The media is in an apoplectic frenzy over President Trump’s refusal to condemn the Proud Boys. Journalists call the pro-Trump group violent white supremacists who pose a far greater danger than Antifa. And the worst part of all: Republican politicians agree with the lying press.
NBC’s @oneunderscore__: "White supremacist groups” like the Proud Boys — not Antifa — are the ones creating "organized violence“ and “domestic terror” pic.twitter.com/N9wPgkDqCi
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) September 30, 2020
The media image of the Proud Boys is not based in reality. The Proud Boys, despite their white supremacist reputation, are explicitly multiracial. An assortment of group pictures easily demonstrates. The group’s leader, Enrique Tarrio, is Afro-Cuban. The Daily Beast noticed the group’s surprising level of diversity two years ago, yet the outlet still concluded the Proud Boys are white supremacist [Why Young Men of Color Are Joining White-Supremacist Groups, by Arun Gupta, The Daily Beast, September 4, 2018].
This is one of the Proud Boys, with his black wife and half-black kids, who was arrested for defending himself against Antifa a while ago in NYC. Yet Joe Biden and the media keeps calling them a "white supremacist" group. pic.twitter.com/NpKM32H2qL
— Mark Dice (@MarkDice) September 30, 2020
The Proud Boys even waited to do a group photo after the fights. They were hyped the fuck up after that. Flashing their white power hand symbol before marching towards a downtown train. pic.twitter.com/JP6jiM8Yud
— Shay Horse (@HuntedHorse) October 13, 2018
Fact check for the media: You can think Proud Boys are a lot of things but white supremacists isn’t one of them, their leader Enrique is afro-Cuban. pic.twitter.com/IbE7XHvunh
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) September 30, 2020
Are #ProudBoys #WhiteSupremacists? pic.twitter.com/UEqjvJdrGH
— Villain Report 🏴☠️ (@VillainReport) September 30, 2020
In typical fashion, Republican on Capitol Hill believe the media’s smears about the Proud Boys. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott demanded Trump explicitly condemn the Proud Boys. South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said the “Proud Boys is a racist organization antithetical to American ideals” [Republicans Scold Trump on White Supremacy, Fearing a Drag on the Party, by Alexander Burns, Jonathan Martin and Maggie Haberman, The New York Times, September 30, 2020].
Trump’s own aides condemned the group. Trump campaign national press secretary Hogan Gidley called the Proud Boys “a reprehensible group” and insisted the President condemned them.
National Press Secretary for the Trump campaign Hogan Gidley on Wednesday tried to clean up Pres. Trump's call for the Proud Boys to 'stand by' during Tuesday's debates, saying that the remark was actually telling the hate group to "get out of the way." pic.twitter.com/EZOQpsnuOC
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) September 30, 2020
An anonymous White House adviser simply told CNN: F*** the Proud Boys.”
Trump adviser on Trump’s proud boys comments last night: “F*** the proud boys. There I said it. Not that hard.”
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) September 30, 2020
It’s another depressing sign that Trump is much better than the party he leads.
