Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on June 8, 2020

Ten things fans of the Unorthodox Netflix docu-series may not have known about Deborah Feldman, the author behind the novel on which it's based.

Netflix's mesmerizing new miniseries,Unorthodox,is inspired by the bookUnorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of my Hasidic Roots.It is a memoir that details the struggles that Deborah Feldman endured as she separated herself from her Orthodox Jewish community in Williamsburg, New York. While the Netflix show is not entirely faithful to its source material, Deborah Feldman's life isjust as interesting as those of Esther "Esty" Shapiro, the character who represents her inUnorthodox.

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Thoughthere are similarities between Esther Shapiro and Deborah Feldman, Feldman's battleslasted longer, and her story continues to this day. As a successful 33-year-oldauthor, many more things will be written about and by Ms. Feldman before she calls it quits, for she is a true trailblazer and inspirational figure. Here are 10 interesting facts about the life of Deborah Feldman.

As per the guidelines of her community, Deborah Feldman did not have access to a typical education. She could not go to the library, and what she was taught was limited in terms of range of ideas. Feldman had an unquenchable curiosity and thirst for knowledge, though. She would hide the books that she did manage to collect underneath her bed, knowing that they would be confiscated if people in her community found out that she was learning too much about the outside world.

Feldman had a son at the age of 19. She credits this as being the moment she was forced into action, as she didn't want her son living in the same community she was raised in. Feldman convinced her husband to allow her to studybusiness at Saint Lawrence College in New York to help with their financial situation. However, she was actually studying literature, which helped her become the best-sellingyoung author she is today.

One would think that, with everything Deborah Feldman has gone through, she would now reject Judaism as a whole. This is not the case. While she has severed all ties with her community in Brooklyn, she is still proud of her Jewish heritage. She credits much of the traits that have made her so successful to her heritage, including her undying resolve.

Deborah Feldman finally fled her community in 2009 at the age of 23, leaving her husband with their youngson. Unlike inUnorthodox,she did not immediately move to Berlin.

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Instead, she and her sonlived with a few different friends in New York, plotting out how she could successfully pull off this escape without losing custody of her son. She consulted multipleattorneys during this process.

There were several motives behind Deborah Feldman'sbold move to escape her husband andher community with her son. The final straw, however, was a brutal car accident she suffered. She nearly died, and the near-death experience made her realize that she could no longer stand wasting her life away in her loveless marriage while abiding by such restrictive rules. Life is fragile, and she was determined to make the most of it.

Her first novel, detailing her upbringingand eventual escapefrom her Orthodoxcommunity, thrust Deborah Feldman into the public eye. She released a second book in 2014, entitledExodus: A Memoir.This novel regales what shehas gone through since she broke free of her repressive past, including being a single parent, developing herself as a writer, and connecting with some of her older Jewish roots.

Deborah Feldman did eventually move to Germany, it just wasn't immediately following her separation from Hasidic Judaism, as Esther Shapiro did. She moved to Berlin with her son in 2014, to the inner-cityNeuklln district. This area of Berlin is heavily-populated and has recently become known for its artistic inhabitants, many of whom have migrated from other countries, just as Deborah Feldman did. It seems like the perfect place for her to make her home.

In the Netflix series, Esther Shapiro's father is not an active parent due to his alcoholism. Deborah Feldman's father also did not play a big role in her upbringing, though it was due to mental illness. He was unable to care for her, his wife, or himself much of the time, which is also part of the reason Feldman's mother separated from theirarranged marriage.

Deborah Feldman has no way of knowing how her community reacted to her separation from their faith, but she predicts that they were not shocked. Feldman was always unique compared to the other Hasidic residents of Williamsburg. Much like Esther Shapiro warning Yakov "Yanky" Shapirothat she was "not like the other girls," Feldman told her husband that she had opinions and practices that he might not agree with.

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Her Hasidic friends and family members acknowledged this much about her since her childhood. Her grandfather, or her zeidy, even predicted that she would one day give in to these temptations. He was right.

Many of the rules in Hasidic Jewish communities like the one Feldman grew up in do not take safety seriously. Her people's faith in God makes them convinced that they are always in his hands, meaning he would protect themand that safety precautions created by humans were unnecessary. As such, she received little medical attention during her childhood and did not wear a seatbelt while in a car, even while riding in the front seat.

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Sheehan Planas-Arteaga is a writer based out of Miami, FL. He attended Barry University, majoring in English and playing for the school's baseball team. Sheehan was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 2014 MLB Draft, which led to him playing professional baseball for four years. He enjoys reading, dominating in fantasy sports, music, and movies. His favorite color is green.

