of 2018.

If anyone has information on him, Mboro AFA is asking that you reach out to them anonymously and confidentially at [email protected].

Stephen (Steve) Poteet of Tucson, Arizona of the Proud Boys

Sunny South Dallas Antiracist Action has identified a Tucson, Arizona Proud Boy as Stephen (Steve) Poteet. The Proud Boys are an SPLC-designated hate group. The Proud Boys are known for their deep connections to neo-Nazi and white nationalist groups, their paleoconservative, pro-misogyny, anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rhetoric – so it’s no surprise that Steve’s social media is filled with Islamophobic content. He also has a lot of animosity toward NASCAR and the push to remove Confederate flags.

Steve is the store manager at Loomis Tank Center. There are multiple ways to reach out to Loomis to ask them how they feel about employing a dangerous bigot. You can fill out a contact form here, or reach out by phone: 520-889-1338.

Shawn Davis of Libby, Montana, Member of Racist “It’s Okay to Be White” Facebook Group

Antifascist researchers behind the twitter account RuthlessWe recently uncovered the identity of Shawn Dawson, member of the white supremacist Facebook group “It’s Okay To Be White” and husband to the groups administrator Aleta Davis. Shawn and Aleta currently reside in Libby, Montana.

The group itself is a cesspool of racists. It boasts 3,000 members, many of whom are neo-Nazis. Dawson’s wife Aleta also admins for a more female-centered white supremacist Facebook group called “It’s Okay To Be Wife.” The posts are less overtly racist but still entirely problematic.

As indicated by RuthlessWe, Shawn has tried to lock down and change his profile to keep from being identified. RuthlessWe was able to continue to monitor Shawn’s timeline, which is filled with racist and offensive content.

Shawn is currently working for Cabinet Peaks. You can reach them on Twitter, or by phone Phone: (406) 283-7000. You are encouraged to reach out to Cabinet Peaks and ask them why they employ a neo-Nazi and how they remain comfortable allowing him access to patients. More contact information can be found here.

Christopher Alan Kilgore, Neo-Nazi in Huntsville, Alabama

Antifascist activists Eugene 161 were able to identify the workplace of Huntsville, Alabama neo-Nazi Christopher Alan Kilgore. In 2018, Eugene161 had previously uncovered Kilgore’s identity but until recently, we weren’t aware of his workplace. Kilgore and his wife, Stephany Michelle Kilgore are known as the Weed Nazis of Eugene, Oregon. Once their identities became public, they fled Oregon and relocated to Huntsville, Alabama.

Kilgore attended an August 4th, 2018 hate event organized by Joey Gibson with former Proud Boy, Alan James Swinney. It’s indicated that he showed up in armor, with weapons in an attempt to attack antifascist activists. He also claims to have broken someone’s fingers.

Kilgore is suspected to have painted swastikas all over Eugene, OR and is a fervent denier of COVID-19; refusing to wear a mask. This is dangerous given Christopher Kilgore’s job as a Radiology Technician at Huntsville Hospital in Huntsville, AL. Please consider reaching out to both the American Society of Radiologic Technician’s and Huntsville Hospital to express concerns about their employment and support of a neo-Nazi, COVID-19 denier. He is a danger to patients and the community.

Guy Napoli, neo-Nazi in Aledo, Texas

Thanks to antifascist activists Sunny South Dallas AFA, we now know of neo-Nazi Guy Napoli of Aledo, Texas. Guy and his brother Gino were involved in organizing a counter-protest of a BLM action to protest a confederate statue in Weatherford, Texas on July 25th. The counter-protesters eventually assaulted BLM members.

At one point, images were captured of Guy pointing his high powered rifle at protesters. Sunny South Dallas AFA wants Guy’s family and community to know that he is engaging in racist, dangerous and menacing behavior.

Frank, Anthony Sr, Anthony Jr, Joseph, and Rachel Canale, Assaulted Anti-Racist Protesters in Brooklyn

NYC Antifa identified five members of the Canale family. The Canale family showed up to a Marine Park, NY Back the Blue rally last month where they assaulted counter-protesters in Dyker Heights (July 11th) and Bay Ridge (July 12th).

Frank Canale is a 58-year-old resident of Borough Park, Brooklyn. He showed up to the rally to scream at counter-protesters on July 11th. Frank ended up escalating to physical violence which ended up being captured by photographers. NYC Antifa was able to corroborate evidence of Frank’s actions and identity by comparing zip codes and photographs.

Anthony Canale Sr. attended the event with his brother, Frank. He live streamed the event and engaged in verbal assault of counter-protesters. Anthony runs a rug business by the name of A&R Carpets in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn and as of a few years ago, has struggled to pay child support for his children. Both Frank Canale and Anthony Canale Sr. appeared with Dominick Ricigliano, a racist ex-cop NYC Antifa exposed last month. He physically attacked and verbally assaulted people, yelling threats of rape at counter-protesters.

