1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,340
So Chelsea, I have, again, one of those things that could be construed as a sad news update, but...

2
00:00:06,340 --> 00:00:07,920
Okay, but it's not?

3
00:00:07,920 --> 00:00:11,760
We'll see how it goes. It's from Vice, one of our favorite sources.

4
00:00:11,760 --> 00:00:14,240
Again, I think it's just information to be conveyed.

5
00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:19,680
Chelsea, we all know Nazis from their prominent role in the 1970s in Illinois, correct?

6
00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:26,700
And how it drove a couple blues musicians to put on a concert, save the orphanage, and have a good old time in jail, right?

7
00:00:26,700 --> 00:00:28,060
Hold on. What?

8
00:00:28,060 --> 00:00:30,060
Illinois Nazis.

9
00:00:31,660 --> 00:00:33,580
I hate Illinois Nazis.

10
00:00:33,580 --> 00:00:35,580
I'm pretty sure that's where they come from.

11
00:00:35,580 --> 00:00:37,020
Nazis?

12
00:00:37,020 --> 00:00:37,820
Yeah.

13
00:00:37,820 --> 00:00:41,260
We must have had our timelines, uh, mixed up.

14
00:00:41,260 --> 00:00:47,340
Okay, well, anyhow, I've got an update, I guess they've been up to things in the last 50 years since then.

15
00:00:47,340 --> 00:00:49,340
Not just fighting blues musicians anymore.

16
00:00:49,340 --> 00:00:55,340
This article is posted on September 22nd, 2023 by Mack Lamoro.

17
00:00:55,340 --> 00:00:59,420
Neo-Nazi Fight Clubs are growing rapidly new research shows.

18
00:00:59,420 --> 00:01:04,380
A new report shared with Vice News outlines the massive growth of so-called active clubs.

19
00:01:04,380 --> 00:01:06,540
That's the title of them, active clubs.

20
00:01:06,540 --> 00:01:11,340
Neo-Nazi fitness and fight clubs have experienced in both the United States and internationally.

21
00:01:11,340 --> 00:01:16,300
Active clubs, neo-nazi clubs that focus on fitness and martial arts training are growing at a rapid pace,

22
00:01:16,300 --> 00:01:17,580
and not just in the United States.

23
00:01:17,580 --> 00:01:23,740
From Denmark to France and Canada, semi-autonomous white supremacist groups have been popping up across the globe

24
00:01:23,740 --> 00:01:26,300
and recruiting white young men to come and train.

25
00:01:26,300 --> 00:01:31,500
According to a new report by the Counter Extremism Project that was shared with Vice News,

26
00:01:31,500 --> 00:01:37,100
quote, since the creation of the first active club in late 2020, at least 100 active clubs

27
00:01:37,100 --> 00:01:40,140
have been created in the US, Canada, and Europe.

28
00:01:40,140 --> 00:01:40,940
What?

29
00:01:40,940 --> 00:01:43,420
This is an unprecedented, oh, quote again.

30
00:01:43,420 --> 00:01:44,780
I guess I never stopped that.

31
00:01:44,780 --> 00:01:45,420
Fair quote.

32
00:01:45,420 --> 00:01:46,220
I'll just keep going.

33
00:01:46,220 --> 00:01:47,420
I'm just gonna keep going.

34
00:01:47,420 --> 00:01:49,180
This is an unprecedented growth.

35
00:01:50,060 --> 00:01:50,780
It's just weird.

36
00:01:50,780 --> 00:01:52,700
Usually they have the said thing in the middle.

37
00:01:52,700 --> 00:01:55,100
But no, just quote to quote.

38
00:01:55,100 --> 00:01:56,700
This is an unprecedented growth.

39
00:01:56,700 --> 00:02:00,220
I've never seen a network in right-wing extremism grow so fast.

40
00:02:00,220 --> 00:02:02,940
Usually it takes years to build a transnational network.

41
00:02:02,940 --> 00:02:03,820
It's concerning.

42
00:02:03,820 --> 00:02:08,460
Alexander Ritzman, the report's author and senior advisor to the CEP, told Vice News.

43
00:02:08,460 --> 00:02:14,140
Active clubs could best be described as localized neo-nazi groups built around the idea of working

44
00:02:14,140 --> 00:02:17,900
out and training martial arts, typically boxing in Brazil and jujitsu together.