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Posted By admin on June 8, 2020

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NEW YORK, United States (AP) Long before George Floyd, there was Robert Bandy.

Bandy was a black Army soldier shot and wounded in New York City by a white police officer in 1943. Amid rumours that Bandy had been killed, Harlem erupted.

There were violent protests, pilfering, and a curfew imposed much like what's happening in the city, and across the country, today following the May 25 death of Floyd, a black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into his neck for several minutes.

The racially charged tension between police and protesters isn't new to the city. Helmeted officers roughed up protesters in 1968 after the death of Martin Luther King Jr and during riots in 1991 in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn when a young black child was hit and killed by a car driven by a Hasidic Jew.

More discord came in 2014 after another black man, Eric Garner, was heard on video saying his last words I can't breathe while in a police chokehold.

Floyd, too, said, I can't breathe before his death, a scene that put protesters on another collision course with police on the streets of New York.

Demonstrators have also clashed with police over a range of issues, including 1972 anti-war protests in Manhattan and anti-Communist protests against a visit from then-Cuban President Fidel Castro in 1979.

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Posted By admin on June 8, 2020

One Facebook post falsely claimed the killing of George Floyd in police custody last month was a staged event, meant to rile up opposition to President Donald Trump. Another showed a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. next to a banana an established racist trope.

And a third claimed George Soros, the liberal billionaire, paid white cops to murder black people and black people to riot because race wars keep the sheep in line.

All were shared in recent days by Republican county leaders, some of whom are facing calls to resign from top officials within their own party, including Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn and Gov. Greg Abbott, who called the posts disgusting.

By Friday afternoon, similar posts from at least a dozen GOP chairs across the state had been identified. They have unleashed a firestorm of controversy as Texas Republicans are struggling to beat back Democratic advances in the rapidly diversifying electorate.

I have said it before and I will say it again now: the GOP must not tolerate racism. Of any kind. At any time, George P. Bush, Texas land commissioner and a rising star in the party, said last week via Twitter. I urge them to do the honorable thing and step aside now.

At a news conference Friday, Abbott offered no wider takeaway about what the situation might say about his party in Texas.

The narrow point is this, and that is the death of George Floyd is a travesty and is a result of a criminal act, he said. It should not be the subject of any of these conspiracy theories. And its irresponsible for anyone to promote some conspiracy theory of what is otherwise a brutal act of police violence.

Floyd, who was black, spent most of his life in Texas. He died May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee to Floyds neck for several minutes. His body Friday was taken to North Carolina, where he was born 46 years ago, for a public viewing and private service for family before his funeral in Houston this week.

One resignation

Keith Nielsen was the incoming chairman of the Harris County Republican Party in Houston who posted the quote from Martin Luther King Jr. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere next to a banana, which links black people to monkeys.

Saturday, Nielsen apologized and told the Houston Chronicle he was resigning from his post, which he had been due to start in August. He said he had zero malicious intent and that he used the banana to indicate his feeling that the protests were bananas, or out of control.

The original five chairs whose posts came to light Cynthia Brehm in Bexar County, Sue Piner from Comal County, Jim Kaelin of Nueces County and Lee Lester from Harrison County, as well as Nielsen faced backlash from Democrats and Republicans alike over their social media posts.

But many of the GOP officials who criticized the social media posts as inexcusable Thursday and early Friday did not return calls seeking comment about the posts from the seven other chairs across the state. Nor did they comment about Facebook posts by Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller that included an image of Soros with the text start the race war.

Three county chairs Doug Sanford of Freestone County, Russell Hayter of Hays County and Jaime Durham of Foard County last week each shared a fake advertisement reading Get Paid to be a Professional Anarchist, with a note claiming Soros would pay people $200 for taking action.

Sanford and Hayter did not respond to requests for comment, and Durham only confirmed that she shared the image, noting it was posted on her personal account and declining to elaborate further.

Mostly a joke

Lynne Teinert, chair for Shackelford County, on Saturday shared a picture of Soros with the text, The pandemic isnt working. Start the racial wars.

The suggestion that Soros is puppeteering political happenings behind the scenes has routinely been put forth by conservatives. Soros, who has spent billions of dollars supporting liberal and pro-democracy causes around the world, has long been a target of conspiracy theorists on the ideological right. Some of these theories use his Jewish heritage to invoke anti-Semitic themes.

