There are times when this writer is not only able to expose bigot to public scrutiny, but also indulge in a bit of historical geekery. Those are good days.
And this is one of those days.
When examining the Soldiers of Odin it is easy to focus exclusively on the rampant racism found amongst a number of individuals who are drawn to the group as well as the Islamophobia which is the Soldiers of Odin calling card. But it can be easy to miss the incredible hypocrisy of an organization ostensibly founded to protect "our" (read: white) women and children from the swarthy hordes at the gate:
Then again, the misogynistic rhetoric of some members and supporters of the Soldiers of Odin sort of calls into question this claim:
More on Arran Taylor later.
For an organization set up ostensibly to protect women, the Soldiers of Odin has a real image problem (again, that's besides the link to overt racists who are members of the SoO in good standing). That image problem begins with the name of the organization itself.
The Soldiers of Odin present a romanticized version of the Viking Age. The the SoO Viking is an honorable warrior who would willingly give up his life to protect the innocent.
Cute.
You know who might disagree with those sentiments? Anyone who was lucky enough to survive a Viking raid.... usually women and children.... who were then taken as slaves:
Being a thrall really sucked (and I mean REALLY sucked), especially if you were a woman:
ISIS could perhaps take a page from the Viking book in their justification for sexual slavery.
Another problematic issue for the Soldiers of Odin if they wish to claim to be protectors of women's virtue would be the "Odin" part of the name since, if they actually had any knowledge of the Norse mythology they wish to graft onto their modern movement, Odin is really among the Norse gods least appropriate as a figurehead:
Another take on the Rape of Rind by Odin can be found here:
But really, while all this may be grist for the mill, the real optics problem for the Soldiers of Odin is whom they choose to associate themselves with TODAY. Now we're not just talking about the racists in their ranks that they claim to disavow. We're talking about the folks they are proud to be linked to.
Which brings us back to Arran Taylor. Taylor is a leader in the Ontario branch of the SoO:
He now even has the t-shirt to prove it:
For the SoO, "gear" is an important status symbol denoting who is and who is not a real supporter. One of the SoO focuses is to make sure that any merchandise with the SoO name on it actually supports the SoO:
Arran Taylor has also spoken on video regarding the importance of respecting a club's "gear":
In this case though, the "gear" Taylor is referring to isn't SoO:
In this case, this group that Taylor also supports:
Ah, Club 81.
The Hells Angels.
Now, if some of our readers are not familiar with the Hells Angels, there is a significant amount of literature in existence, but why don't we let Taylor set those readers on the right track:
While Taylor and his friends are thrilled with the return of the Hells Angels' "gear" he doesn't comment on this part of the story he links to:
In fact, here are but a few examples we were able to find in online newspaper records, focusing primarily on sex offences, drug trafficking, violence against women and children, and murder. Also know that this is FAR from an exhaustive list:
CANADA
And the list goes on.
Given this sordid history, we would think an organization attempting to portray itself as a protector of women, children, and Canadian values, might shy away from any association with the Hells Angels. But here are some members of the Ontario wing of the SoO....
.... who also proudly display their support for the Hells Angels:
A quick glance over the country indicates that Ontario members of the SoO aren't the only ones supporting the Hells Angels. At a Saskatchewan SoO event, we couldn't help noticing the fella in the red t-shirt:
There's also some indication that the SoO founder and president is also a Hells Angels supporter:
Now, while there isn't any indication that these Hells Angels supporters/Soldiers of Odin members are engaged in criminal activities, it strikes this writer as both ironic and hypocritical that they consider Muslim-Canadians as a threat when it is a criminal gang they support that has caused more innocent deaths than any so-called Jihadist terrorism in Canada. Taking a look ONLY at Quebec, we see the biker wars of the mid 1990s and early 2000s resulted in the following human toll:
And this is one of those days.
When examining the Soldiers of Odin it is easy to focus exclusively on the rampant racism found amongst a number of individuals who are drawn to the group as well as the Islamophobia which is the Soldiers of Odin calling card. But it can be easy to miss the incredible hypocrisy of an organization ostensibly founded to protect "our" (read: white) women and children from the swarthy hordes at the gate:
 |
| Because sexual violence was NEVER a problem in Europe or Oz before Muslims arrived... |
Then again, the misogynistic rhetoric of some members and supporters of the Soldiers of Odin sort of calls into question this claim:
 |
| Craig claims to be the Sergeant at Arms- Ontario East Division at Soldiers Of Odin Ontario |
More on Arran Taylor later.
For an organization set up ostensibly to protect women, the Soldiers of Odin has a real image problem (again, that's besides the link to overt racists who are members of the SoO in good standing). That image problem begins with the name of the organization itself.
The Soldiers of Odin present a romanticized version of the Viking Age. The the SoO Viking is an honorable warrior who would willingly give up his life to protect the innocent.
Cute.
You know who might disagree with those sentiments? Anyone who was lucky enough to survive a Viking raid.... usually women and children.... who were then taken as slaves:
Being a thrall really sucked (and I mean REALLY sucked), especially if you were a woman:
ISIS could perhaps take a page from the Viking book in their justification for sexual slavery.