45
00:02:17,900 --> 00:02:22,140
The groups are explicitly white nationalists, but like some other modern racist groups,

46
00:02:22,140 --> 00:02:24,620
try at best to hide their true intentions.

47
00:02:24,620 --> 00:02:28,940
The groups are run semi-autonomously on a local level and according to the paper,

48
00:02:28,940 --> 00:02:31,740
can range in size from five to 25 members.

49
00:02:31,740 --> 00:02:36,780
They were founded by Robert Rondo, an American neo-nazi known for his ties to street fighting

50
00:02:36,780 --> 00:02:41,820
organizations and running from a federal charge for which he was arrested last spring in late 2020

51
00:02:41,820 --> 00:02:45,900
after he was inspired by similar clubs in Europe and activists in Europe.

52
00:02:45,900 --> 00:02:49,020
Since that time, the CEP report states that there are quote,

53
00:02:49,020 --> 00:02:53,260
at least 46 in the United States across 34 US states.

54
00:02:53,260 --> 00:02:55,500
And they have a little map that goes with this here.

55
00:02:55,500 --> 00:02:57,180
Basically there's one in each state.

56
00:02:57,180 --> 00:02:59,580
New Mexico's breathe, so you know, safe haven.

57
00:02:59,580 --> 00:03:03,420
And some reason Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, all free of it too.

58
00:03:03,420 --> 00:03:07,340
Well, New Mexico is because of your donies there of course.

59
00:03:07,340 --> 00:03:08,940
What's your donies fighting them off?

60
00:03:10,940 --> 00:03:14,220
Horrible person, but hates neo-nazi states.

61
00:03:14,220 --> 00:03:16,060
Hates neo-nazi states.

62
00:03:16,060 --> 00:03:21,340
The groups have now begun appearing in real life, particularly at anti-LGBTQ protests and have

63
00:03:21,340 --> 00:03:25,180
hosted fight tournaments where participants from across the United States come in.

64
00:03:25,180 --> 00:03:27,420
Large events are happening outside of America as well.

65
00:03:27,420 --> 00:03:30,460
According to Active Club Canada's social media posts,

66
00:03:30,460 --> 00:03:35,500
they recently held a national event where members from 10 clubs that are sprinkled across the

67
00:03:35,500 --> 00:03:37,340
country came and trained together.

68
00:03:37,340 --> 00:03:40,940
So kind of thinly veiled there, but Canada has 10 of these apparently.

69
00:03:40,940 --> 00:03:41,660
Quite a lot.

70
00:03:41,660 --> 00:03:41,980
Yeah.

71
00:03:41,980 --> 00:03:43,180
10 more than we need.

72
00:03:43,180 --> 00:03:45,020
I think that's one for province, is it not?

73
00:03:45,020 --> 00:03:45,500
Maybe.

74
00:03:45,500 --> 00:03:46,380
Who knows?

75
00:03:46,380 --> 00:03:47,260
It's impossible to count.

76
00:03:48,300 --> 00:03:52,300
The report breaks down several of the countries where the clubs were started internationally.

77
00:03:52,300 --> 00:03:57,340
The most prominent are Canada and France, but it also includes Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland,

78
00:03:57,340 --> 00:04:01,900
Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the UK, and Sweden.

79
00:04:01,900 --> 00:04:06,220
Vice news was told by a former member of the American Active Club that they offer assistance

80
00:04:06,220 --> 00:04:09,340
to each other, especially while a club is getting up off its feet.

81
00:04:09,340 --> 00:04:12,620
The reports also include evidence of this occurring internationally,

82
00:04:12,620 --> 00:04:17,980
in the most extreme cases, an Estonian national helped found a Swedish Active Club before being

83
00:04:17,980 --> 00:04:20,140
deported from the country in 2022.

84
00:04:20,140 --> 00:04:23,820
After being sent back to his country of birth, the man then started an Active Club

85
00:04:23,820 --> 00:04:25,180
organization in Estonia.

86
00:04:25,180 --> 00:04:27,180
There are several reasons for the group's rapid growth.

87
00:04:27,180 --> 00:04:29,980
Firstly, there is an ease of entry to starting clubs.

88
00:04:29,980 --> 00:04:34,460
Anyone anywhere can essentially start one, and if it becomes big enough, it will be recognized.