It was mostly a joke, like the murder hornets, Teinert said. You know, the pandemic didnt work so the murder hornets were next. Its just one thing after another, and it was just a joke.

Cindy Weatherby, GOP chair in Reagan County, shared a post with a series of 21 puzzling questions about Floyds death, including Can someone really not breathe when someone kneels on his neck and is the victim really able to speak for considerable periods of time if he cant breathe? and Why did the kneeling officer appear completely cool and calm, as if he was posing for the camera?

Weatherby said she doesnt believe Floyds murder was staged, but added she thinks some protesters are being paid.

Shawn Tully, GOP chair of Red River County, shared an image Tuesday of the 1992 Los Angeles riots when, after four white police officers were acquitted on almost all charges for severely beating a black man, the city erupted in violent protest. The post Tully shared features a crashed truck and a person lying on the ground, bleeding from the head. It reads, This is why you dont brake for protesters. Tully did not respond to a request for comment.

LaDonna Olivier, GOP chair from Reeves County, shared a post Monday saying people are trying to turn George [Floyd] into a saint but he was a brutal criminal.

Olivier said she is aware some of the theories she shares may be untrue.

As of Sunday, none of the four GOP chairs called on to resign by party members had offered to step aside, and at least two said they intended to stay. Abbott did not respond to requests for comment about whether he would call for the resignations of the other GOP chairs who peddled the postings.

Elections peril

Black leaders and the Republican Partys centrists have argued these racist controversies imperil the partys ability to woo minority voters, who are key to maintaining conservatives longtime advantage in the state. Last year, the Tarrant County Republican Party in Fort Worth was embroiled in controversy when some of its members tried to oust a Muslim party official.

The fact that in one day 4 Texas GOP chairs have come under condemnation for racist remarks including MY county should make it CLEAR AS DAY we have a problem in this party and yall need to talk to more black people, tweeted Charles Blain, the black founder and executive director of Urban Reform, a Houston nonprofit based on free-market solutions to urban issues.

County chairs are the face of our local parties, and statements like these, though they dont represent the mentality of Republicans as a whole, paint us in a bad light, he said in a follow-up interview. But he said he hoped the voters would take the partys swift condemnation into consideration going forward.

As the election approaches, the Democratic Party spurred by the near-defeat of Cruz by former Democratic congressman Beto ORourke in 2018, plus a gain of 14 state legislative seats has poured millions of dollars into Texas, which it sees as increasingly winnable.

In a statement Saturday, the Republican Party of Texas tried to shift the focus to the media and Democrats.

The Republican Party of Texas has made its position and values clear. Reporters dug through Republican county chairs social media with a fervor we have not seen from the press in decades, the statement said. Given what we all know about Joe you aint black Bidens and the Democrat Partys horrible track record on race, we can only imagine what they will find when they do the same with the Texas Democrat Party.

Bylaws change?

Blain, the conservative nonprofit president, said the state Republican Party needs to change its bylaws to allow the partys executive committee to remove county chairs in situations like this when they refuse to resign.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who also chastised Brehm and Nielsen, responded to questions with a press release saying the party needs to call out racism.

Going forward, we know that some Democrats and their allies in the media will continue to throw out charges of racism anytime they disagree with us on any issue, the statement reads. Without taking that bait, we should continue to unequivocally condemn racism where we see it in our party and in their party.

Patrick has previously faced criticism for referring to undocumented immigrants as an illegal invasion and boycotting a prayer led by a Muslim cleric on the floor of the Senate.

James Dickey, chair of the Republican Party of Texas, issued a statement Friday afternoon calling for all five chairs originally identified to resign, saying their social media posts do not reflect the partys history or values.

This story includes information from The Texas Tribune, The Associated Press and The Washington Post.

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Conspiracy theories and racist memes: How a dozen Texas GOP county chairs caused turmoil within the party - Longview News-Journal

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Posted By admin on June 7, 2020

JTA Right-wing conspiracy theorists are increasingly claiming that George Soros is funding recent protests and riots across the United States in the aftermath of the George Floyd killing.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, aggressive language towards Soros has exploded on social media this week. Negative tweets about the billionaire Jewish philanthropist rose from 20,000 per day on May 26 to 500,000 per day on May 30.

The posts, according to the ADL, mostly allege (without evidence) that Soros is funding riots across the country, and that he is backing Antifa, a loose network of anti-fascist activists whom US President Donald Trump has blamed for the violence, also without citing evidence.

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The ADL said that the Soros theories can serve as a gateway to the antisemitic subculture that blames Jews for the riots.