A handful of members of the Canale family showed up to the Back the Blue rally to yell racist insults at counter-protesters, including the use of racial slurs. Joseph Canale, who goes by the internet persona of “brooklynsboy316,” is the son of Anthony Canale Sr. was also at the event and was caught assaulting counter-protesters. He’s also dealing with felony weapons charges going back to 2015.

Anthony Canale Jr. operates several social media accounts under the names of tonycanale, anthonycanalerealestate (Facebook), @/Anthony_Canal3 (Twitter), and @/TonyCanale26 (TikTok). He’s listed as a real estate agent in the Long Island City office of Halstead. His personal and professional Facebook pages corroborate each other.

Finally, Rachel DeSalvatore has been identified as the fifth prong of the Canale family and ex-wife to Anthony Canale Sr. and mother to Joseph and Anthony Jr. She also attended the “Back the Blue” rally on July 12th in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and engaged in a verbal assault of protesters, calling Black protesters the N-word. Under her married name of Rachel Canale, she operated a childcare facility called “Creative Learning Center” in Bensonhurst that has since closed. This entire family are dangerous members of the community.

Neo-Nazi Groyper Cordell J. Abney

Garfield Antifascists exposed neo-Nazi Groyper Cordell J. Abney, who goes by Sam Houston on Twitter, running several accounts. Abney is a supporter of the Groypyer movement, which seeks to create and maintain a white nationalist current within Trumpism. He also is a big fan of the Nationalist Social Club, posts up images of Hitler and white nationalist mass murderers, and has trolled Black Lives Matter rallies. According to local antifascists, Cordell works for DirectTV.

Deplatforms

Cocky Nazi Cock-Blocked By Black Bloc

We wanted to take a moment to highlight an antifascist tactic that we STAN. Samuel Cordova, a neo-Nazi out of the Denver area, was trolled hard by Colorado Springs Antifascists last week and we took notice. Sam is a danger to the community. Beyond his blatant racism, queerphobia and antisemitism, Sam is a misogynist who has also posted revenge porn of his exes. Colorado Springs Antifascists keep tabs on Sam by watching his interactions with women on twitter and immediately letting them know just who he is and how he operates. This is a tactic that has proven effective in keeping the community aware of Sam’s intentions as well as getting way under his skin. We reached out to Colorado Springs Antifascists to get their perspective.

“Alongside being an active neo-Nazi, Samuel Cordova tries to win the trust and affection of progressive and leftist women on Twitter and in real life. Samuel has distributed revenge porn in the past (which Twitter continues to host,) and lied to women about his involvement in the Denver neo-Nazi formation Defend Denver, so we feel it is even more urgent that the women he targets know who he really is,” Colorado Springs Anti-Fascists told This Week in Fascism.

“We monitor his Twitter and let the women he’s reply-guying to know he is a Nazi and a misogynist, which many folks appreciate. Samuel has transitioned from flirting with women to overtly fash-posting, suggesting our tactic worked. We encourage everyone with a Twitter account to go to his account and report his nastiest Tweets until his account is banned permanently.

As Colorado Springs Antifascists said, “Anti-fascism can be as simple as keeping tabs on your local fascists and  letting the people around them, either virtually or physically, know who they are really are.”

Call to Action

August 15th: Stop Far-Right Organizing at Stone Mountain, Georgia

This Saturday, August 15, 2020, a group of neo-Confederates, neo-Nazis, and far-Right militia groups will rally at Stone Mountain, Georgia. The site was chosen for two reasons. Stone Mountain Park features a carving honoring Confederate General Robert E. Lee and Confederate President Jefferson Davis. And in 1915, Stone Mountain was the site of the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan.

The Frontline Organization Working to End Racism, or FLOWER, is organizing a counter-protest. In February 2019, a coalition of far-Right activists attempted to rally at Stone Mountain before being shut down by FLOWER.

The far-Right rally is being organized via a Facebook page called Protect the South, which is run by a neo-Nazi named Adam Wesley Sitton. The far-right coalition promoting the event and promising to attend, includes Chester Doles, a self-described “third generation Klansman” who attended Unite the Right in 2017 with the Hammerskins and is now attempting to rebrand with a front group called American Patriots USA, and Jan Dupree, who attended the white nationalist rally Unite the Right 2 in August 2018.

For a fuller look at those organizing the rally, see this article from Atlanta Antifascists.

If you can attend, anti-racist activists are meeting at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, August 15, 2020.

If you can’t attend, consider donating to the Atlanta Solidarity Fund, a local bail fund that will be vital to helping any anti-racist protesters arrested.

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A weekly roundup of the latest and greatest happenings in the anti-fascist world. Each column features a roundup of news, actions, doxxes and current calls to action.

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