89
00:04:34,460 --> 00:04:39,020
Secondly, Active Clubs are part of the latest iteration of white nationalism, dubbed,

90
00:04:39,020 --> 00:04:44,220
White Supremacy 3.0, where groups present a softer face to the public.

91
00:04:44,220 --> 00:04:48,380
This aids them both in recruitment and keeping law enforcement from looking too closely.

92
00:04:48,380 --> 00:04:52,700
Quote, when recruiting, Active Club members should not talk about Jews and history,

93
00:04:52,700 --> 00:04:58,460
and instead the focus in public should be on brotherhood, community, fitness, and self-defense.

94
00:04:58,460 --> 00:04:59,980
Breeze the CEP report.

95
00:04:59,980 --> 00:05:04,300
They're not hiding anything though, we know what their beliefs are.

96
00:05:04,300 --> 00:05:08,380
Well yeah, but if you're leading that way, and this is how it works,

97
00:05:08,380 --> 00:05:10,060
we can probably talk about this more at the end.

98
00:05:10,060 --> 00:05:15,500
But there's an incredibly large group of just outside of racism territory,

99
00:05:15,500 --> 00:05:20,540
where you talk about things with a veiled understanding that it is these racial topics,

100
00:05:20,540 --> 00:05:26,220
whether it be Jews, minority groups, sexual minority groups, visible minorities, anything like that.

101
00:05:26,220 --> 00:05:31,260
But the wording is not emphasized on the specific words, where you can kind of pretend,

102
00:05:31,260 --> 00:05:36,060
or at least people listening can pretend, or take a better interpretation or intention

103
00:05:36,060 --> 00:05:38,780
from the words to get away with what they're doing.

104
00:05:38,780 --> 00:05:41,340
Alex Jones falls into this category all the time.

105
00:05:41,340 --> 00:05:43,340
Yeah, I mean that makes sense.

106
00:05:43,340 --> 00:05:46,700
And they're clearly saying, look it's the same playbook here, don't say Jews,

107
00:05:46,700 --> 00:05:48,780
say we're just a community.

108
00:05:48,780 --> 00:05:53,500
Yeah, I don't think that's, it might be fooling people actually, I don't know.

109
00:05:53,500 --> 00:05:56,780
Yeah, and these guys are still able to exist.

110
00:05:56,780 --> 00:06:01,500
Vice News has spoken to several people who had worked with Active Clubs and helped recruit people in the movement.

111
00:06:01,500 --> 00:06:05,100
They said they would slowly start introducing racist ideas and activities

112
00:06:05,100 --> 00:06:09,260
as time went on and the members became more and more ingrained in the club.

113
00:06:09,260 --> 00:06:12,860
In the end though, the goal was obviously to train for future violence.

114
00:06:12,860 --> 00:06:16,700
The report outlines that this training isn't simply to build bonds among the white

115
00:06:16,700 --> 00:06:19,900
nationalists and create loyalty by helping a young man become a fit.

116
00:06:19,900 --> 00:06:22,220
It's also to prepare a group for future violence.

117
00:06:22,220 --> 00:06:26,780
In some cases, members of Active Clubs have bragged about doing paramilitary style training,

118
00:06:26,780 --> 00:06:29,180
a few have taken part in criminal activities.

119
00:06:29,180 --> 00:06:31,260
In a lengthy quote that's included in the report,

120
00:06:31,260 --> 00:06:35,980
Rondo outlines that he's hoping to build something quote, like the minute men militia

121
00:06:35,980 --> 00:06:40,940
in the early stages of the Revolutionary War or in the future when there is a quote,

122
00:06:40,940 --> 00:06:44,860
mass movement and a mass organization and quote, rate and command it.

123
00:06:44,860 --> 00:06:49,260
So is that even legal if they're just coming out and seeing that?

124
00:06:49,260 --> 00:06:52,300
See, they're not specific threatening anything.

125
00:06:52,300 --> 00:06:53,340
That's the problem.

126
00:06:53,340 --> 00:06:54,780
Yeah, this is right on the.

127
00:06:54,780 --> 00:06:55,980
But they said it.

128
00:06:56,860 --> 00:06:59,340
Yeah, and there's a large group like this,

129
00:06:59,340 --> 00:07:02,060
like Proud Boys would kind of fall into this category.

130
00:07:02,060 --> 00:07:05,180
They're not quite there and they're a terrorist organization in Canada.