People posting about Soros include prominent Trump supporters like Twitter pundit Candace Owens and actor James Woods.

Soros, a Hungarian-born financier who funds a variety of liberal causes in the United States and globally, is a favorite bogeyman of the right and conspiracy theorists in particular. Recent Soros conspiracies have alleged that he is driving the spread of COVID-19 in order to profit from a future vaccine and that he pays left-wing protesters.

Trump tweeted in 2018 that Soros paid protesters opposed to Brett Kavanaughs Supreme Court confirmation. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban also put up a billboard campaign in 2017 opposing Soros that was criticized as anti-Semitic.

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When a friend shared a Facebook post with Michelle Burris inviting her to protest in downtown Washington, D.C., last Saturday, she knew she had to go. So she bought a Black Lives Matter mask from a street vendor before marching the streets of the district with a "No Justice, No Peace" sign.

After that march ended, she pulled up details on Instagram for a car caravan demonstration just a few blocks away. "It was extremely powerful, not only Facebook but Instagram," Burris said. "It was very easy to mobilize."

Protesters are using a variety of technology tools to organize rallies, record police violence and communicate during the marches sweeping the U.S. and other countries following the death of George Floyd. Some of that involves secure messaging services like WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram, which can encrypt messages to thwart spies. Those apps, along with others for listening to police scanners and recording video, are enjoying an uptick in popularity.

But experts say convenience and reach are key. "Reaching as many people as possible is the number one criterion for which platform someone is going to use," said Steve Jones, a University of Illinois at Chicago media researcher who studies communication technology.

That means Twitter, Facebook and Facebook-owned Instagram remain the easiest ways for people to organize and document the mass protests. Facebook's tools remain popular despite a barrage of criticism over the platform's inaction after President Donald Trump posted a message that suggested protesters in Minneapolis could be shot.

"I don't want to support or be a part of something that is possibly supporting Trump and his racist, hate filed spew," said Sarah Wildman, who's been to three protests in Atlanta and has used Instagram exclusively to locate and to document the demonstrations she attended. But she said she feels that, at this point, "the benefits of Instagram outweigh not using it."

Half a century ago during the civil rights protests, Jones said, it was almost impossible to know what was going on during a protest. "There was a lot of rumor, a lot of hearsay," he said. "Now you can reach everyone almost instantaneously."

Wildman said she uses Instagram's "live" function to find out what is happening during protests, especially when protesters in the back might not know what's happening at the front. At one, she said, people started yelling that police were using tear gas but it wasn't true, which she learned by checking Instagram.

Organizers are also using Telegram, an app that allows private messages to be sent to thousands of people at once, creating channels for specific cities to give updates on protest times and locations, as well as updates on where police are making arrests or staging. One New York City Telegram channel for the protests grew from just under 300 subscribers on Monday to nearly 2,500 by Friday.

During a peaceful rally in Providence, Rhode Island, on Friday, Anjel Newmann, 32, said that while she's mostly using Instagram and Facebook to organize, younger people are using Snapchat. The main problem: It's hard to tell which online flyers are legitimate. "That's one of the things we haven't figured out yet," she said. "There was a flyer going around saying this was canceled today."

The simplicity of shooting and sharing video has also made possible recordings of violence that can spread to millions within moments. A smartphone video of Floyd's death helped spark the broad outrage that led to the protests.

Apps like Signal are seeing an uptick in downloads according to Apptopia, which tracks such data. Signal was downloaded 37,000 times over the weekend in the U.S., it said, more than at any other point since it launched in 2014. Other private messaging apps, such as Telegram and Wickr, have not seen a similar uptick.

One new user is Toby Anderson, 30, who also attended the Providence rally on Friday. Anderson, who is biracial, said he downloaded the encrypted Signal app several days earlier at the request of his mom. "She's a black woman in America," he said, worried about his safety and eager to grasp any additional measure of security she could.

Meanwhile, apps like Police Scanner and 5-0 Police Scanner, which allow anyone to listen to live police dispatch chatter and may be illegal in some states racked up 213,000 downloads over the weekend, Apptopia said. That is 125% more than the weekend before and a record for the category. Citizen, which sends real-time alerts and lets users post live video of protests and crime scenes, was downloaded 49,000 times.

On the down side, the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism said in a blog post this week that it has found white nationalists using Telegram to try to wreak havoc during the protests.

"Some, especially those in the accelerationist camp, are celebrating the prospect of increased violence, which they hope will lead to a long-promised 'race war,'" the ADL said Monday. "They are extremely active online, urging other white supremacists to take full advantage of the moment."

