I have written about this before, so if you’ve seen it, forgive me.
There are violent, scary people who will be perceived to be on the anti-Nazi/KKK side. They are a political time bomb waiting to explode. I write this so we know what to expect when it happens, and maybe come up with a strategy for dealing with them when they act..
From 1988 to 1994 I was a volunteer reporter for KPFA Radio News in Berkeley. KPFA is a Pacifica Station, the first “listener-sponsored” radio station in the country. KPFA made its name with its in-depth coverage of the Berkeley Free Speech Movement, then the anti-Vietnam war movement. KPFA has a decidedly left-wing bent.
During my time at KPFA I covered countless demonstrations. That was a regular part of the news beat. At many, many of these demonstrations, there was a small group of demonstrators — maybe fifteen people — who would regularly do things like throw rocks at cops, turn over cop cars, smash windows. I grew to recognize these individuals. They kept up their asinine violence year after year and I never once saw any of them get arrested and never heard that any ever had.
On May 1st of, I think, 1993 I was sent to cover a white Nazi skinhead celebration of “International White Workers Day” at Union Square. I was also in possession of press releases from anti-Nazi skinhead groups who were going to caucus at the Powell Street BART Station, then counter-demonstrate.
I got off BART at Powell Street (near Union Square) to the raucous tune of Jimi Hendrix’s Woodstock performance of the Star Spangled Banner blasting out of a boom box. So great so far. I took my tape recorder around and interviewed some of the skinhead anti-Nazis. They seemed nice enough.
After I’d gotten enough tape at Powell Street, I walked up to Union Square to interview Nazis. There, I found rows of shoulder-to-shoulder San Francisco cops. Standing behind the cops were, maybe fifty skinhead Nazis. I’d interviewed a few Nazis and the supervising cop when the skinhead anti-Nazis came chanting in a military-style march into the square. They were howling for Nazi blood.
I was standing in front of the line of cops, holding out my mike at a Nazi. asking if he was afraid. Suddenly a beer bottle (thankfully empty) came flying through the air. It hit “my” Nazi in his forehead while I was still interviewing him. The Nazi’s forehead split open and blood ran down his face into his eyes. I looked on in shock as the cops led him away to an ambulance they’d called. Shortly thereafter, the cops cleared the square. They did a pretty good job, all things considered.
This was crazy behavior. That bottle could’ve hit the cop. People who throw beer bottles that could easily hit a cop in the face don’t much care about the consequences — for public safety or political messaging — of their actions. They are a menace to the cause we share.
And they are likely to be in fervid attendance at any serious counter demonstration that is held against Nazis and the KKK. Putting Nazis and KKK creeps down by “any means necessary” is their primary political and social identity. They will not listen to, nor heed, pleas that the counter-demonstration be non-violent. Their identity, and their moral compass, requires them to use violence to put down Nazis whenever and wherever they get the chance. To them, willingness to use violence is a test of their commitment.
I say this now, because there are multiple white supremacist demonstrations around the country planned in the coming weeks, including one planned at the Presidio in San Francisco on August 26 (as well as, of course, Berkeley on August 27). If these white power marches actually happen, there will inevitably be counter demonstrations. And there will be people among the counter demonstrators whom the media will identify as being on our “side.” And these people will be spoiling to prove their anti-Nazi credentials (mainly to themselves and to each other). They’ll be seeking to bask in the attention they’ll be afforded by the national media circus. And they’ll likely be throwing rocks, bottles and swinging pipes. In addition, there will likely also be the usual band of creeps (or, by now, their children) whom I observed smashing windows and overturning cop cars back in the Nineties. This will be filmed by the media and by hundreds of cell phones.
How we deal with this, I don’t know. But I expect we will be asked about an equivalence the media will be encouraged to draw between the Nazis and the anti-Nazis, at least as to propensity for violence. This will play into the hands of the alt-Right, as well as a Twitter storm that will vomit forth from the president*. I expect producing this kind of video will be a major goal of the people who are organizing the white power marches.
The best I can suggest is to tackle and detain people we see doing this, turning them over to the cops, and keeping track of whether the cops just let these people walk. Be ready.