131
00:07:05,180 --> 00:07:07,900
Like they've been defined as that classified as that.

132
00:07:07,900 --> 00:07:09,420
We have one paragraph left.

133
00:07:09,420 --> 00:07:11,180
So let's just finish this off quote.

134
00:07:11,180 --> 00:07:13,100
He's not expecting a boxing match.

135
00:07:13,100 --> 00:07:17,260
It's more likely that they're actually preparing for targeted violence on a professional level

136
00:07:17,260 --> 00:07:21,340
rather than just saying, well, we like boxing and sports and maybe if we're in a bar and

137
00:07:21,340 --> 00:07:23,740
there's a fight, we can win against the other guys.

138
00:07:23,740 --> 00:07:27,100
This could be the smartest, most dangerous way to organize right wing targeted violence

139
00:07:27,100 --> 00:07:30,460
that I've seen for a long time said Richmond, the report's author.

140
00:07:30,460 --> 00:07:31,820
And that's the end of the article.

141
00:07:31,820 --> 00:07:38,060
So yeah, information that I feel like everybody should know there is a rise of Nazis kind of

142
00:07:38,060 --> 00:07:38,620
showing up.

143
00:07:38,620 --> 00:07:42,380
And like the picture right at the front here, Chelsea, I'm just going to share my screen quick

144
00:07:42,380 --> 00:07:43,580
so you can see this.

145
00:07:43,580 --> 00:07:46,700
It's not thinly veiled that they're Nazis.

146
00:07:46,700 --> 00:07:48,220
Like it's pretty overt.

147
00:07:48,220 --> 00:07:53,500
Yeah, I would probably say that it's kind of also reminds me a little bit of a cult.

148
00:07:53,500 --> 00:07:57,260
Yeah, well, and their tactics definitely fall into that category as well.

149
00:07:57,260 --> 00:08:01,980
Because they're saying, no, don't talk about our worst ideas until they're too committed

150
00:08:01,980 --> 00:08:03,260
to us to back out.

151
00:08:03,260 --> 00:08:05,820
Yeah, that's really concerning.

152
00:08:05,820 --> 00:08:07,900
And that's also what I was going to ask you.

153
00:08:07,900 --> 00:08:12,540
Do you think that there's a rise in that currently right now?

154
00:08:12,540 --> 00:08:13,980
Yes, yes, there is.

155
00:08:13,980 --> 00:08:18,220
Okay, with that being said, can I share with you something that there is no such thing as

156
00:08:18,220 --> 00:08:24,060
a coincidence in my late night browsing on Reddit being posted around my community right

157
00:08:24,060 --> 00:08:27,260
now have been spotted these signs around.

158
00:08:27,260 --> 00:08:28,380
I'll read it to you.

159
00:08:28,380 --> 00:08:30,620
Whites only parents and thoughts.

160
00:08:30,620 --> 00:08:35,420
Are you looking for somewhere your children can play with others that look like them?

161
00:08:35,420 --> 00:08:38,940
Are they tired of being minority in their schools or daycare?

162
00:08:38,940 --> 00:08:44,780
Escape forced diversity and join other proud parents of European children as we create an

163
00:08:44,780 --> 00:08:48,060
atmosphere in which our kids can feel they belong.

164
00:08:48,060 --> 00:08:53,180
Invest in your child's sense of well-being and racial identity by giving them the gift

165
00:08:53,180 --> 00:08:56,860
of time spent among their own people because they deserve it.

166
00:08:56,860 --> 00:08:59,740
That's being posted around my community right now.

167
00:08:59,740 --> 00:09:02,060
Chelsea, have you ever heard the 14 words?

168
00:09:02,060 --> 00:09:02,460
No.

169
00:09:02,460 --> 00:09:05,340
It's very commonly associated with Nazis.

170
00:09:05,340 --> 00:09:07,260
You'll see the numbers 1488.

171
00:09:07,260 --> 00:09:11,660
The eights stand for HH because it's the eighth letter in the alphabet, which is Hail Hitler.

172
00:09:11,660 --> 00:09:17,980
14 refers to the sense and it's we must secure the existence of our people and a future for

173
00:09:17,980 --> 00:09:24,060
white children, which is a Nazi motto, which sounds a lot like what that poster is saying.

174
00:09:24,060 --> 00:09:27,020
Yeah, this has been spotted being put up everywhere.