In one Telegram channel, the ADL found, participants suggested murdering protesters, then spreading rumors to blame the deaths on police snipers.

Others want to further exacerbate racial tensions. "Good time to stroke race relations" and "post black live's don't matter stickers," a user posted with misspellings to the Reformthestates Telegram channel, according to the ADL.

___

AP technology writer Matt O'Brien contributed to this article from Providence, Rhode Island.

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It starts at home

"I hope that we can all realize that we have our part to play in this," TODAY's Al Roker said in a discussion with his co-anchors. Before we can teach our own children, we need to understand anti-racism ourselves and then lead by example.

On her Facebook page, authorLuvvie Ajayi("I'm Judging You") recommended a list entitled "75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice," curated by Corinne Shutack, with advice like: "45. Seek out a diverse group of friends for your kids" and "46. Seek out a diverse group of friends for you."

More from TODAY:How to talk to kids about racism, protests and injustice'So glad I did it': Mom takes son, 7, to peaceful protest9 things kids need to make it through Covid-19crisis

Author and teen expert Lisa Damour ("Untangled," "Under Pressure") shared the words of Shaker Heights, Ohio, high school principal Eric Juli, along witha Google documentthat has been shared all over social media with a list of anti-racism resources for adults and children.

Author, blogger, and leadership consultantKaren Walrond (Chookooloonks)compiled a list of "works by amazing people and organizations of all races, creeds, faiths and nationalities" for her readers to follow and explore "to help you live a more inclusive life, spark some self-reflection on how you can be an ally (and how you might be a part of the problem) and finally, inspire you to make light."

Walrond's list includes work byRevolutionary Love Project activist Valarie Kaurand author Mira Jacob ("Good Talk").

And Liz Gumbinner and Kristen Chase ofCool Mom Picksalso curated a list of things white parents can do as well as how to talk to their kids on their own Facebook page.

"We need to raise the next generation of compassionate, empathetic, enlightened kids," the pair wrote. "It's on us, parents. We can do this."

In fighting racism, a critical component is talking to children about race, discrimination, and how to be anti-racist. Though parents' first reflex might be to aim for their children to be "colorblind," blogger and photographer Jennifer Borget of Cherish365 recently explained to her followers why that is not the most helpful goal.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) hascompiled a guidefor educators about engaging youth in conversations about race that can also be useful for parents.

"From police-involved deaths of Black and Latinx men to everyday racism to Confederate flag controversy with sports figures and celebrities getting involved in the conversation, there is a lot to grapple with and discuss," the ADL writes in their introduction.

Another good resource is theCenter for Racial Justice in Education's listof resources for talking to children about race, racism, and racialized violence.Common Sense Mediaalso compiled a list of media resources to help spark discussions with children, including movies, books, TV shows, and video games.

Finally, sometimes the best ways to communicate to children, especially younger children, is throughbooks. Here's a sample list of 31 books created byThe Conscious KidandAmerican Indians in Children's Literature.

"These books showcase the many ways people of all ages and races have worked to disrupt racism and highlight how race intersects with other issues, such as capitalism, class, and colonization," writes the authors.

"The majority of books center on BIPOC [Black and Indigenous People of Color], whose lives and bodies have been on the front lines of racial justice work, yet whose stories often go untold. The essential work of white activists is also included to underscore that anti-racist work is not the responsibility of BIPOC; and exemplify the ways white people have stood up against racial injustice."

The article "How Do You Teach Your Kids Anti-Racism? These Resources Will Help" originally appeared on TODAY.

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Posted By admin on June 7, 2020

WASHINGTON As mass protests rage across the United States over the police killing of an unarmed black man, right-wing conspiracy theorists have turned to a predictable bogeyman: George Soros.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, a new wave of false claims about the liberal billionaire has surfaced since demonstrations began to oppose systemic racism after George Floyds death.

In cities across America over the last week, peaceful protests have descended into violence and mayhem, with clashes between police and the public intensifying Monday after US President Donald Trump threatened to unleash the military on American citizens, and cops fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters in Washington, D.C. and elsewhere.

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We have definitely seen a very dramatic increase in the number of anti-Soros conspiracy theories, said Aryeh Tuchman, associate director of the ADLs Center on Extremism. It has been very common among right-wing pundits and leaders in the media to ascribe the activity on the ground to Soros, who they claim is paying protesters to show up and advance his alleged anti-American agenda.

