PEGIDA Canada: "We're Not Racists" (UPDATED)

Earlier Sunday PEGIDA Quebec participated in a protest against Bill 59 and were met by anti-racist and antifascist groups. When one is challenging groups such as PEGIDA Canada the accusation that the membership and supporters of similar groups hold racist views is countered by the statement that, "Islam is not a race." In our view, there's a lot of parsing of the terminology going on here, however when we refer to the views held by the membership and supporters of groups like PEGIDA Canada who target Muslims we usually refer to them as bigots to avoid that argument. That term is challenged as well, as PEDIDA Canada suggest they are not against Muslims, but are in fact opposed to Islam. That claim is frequently made on the PEGIDA Canada Facebook group page, examples of which follows:

Not found on the PEGIDA Canada page, but on the page of a member.
More on Diane Hunter in the update at the bottom of the article.

Really?

A second statement found on the Facebook group's page also makes a similar claim lamenting the accusation of racism, but the underlying message seems clear enough to all who can read it:

We decided to take a closer look a PEGIDA Canada to test their claim that they are not in fact racists or bigots. Though we will inundate you, our dear readers, with screenshots from the PEGIDA Canada Facebook page that dehumanize Muslims (foreign, immigrant, refugee, and Canadian citizens) and which celebrate violence against Muslims (and anti-racists for that matter), we really could summarize the collective will of the members and supporters of PEGIDA Canada with this single post:

Yeah, they are racists and bigots, though we don't think this will really come as a significant revelation to many.

Kyle McKee A Little Fuzzy On Definition Of Freedom Of Speech Part III

With news that Jesse Rau, the former probationary bus driver in Calgary who was fired because he refused to drive a bus painted to support Pride events.... even though he was specifically told he would not be assigned to the bus prior to his public temper tantrum, is running a Christian Heritage Party candidate for Parliament, we thought it might be fun to take a look to see what one of his biggest supporters is currently up to.

When last we discussed this issue, McKee had set up a GoFundMe page to help out pay his $5000.00 fine. GoFundMe suspended the campaign, then inexplicably permitted it to continue, before finally suspending the campaign for good.

The claim of having raised $500 strikes us as somewhat unconvincing, but who knows? Maybe McKee found himself a sugar daddy of some sort who has stepped up to help him with his fine?

At this point we figured that this would be the end of the issue unless McKee failed to pay the fine and ended up in jail. But we didn't count on long time Stormfront member "Cydonia" deciding to contribute her wisdom and legal expertise.

Immediate Aftermath of PEGIDA Canada Rally

We've spent much of the day watching the fallout from the PEGIDA Canada rally that took place yesterday. One thing that seems clear is that the folks who organized the rally (1) were disappointed by their own turnout (2) were taken completely by surprise regarding the reaction of people opposed to their views, and (3) were horribly naive concerning who would be drawn to their message.

ARC decided to do some informal interviews of members and participants on the PEGIDA Canada Facebook page to get their reaction to what went down and to the involvement of Ron Banerjee:

PEGIDA Canada Rally Meets With Opposition: Banerjee Demands Opposition Be Shot

Well, it looks like the PEGIDA Canada rally and counter-protest was a rather boisterous affair.

Back on September 13, we posted a message announcing a protest by anti-fascists to take place in Toronto opposing PEGIDA Canada who's organizers announced their rally would take place on September 19. Perhaps ironically, ol' walrus whiskers Sebastian Ronin also released a "press release" to announce his displeasure with PEGIDA Canada for not being fascist enough for his taste and, bizarrely, copyright infringement:

The PEGIDA Canada rally wasn't all that well attended. Perhaps two dozen members/supporters at best. By PEGIDA Canada's own estimates, there were outnumbered by roughly 200 anti-fascists vigorously opposing them.

Not surprisingly though, among the PEGIDA crowd was a familiar face:

Yep, Ron Banerjee. Hey, the dude is drawn to anti-Islam like a moth to a flame. He was attending in his guise of a Rise Canada member and though he seems to have been the only member in attendance whom we could see, Banerjee tries to co-opt the rally in suggesting Rise Canada was an equal partner:

Paul Fromm's Annus Horribilis: Part II

When we posted the news release regarding the anti-fascists' efforts to oppose the PEGIDA Canada rally planned for today, we received some comments condemning our efforts to deny the free speech rights of the participants. We would argue that opposing PEGIDA Canada publicly isn't so much denying them their freedoms as it is showing them that the majority of people believe they are Islamophobic assholes, thus engaging in their freedoms as well. We would further add that we aren't the ones organizing the counter-protests, but we do support the efforts of those opposing PEGIDA Canada.