175
00:09:27,020 --> 00:09:32,220
So there's a lot of really pissed off people that this is going and they're really gluing

176
00:09:32,220 --> 00:09:37,260
it on here on people are trying to rip it off and it's like glued on there and they can't.

177
00:09:38,300 --> 00:09:42,620
That's I thought I would bring that up as well because it's funny.

178
00:09:42,620 --> 00:09:44,620
I just read that and then there's this.

179
00:09:44,620 --> 00:09:45,020
Yeah.

180
00:09:45,020 --> 00:09:49,340
So I thought I would throw that in and also I just wanted to ask, I thought you said that

181
00:09:49,340 --> 00:09:51,740
this might be construed as bad news.

182
00:09:51,740 --> 00:09:52,860
The rise of Nazism.

183
00:09:52,860 --> 00:09:53,420
Yeah.

184
00:09:53,420 --> 00:09:53,900
Yeah.

185
00:09:53,900 --> 00:09:56,220
Would it fall into another category?

186
00:09:57,100 --> 00:09:58,380
News to be conveyed.

187
00:10:00,380 --> 00:10:02,300
I don't have that category yet.

188
00:10:03,740 --> 00:10:04,700
Interesting.

189
00:10:04,700 --> 00:10:05,820
I don't think I'll add it.

190
00:10:06,460 --> 00:10:06,940
Maybe I won't.

191
00:10:06,940 --> 00:10:09,340
I guess I don't really have a sad news category.

192
00:10:09,340 --> 00:10:12,300
I just have news you need to have forced down your ear holes.

193
00:10:12,300 --> 00:10:15,340
Yeah, you only have the one category.

194
00:10:15,340 --> 00:10:16,060
I really do.

195
00:10:18,620 --> 00:10:23,500
And just with regards to that sign too, I always find it super interesting that there's

196
00:10:23,500 --> 00:10:29,900
such an emphasis on white people because if you look at historically like white isn't a category

197
00:10:29,900 --> 00:10:31,660
like even the Nazis weren't about white people.

198
00:10:31,660 --> 00:10:32,860
They were about Aryans.

199
00:10:32,860 --> 00:10:33,260
Yeah.

200
00:10:33,260 --> 00:10:35,660
But then the question really becomes what does that mean?

201
00:10:35,660 --> 00:10:41,420
And if you look at like even Canadian and American history, white is not a group until

202
00:10:41,420 --> 00:10:45,180
like something that you could even describe as being until very recently.

203
00:10:45,180 --> 00:10:48,220
Because like we have Ukrainian descent in our family.

204
00:10:48,220 --> 00:10:52,140
Ukrainians wouldn't be considered white back in the 1960s and earlier.

205
00:10:52,140 --> 00:10:55,180
Irish people were not considered white for a long time.

206
00:10:55,180 --> 00:10:57,980
Italians were not considered white for a long time.

207
00:10:57,980 --> 00:11:02,220
So it's really just this is a made up category to try to create a line.

208
00:11:02,220 --> 00:11:07,980
But within that there's going to be people who also don't believe that all these people count as a pure race.

209
00:11:07,980 --> 00:11:08,540
Interesting.

210
00:11:08,540 --> 00:11:09,580
You put it that way.

211
00:11:09,580 --> 00:11:10,700
I never thought of that.

212
00:11:10,700 --> 00:11:13,740
Because every group's pretty much been discriminated against.

213
00:11:13,740 --> 00:11:14,220
Yeah.

214
00:11:14,220 --> 00:11:18,380
But yeah, that's probably enough focusing on racism for this year.

215
00:11:18,380 --> 00:11:18,700
Okay.

216
00:11:19,260 --> 00:11:20,620
It's fair enough.

217
00:11:20,620 --> 00:11:25,500
So tune in in 48 hours where it probably won't be anything about racism.

218
00:11:25,500 --> 00:11:26,540
That might have a little bit.

219
00:11:26,540 --> 00:11:30,380
It's always an undertone in a lot of our episodes, but not as overt.

220
00:11:30,380 --> 00:11:30,940
It's true.

221
00:11:30,940 --> 00:11:32,220
It does come up a lot.

222
00:11:32,220 --> 00:11:33,900
Anyhow, see you guys on Friday.

223
00:11:33,900 --> 00:11:43,900
Bye.