That unfounded assertion has been circulating on social media and other platforms frequented by far-right trolls. The group conducted an analysis of Twitter and found that the number of tweets opposing Soros had skyrocketed since the protests began.

They went from around 20,000 a day to more than 500,000 a day, he said.

The idea has been advanced by users with massive followings, such as actor and right-wing provocateur James Woods, an ardent supporter of Trump

Lets be clear, he tweeted Monday. Our problem today is not black versus white. Our problem today is George Soros versus America.

Woods has 2.4 million Twitter followers.

Yet these conspiracy theories have not been exclusive to the web.

Tuchman said the ADL spotted anti-Soros signs at lockdown protests last week. At the same time, these notions have become a common theme in conservative media.

On Monday, for instance, a guest on the Fox News Network called to throw Soros out of the country.

Follow the money and I suspect youre going to find Open Society Foundation and George Soross fingerprints, saidRepublican activist Niger Innis onThe Ingraham Angle, referring to Soross grant-making foundation. That man should have been deported several decades ago. He isthe destruction to our civilization and a clear and present danger to our country.

In an interview with The Times of Israel, Tuchman said that there has been a range of such theories about Soros, but all essentially pin the blame on him for the widespread unrest.

Some of them are relatively simple: it is people who claim without evidence that Soros is paying protesters, busing them in, things like that, he said.

Then you do have a more radical set of conspiracy theories where they not only say that hes bringing the protesters in and paying them, but that this was actually part of his agenda to [bring about] the downfall of the United States or implement some globalist program, or lead to the confiscation of guns.

Demonstrators gather to protest the death of George Floyd, near the White House in Washington, DC on June 1, 2020. (AP/Evan Vucci)

Soros, who is Jewish, has frequently beenthe target of conspiracy theories, many of which are anti-Semitic by nature.

American Jewish leaders and anti-Semitism watchdogs have described him as a modern-day Rothschild, fodder for bigots to make baseless allegations that allude to wealthy Jews seeking world domination.

That said, Tuchman found that the recent Soros conspiracy theories surrounding the George Floyd protests did not focus on the US business magnates Jewishness.

The number of these conspiracy theories that explicitly invoke anti-Semitism is very, very small, he said. Theres not this massive uptick in anti-Semitic George Soros conspiracy theories. The vast majority are focused on Soros as a political actor or as a social actor and are not focusing on his Jewish heritage.

Still, he added, the dissemination of these ideas can often lead to more overt forms of anti-Semitism.

Once a person believes in a non-anti-Semitic conspiracy theory, they are more likely to accept an anti-Semitic version of a conspiracy theory, he said. And we know that there is a thriving anti-Semitic subculture, which uses Soros as a shorthand for globalist, Jewish efforts to dominate the world and undermine the nation.

Illustrative: Ben Garrison drew this cartoon in 2017. It shows George Soros being manipulated by a hand of the Rothschilds, and Soros in turn manipulating Trumps former National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and retired Gen. David Petraeus. (Ben Garrison/Twitter via JTA)

Born in Budapest in 1930, Soros was 13 years old when the Nazis invaded Hungary. He survived the Holocaust, and his family purchased documents that said they were Christians. By 1947, he had immigrated to England to become a student at the London School of Economics.

From there, he started his work in finance through a London bank, Singer and Friedlander, where he was a broker. Years later, he founded Soros Fund Management.

With his wealth, Soros has become a frequent donor to liberal and Democratic causes; his net worth is estimated to beroughly $8 billion, making him one of the richest people in the world.

But since entering the political fold, he has also been regularly inculpated for things he simply did not do.

In 2011, he was falsely accused of funding the Occupy Wall Street movement, and over the last several years, Trump has more than once wrongly blamed Soros for fomenting turmoil.

In October 2018, he claimed without evidence that the businessman was paying protesters to demonstrate against the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual assault, andspread a lie that Soros was behind so-called migrant caravans trying to infiltrate the country.

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Posted By admin on June 7, 2020

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump and his allies have sought to blame left-wing extremists for the violence and looting at U.S. protests over police brutality while local authorities and watchdog groups have pointed to the threat posed by right-wing movements.

FILE PHOTO: A flag, bearing a leftist symbol associated with Antifa, is reflected behind a Boston Police officer during the Straight Pride Parade rally in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., August 31, 2019. REUTERS/Faith Ninivaggi

A recent U.S. intelligence assessment reviewed by Reuters this week said most of the violence at protests appears to have been driven by opportunists. But the assessment also said there was some evidence that organized extremists were tied to violence or promoting it online.