One of the folks who has commented on ARC promoting the counter rally was our good friend Paulie:

Since you can read the message he is referring to here, we won't bother with that part of Paulie's missive, but we can't say we feel a lot of love from him.

But this part kind of amuses us:

Not sure how a request to bring blags, banners, and noise-makers is a call for violence. Sounds more like a plan to disrupt the PEGIDA Canada event with noise and sounds. Still, it is sort of rich that Paulie is complaining about the anti-fascists plan to disrupt the PEGIDA Canada event when Paulie himself has a history of disrupting opposing rallies and speaking engagements himself back in the 1970s as a founding member of the Edmund Burke Society:

Toronto, ON – William Kunstler assaulted by members of the Edmond Burke Society

Attorney for the Chicago 7 William Kunstler was assaulted and slightly injured during a speech in Toronto after members of the Edmund Burke Society stormed the stage. Prior to the assault the Burkers had been heckling Kunstler so a spokesperson was invited to state the groups views. Paul Fromm took the stage and poured water over Kunstler’s notes, resulting in Kunstler pouring water over Fromm.

Toronto, ON – Edmund Burke Society precipitate riot

“In May 1970 the Burkers counter-demonstrated against ‘the last of the big Communist anti-Vietnam war demonstrations in Toronto’ … The ensuing violence resulted in widespread damage to property, numerous injuries, and almost 100 arrests, 90 per cent of them supposedly left-wingers, the remainder Edmund Burke Society supporters. In later years, it was revealed that the rampaging demonstrators and the destruction actually were precipitated by Edmund Burke Society infiltrators into the left-wing ranks. The purpose was to discredit the anti-American peacenik movement.” (Barrett, 59)

Toronto, ON – Edmund Burke Society associates arrested for assassination plot

Police arrested two men after receiving tips of a plot to assassinate Soviet premier Alexei Kosygin in Toronto. Raids on a number of homes of several Edmond Burke Society members yielded weapons and what spokesperson Paul Fromm characterized as, “equipment.” Earlier in the week Edmund Burke Society member Geza Matrai attacked Kosygin while the Soviet premier was visiting Ottawa.

Toronto, ON – Edmund Burke Society members attack audience in Convocation Hall, University of Toronto

“Quebec labour leader Michel Chartrand and lawyer Robert Lemieux, referred to later by a former Burker… as FLQ communists, were the targets. As the Toronto Daily Star (29 March 1971) described it, Edmund Burke Society members hurled a stink bomb, threw stones through windows, and sprayed the hall with a mace-like substance. The building caretaker had to be treated for temporary blindness, and a Toronto Telegraph reporter also hospitalized after being kicked in the head and abdomen.” (Barrett, 60)

Barrett, Stanley R. Is God a Racist? The Right Wing in Canada. University of Toronto Press: Toronto. 1989.

And given his support for the likes of the Aryan Guard/Blood & Honour, Volksfront, National Socialist Movement, Klan, etc, it's sort of hard to take Paulie all that seriously.

Besides, he might have to deal with other more pressing matters in the near future:

Meet Austin Collins, a participant in Ku Klux Klan leader Tom Robb's "Faith and Freedom" conference in 2011. It appears that Collins stumbled across our little spot on the Internet, read about Paulie's difficulty with fidelity (NSFW), and unlike other "White Nationalists" didn't sweep Paulie's indiscretions under the rug:

PEGIDA Counter-protest Planned In Toronto

From an email we received earlier:

EMERGENCY DEMO: SHUT DOWN “PEGIDA Canada” ! 
### Please Circulate Widely ####

On Saturday, September 19th, the racist and xenophobic “PEGIDA Canada” are planning to make their second appearance on the streets. After a humiliating defeat in Montreal earlier this year, the far-right group will attempt to rally and march in Toronto, beginning at 1PM in Queens Park.

In Germany the PEGIDA (Patriotische Europäer Gegen die Islamisierung des Abendlandes, or Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West) movement managed to draw tens of thousands to the streets in reactionary fervor against 'Islamization'. PEGIDA Canada draws on the same tired nationalist rhetoric. They claim they are not racist, they simply are “protecting Canadian culture” by targeting Muslims and calling for tougher immigration laws.

Amidst the current humanitarian crisis on the borders and the broadening struggle for the rights of refugees and migrants, it is crucial we do not allow far-right groups the space to organize and mount a backlash. PEGIDA Canada is a new development in Southern Ontario and there is reason to believe this rally may draw more supporters and be better organized than their Montreal counterparts.