Another problematic issue for the Soldiers of Odin if they wish to claim to be protectors of women's virtue would be the "Odin" part of the name since, if they actually had any knowledge of the Norse mythology they wish to graft onto their modern movement, Odin is really among the Norse gods least appropriate as a figurehead:
Another take on the Rape of Rind by Odin can be found here:
But really, while all this may be grist for the mill, the real optics problem for the Soldiers of Odin is whom they choose to associate themselves with TODAY. Now we're not just talking about the racists in their ranks that they claim to disavow. We're talking about the folks they are proud to be linked to.
Which brings us back to Arran Taylor. Taylor is a leader in the Ontario branch of the SoO:
He now even has the t-shirt to prove it:
 |
| UPDATE: As of September, Arran has been promoted to president of the SOO Ontario Chapter. |
For the SoO, "gear" is an important status symbol denoting who is and who is not a real supporter. One of the SoO focuses is to make sure that any merchandise with the SoO name on it actually supports the SoO:
Arran Taylor has also spoken on video regarding the importance of respecting a club's "gear":
In this case though, the "gear" Taylor is referring to isn't SoO:
In this case, this group that Taylor also supports:
Ah, Club 81.
The Hells Angels.
Now, if some of our readers are not familiar with the Hells Angels, there is a significant amount of literature in existence, but why don't we let Taylor set those readers on the right track:
While Taylor and his friends are thrilled with the return of the Hells Angels' "gear" he doesn't comment on this part of the story he links to:
The decision comes 18 months after a marathon trial in which members of the downtown Toronto Angels’ chapter were found not guilty of being members of a criminal organization — even though they were convicted of other criminal charges, including conspiracy to traffic cocaine and the date rape drug GHB.The judicial decision that convicted members of criminal activity but not of being members of a criminal organization is a bit convoluted in this writer's opinion:
The judge noted that membership in the biker club was a potent force in criminal circles and that members didn’t have to sport their vests or flash items with the death head logo to be taken seriously.
“No item bearing a symbol of membership was used as an assurance of trustworthiness,” she wrote. “The participants in the transactions knew each other to be members and had no need of such property as a sign of membership.”
“The evidence demonstrates that membership in the HAMC provided vendors of illegal drugs with a relatively trustworthy pool of clients,” she wrote. “Membership provided purchasers of illegal drugs with trustworthy vendors. I use the word ‘trustworthy’ to mean persons who were less likely to be police, to speak to the police, and to ‘cheat’ on a deal.”Now regardless of whether the court, in this case, agreed that the Hells Angels were a criminal organization or not, there is ample evidence that suggested that the motorcycle club is criminal in nature and that their membership and supporters have a very long history of violence, including sex trafficking, assault, attempted murder, and murder.
In fact, here are but a few examples we were able to find in online newspaper records, focusing primarily on sex offences, drug trafficking, violence against women and children, and murder. Also know that this is FAR from an exhaustive list:
CANADA
- Three Hell’s Angels Jailed for Living Off Prostitution
- Hell’s Angels accused sent for trial
- Biker raids major blow to organized crime
- Quebec biker-war victim Daniel Desrochers, 11, remembered 20 years later
- Operation SharQc: Eighteen Hells Angels plead guilty to taking part in general conspiracy to commit murder
- Tentative trial dates set for Nova Scotia man facing murder charges in alleged Hell's Angels case
- Ottawa police target human trafficking, a $26M industry
- Full-patch Hells Angels plead guilty to killing Dain Phillips in 2011
- Hells Angel jailed 11 years in gun and drugs case
- Former Hells Angel boss gets eight-and-a-half years
- Manitoba Hells Angel sought by Winnipeg police for alleged beating
UNITED STATES
- Eight suspects arrested in California rape case
- Shooting upheld by ex-suspect
- 3 Hell’s Angels charged with rape
- Move to Oregon proves futile for Hells Angels fugitive
- Hell’s Angels bounty on woman told
- Biker goes on trial in execution
- Suspect convicted in Hell’s Angels case
- Area motorcycle gangs use women as slaves
- Motorcycle gangs use women as property
- Hell’s Angels convicted on assault charges
- Raid nets list of undercover police
- Frazier trial begins
EUROPE
And the list goes on.
Given this sordid history, we would think an organization attempting to portray itself as a protector of women, children, and Canadian values, might shy away from any association with the Hells Angels. But here are some members of the Ontario wing of the SoO....
.... who also proudly display their support for the Hells Angels:
There's also some indication that the SoO founder and president is also a Hells Angels supporter:
Now, while there isn't any indication that these Hells Angels supporters/Soldiers of Odin members are engaged in criminal activities, it strikes this writer as both ironic and hypocritical that they consider Muslim-Canadians as a threat when it is a criminal gang they support that has caused more innocent deaths than any so-called Jihadist terrorism in Canada. Taking a look ONLY at Quebec, we see the biker wars of the mid 1990s and early 2000s resulted in the following human toll:
Over the course of six years, more than 150 people were killed, including several innocent victims. At least 85 bombs were set off — including one in 1995 that killed Daniel Desrochers, an 11-year-old boy who was playing near a Jeep when it exploded — and 140 arson fires were set.Sort of puts things in perspective.
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