President Donald Trump and some fellow Republicans have sought to blame the left-wing anti-fascist Antifa movement but have presented little evidence.

Liberal watchdog groups and some local authorities have warned that members of the anti-government boogaloo movement or white supremacist groups could infiltrate protests.

Federal prosecutors filed charges this week against three alleged boogaloo members accused of plotting to cause violence and destruction at Las Vegas protest.

Antifa, short for anti-fascist, is an amorphous movement whose adherents oppose people or groups they consider authoritarian or racist, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which monitors extremists. Antifa aims to intimidate and dissuade racists, but its aggressive tactics including physical confrontations can create a vicious, self-defeating cycle of attacks, counter-attacks and blame, the ADL said.

The FBI has been increasingly concerned about violence perpetrated by Antifa at public events, according to a 2018 report by the Congressional Research Service, a public policy research arm of the U.S. Congress.

WHY IS ANTIFA SO WELL-KNOWN?

Antifa grew in notoriety following a 2017 rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, organized by white supremacists and white nationalists who clashed violently with counter-protesters. Trump drew criticism afterward when he said there were very fine people on both sides and blamed many sides for the violence. Trump specifically mentioned Antifa.

You know, they show up in the helmets and the black masks, and theyve got clubs and theyve got everything, Trump said of Antifa days after the rally.

Mark Bray, author of Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook, said Trump was focusing on Antifa to redirect the conversation away from social and economic discontent in the United States at the heart of the protests.

There just arent enough members of Antifa groups out there to do everything theyre being blamed for, said Bray, a lecturer in history at Rutgers University in New Jersey.

The anti-government boogaloo movement embodies a militant ideology whose members believe the United States will enter into a second civil war, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups. Boogaloo followers anticipate the government will attempt to confiscate peoples guns.

The boogaloo ideology itself is not white supremacist, but some white supremacist groups have embraced it, the ADL found.

Whereas the militia movement (and) radical gun rights activists typically promote the boogaloo as a war against the government or liberals, white supremacists conceive of the boogaloo as a race war or a white revolution, the ADL wrote in a November analysis.

Boogaloo groups have grown in popularity online in the past year. The Tech Transparency Project, a Washington-based tech watchdog group, found tens of thousands of people joined boogaloo-related Facebook groups over a 30-day period in March and April as stay-at-home orders took effect across the United States to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Project researchers found discussions about tactical strategies, weapons and creating explosives in some boogaloo Facebook groups.

A small number of white supremacists and white nationalists have been spotted at recent protests, according to watchdog groups and media reports. The Nationalist Social Club, a neo-Nazi group, appeared to have had some presence at protests in Boston and Knoxville, Tennessee, the ADL said. Members of the far-right Proud Boys were seen at North Carolina and Oregon protests last weekend, according to media reports.

Nate Snyder, a former U.S. Department of Homeland Security counter-terrorism official, said it is likely anarchists were among the protesters in recent days, but doubted they would pose a credible violent threat.

Reporting by Ted Hesson; Editing by Ross Colvin and Will Dunham

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Explainer: Who are Antifa, the 'boogaloo' movement and others blamed in U.S. protest violence? - Reuters

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Posted By admin on June 7, 2020

U.S. President Donald Trump and his allies have sought to blame left-wing extremists for the violence and looting at U.S. protests over police brutality while local authorities and watchdog groups have pointed to the threat posed by right-wing movements.

A recent U.S. intelligence assessment reviewed by Reuters this week said most of the violence at protests appears to have been driven by opportunists. But the assessment also said there was some evidence that organized extremists were tied to violence or promoting it online.

WHICH GROUPS ARE BEING SINGLED OUT?

President Donald Trump and some fellow Republicans have sought to blame the left-wing anti-fascist Antifa movement but have presented little evidence.

Liberal watchdog groups and some local authorities have warned that members of the anti-government "boogaloo" movement or white supremacist groups could infiltrate protests.

Federal prosecutors filed charges this week against three alleged boogaloo members accused of plotting to cause violence and destruction at Las Vegas protest.

WHAT IS ANTIFA?

Antifa, short for "anti-fascist," is an amorphous movement whose adherents oppose people or groups they consider authoritarian or racist, according to the Anti-Defamation League(ADL), which monitors extremists. Antifa aims to "intimidate and dissuade racists," but its aggressive tactics including physical confrontations can create "a vicious, self-defeating cycle of attacks, counter-attacks and blame," the ADL said.