Join us on September 19th at 12PM SHARP to give PEGIDA the welcome it deserves – we will rally on University Ave and College St (Queen’s Park Station on the Yellow Line). Bring flags, banners, noise makers, and friends while we put our words to action and demonstrate our strength. We will send a clear message to PEGIDA and their would-be fellow travelers: You will not organize in our streets!

REFUGEES WELCOME! 
AGAINST FASCISM / AGAINST BORDERS!

Kyle McKee A Little Fuzzy On Definition Of Freedom Of Speech Part II

So by now some in the msm have written about McKee's expensive misadventure last weekend. The two stories that we first saw (here and here) were both sufficiently mocking of his efforts to crowdfund his fine. The boneheads, on the other hand, seem to think that it's all a great conspiracy to silence them:

Sure, the fine COULD be, "for protesting the homosexual agenda" (hint: it isn't).

OR is might have to do with violating a clearly printed bylaw for which the minimum fine is $2500 and the maximum $5000:

Kyle McKee A Little Fuzzy On Definition Of Freedom Of Speech UPDATED

UPDATE 1: We've modified our article to reflect that GoFundMe, which initially suspended McKee's financial appeal, has evidently decided that they don't mind neo-Nazis using their website to raise money. If you are as disappointed in GoFundMe's lack of integrity, you can contact them here and express your displeasure to them directly.

UPDATE 2: McKee's GoFundMe campaign appears to have been taken down again. Thanks everyone who submitted a complaint.

And thank you Tomsaz for finding one of our spelling errors. We make minor errors here and there all the time and certainly don't feel at all threatened or inadequate when errors are pointed out to us. The one you referred to us has not been fixed. 

It's been a while since we've written a blog post dedicated to Kyle, but he recently decided to remind us why we refer to boneheads as boneheads.

First, let's put the incident in its appropriate context.

Last month, Calgary Transit painted one of their buses to celebrate Pride Week in the city. The rainbow-colored bus would run on all routes and would be included in the Pride Parade that occurred on September 6. Well, evidently this offended one of the bus drivers who, citing religious convictions, made a little bit of a stink about the prospect of having to drive a bright, colorful, bus instead of the rather drab affairs he has grown accustomed to. Keep in mind, the guy had only been driving a year and had not even been assigned to the bus.

Maybe not of the same caliber controversy of a county clerk refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples, but still rather newsworthy. Certainly newsworthy enough for the crumb bums, ne'er-do-well, and lollygaggers who post on Stormfront, including our friend Kyle McKee:

Ah, there's Kyle now.

In case our readers don't yet realize this, "Freedom Fighter" is McKee. We know that the proper spelling has thrown some of our readers off, but we think his current baby mama is spell checking for him (though it might be more accurate to state in utero baby mama as of now). By the way, McKee is the last of the great romantics:

Anyways, there's the usual bitching an moaning about how "they" are losing "their" country and that something needs to be done. We won't post everything that was written, but we will focus on this part:

That print is a little small. Let's try it again:

That's a bit better.

Honestly, we didn't give McKee's proposal a lot of thought. But then again it turns out we should have because McKee doesn't give a lot of thought about what he does.

Which leads us all to this:

Ah! There's the poor spelling we've come to expect.
Chelsey wasn't around at the time we guess?

No, Kyle didn't stop his car in front of the bus. That would be ridiculous.

He stood in front of it.

Paul Fromm's Annus Horribilis

The year 2015 has not been very good for Paulie. In fact, it seems to have been an especially bad year.

Paulie's annus horribilis can actually be said to have begun in October 2014 when we, and evidently a lot of others, received an email contained two photos which featured Fromm and his girlfriend (he was still married at the time) in what we will charitably refer to as clothing which left very little to the imagination. We didn't post those images here (though if you wish to view them here be warned they are definitely NSFW) Paulie's French girlfriend did paint a self portrait of herself and Paulie which appears to have used one of the photos as source material:

When it first came out, Paulie's ideological allies appear to have circled the wagons in order to protect him, but it seems that in 2015 there has been some talk behind the scenes, at least in some circles:

But this sort of only represents a relatively insignificant reason why 2015 will go down as a year Paulie will very much like to forget.

Ezra Is Getting Good At Begging For Forgiveness: Part II

We're working on a few projects that are currently occupying our collective attention, but we thought we would provide an update on our previous post.

To recap, Levant's "Rebel Media" ran a book review of Connie Fournier's book excoriating the Harper Conservatives. However, the review was pulled after Richard Warman complained of defamatory material that appeared in the review. 

In the end, no one is defamed, no one is sued, and all are happy.

Right?

Well.... not so much.