The FBI has been increasingly concerned about violence perpetrated by Antifa at public events, according to a 2018 report by the Congressional Research Service, a public policy research arm of the U.S. Congress.

WHY IS ANTIFA SO WELL-KNOWN?

Antifa grew in notoriety following a 2017 rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, organized by white supremacists and white nationalists who clashed violently with counter-protesters. Trump drew criticism afterward when he said there were "very fine people on both sides" and blamed "many sides" for the violence. Trump specifically mentioned Antifa.

"You know, they show up in the helmets and the black masks, and they've got clubs and they've got everything," Trump said of Antifa days after the rally.

Mark Bray, author of "Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook," said Trump was focusing on Antifa to redirect the conversation away from social and economic discontent in the United States at the heart of the protests.

"There just aren't enough members of Antifa groups out there to do everything they're being blamed for," said Bray, a lecturer in history at Rutgers University in New Jersey.

WHAT IS THE BOOGALOO MOVEMENT?

The anti-government boogaloo movement embodies a militant ideology whose members believe the United States will enter into a second civil war, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups. Boogaloo followers anticipate the government will attempt to confiscate people's guns.

The boogaloo ideology itself is not white supremacist, but some white supremacist groups have embraced it, the ADL found.

"Whereas the militia movement (and) radical gun rights activists typically promote the boogaloo as a war against the government or liberals, white supremacists conceive of the boogaloo as a race war or a white revolution," the ADL wrote in a November analysis.

Boogaloo groups have grown in popularity online in the past year. The Tech Transparency Project, a Washington-based tech watchdog group, found tens of thousands of people joined boogaloo-related Facebook groups over a 30-day period in March and April as stay-at-home orders took effect across the United States to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. Project researchers found discussions about tactical strategies, weapons and creating explosives in some boogaloo Facebook groups.

WHAT ABOUT WHITE SUPREMACISTS AND WHITE NATIONALISTS?

A small number of white supremacists and white nationalists have been spotted at recent protests, according to watchdog groups and media reports. The Nationalist Social Club, a neo-Nazi group, appeared to have had some presence at protests in Boston and Knoxville, Tennessee, the ADL said. Members of the far-right Proud Boys were seen at North Carolina and Oregon protests last weekend, according to media reports.

Nate Snyder, a former U.S. Department of Homeland Security counter-terrorism official, said it is likely anarchists were among the protesters in recent days, but doubted they would pose a credible violent threat.

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Who are Antifa, the 'boogaloo' movement and others blamed in U.S. protest violence? - Japan Today

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Posted By admin on June 7, 2020

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) Three men remain in custody after they were accused of plotting an attack at a Black Lives Matter Protest in Las Vegas. Prosecutors said theyre members of the Boogaloo Movement.

Prosecutors also revealed members of this movement considered bombing a building near Lake Mead, a power substation in central Las Vegas and a Reopen Nevada protest.

Despite these plans, they switched their focus to Black Lives Matter protests.

We saw much more presence of them during COVID lockdowns in some of these anti-government protests, said Jolie Brislin, regional director of Anti-Defamation League Nevada. And now, were also seeing this in the protests that are taking place around George Floyd.

Stephen Parshall, Andrew Lynam and William Loomis face both state and federal terrorism-related charges.

A criminal complaint refers to the Anti-Defamation Leagues definition of Boogaloo: a term used by extremists to signify a coming civil war or fall of civilization.

The ADL condemns all violence, stated Brislin.

She said the movement has two strands: white supremacy and anti-government, which is more prevalent. Federal prosecutors said the three men wanted to violently overthrow the US government.

They attended a Black Lives Matter protest on the Las Vegas Strip last Friday with hopes it would turn violent. On Saturday, they were headed to Downtown Container Park with Molotov cocktails to throw at police, but FBI SWAT intervened.

The I-Team asked Brislin if she was concerned there are others who may attend future protests. Brislin replied:

I think that is is very dangerous. Im also worried about the fact that it takes away the legitimacy of the protest itself of what it is what were out there standing shoulder-to-shoulder with and the overall message, which is systemic racism.

US Attorney Nick Trutanich did an exclusive interview with the I-Team Wednesday to discuss the case.

People should feel safe that law enforcement are doing their very best, their level best to ensure that people not only have the right to express themselves freely, but do so in a safe manner, said Trutanich. Of course, weve seen over the last few days, that often, its been hijacked by individuals with their own, sometimes, radical agendas.

The men remain in the Clark County Detention Center with bail set at $1 million.

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I-Team: What is the Boogaloo Movement? - KLAS - 8 News Now

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