Paul Fromm: Norman Raddatz The Victim

Before beginning, we need to acknowledge the terrible tragedy that occurred yesterday in South Carolina. Our friend Daryle Jenkins of the One Peoples' Project as well as the folks at the Southern Poverty Law Center have been providing coverage of the racially-motivated mass murder and we recommend our readers take a look those websites. We will provide our take, and focus on the Canadian reaction, on a later date.

Earlier yesterday, the funeral of Constable Daniel Woodall took place. Woodall was murdered when he and other members of the Edmonton Police Service attempted to arrest Norman Raddatz on charges related to the continued and escalating harassment of a Jewish family. Raddatz also appears to have subscribed to the Freeman ideology, a pseudo-philosophy that has resulted in numerous violent acts in the United States where is it most prevalent.

Some time after the funeral took place, Paulie saw fit to add his $0.02:

The video is classic Paulie. Poor audio. A woman on crutches holding the camera. And numerous self-serving half-truths and lies.

We could discuss the claims he made about the demise of Glenn Bahr's WCFU. We might also have something to say about his suggestion that those involved in the assault on at least two men in Edmonton by members of Blood & Honour were exonerated (in fact Badrock had his charges stayed, Bernie Miller plead guilty, and McKee was sent away on weapons charges as a result of the investigation). We'll let those pass though. Let's for now counter the claims Paulie makes regarding the murder of Const. Daniel Woodall (we admit that we might have a few things mixed up and would welcome correction if we provide any inaccurate details):

Based on our current understanding, the police arrived to arrest Raddatz for his harassment of the Jewish family. He refused to open the door. The police then got a warrant and an hour later tried again. He still refused to come out. The police then used the battering ram. When Woodall and at least one other police officer entered (Sgt. Jason Harley) entered, Raddatz opened fire killing Woodall and injuring Harley. Though Paulie claims the police came in weapons drawn and shooting, it would seem the only shots fired were from Raddatz who is alleged to have fired more than 50 rounds at the police; some of the shots fired ended up in neighboring homes and it is lucky that Raddatz didn't kill anyone else.

Seems to be a little different than how Paulie characterized the event, eh?

But the part that this writer finds especially galling is who Paulie suggests is the victim:

Raddatz the victim?

You stay classy, Paulie.

Sec. 13 Dead.... For Now

NOTE: This is a little screen shot heavy. Be forewarned.

On June 26, Sec. 13 of the Human Rights Act cease to exist. As our friend BCL noted however there is no reason why Sec. 13, which was ruled constitutional by the Supreme Court, can not be brought back by a more enlightened government in the future. In the meantime the good folks at the now moribund Free Dominion have decided to post (a now rare) comment to celebrate the demise of Sec. 13:

It it isn't surprising that Connie would give props to Marc Lemire as Free Dominion had been on the forefront of the effort to rehabilitate Lemire's reputation, characterizing him as a free speech martyr. In fact, they went beyond this and engaged in a little bit of historical revisionism. Not only did they deny his role in the leadership of the Heritage Front from 2001 to 2005, they have all but denied that he had any significant history with the hate group. We have attempted to show them the error of their ways, but it seems they have decided to believe him rather than us. But then they aren't the only ones who have tried to help Lemire cover up a very shady past. Ezra Levant, in two interviews with Lemire, asked about the Heritage Front and did not challenge this response:

Uh, the Heritage Front uh, was active back in, uh, the the 90s and I was a young kid at the time. I had some, uh, interest in some of the things that they were doing in particularly thing like uh opposition to employment equity, things like reducing immigration. So I uh, listened to some of what they were about, and uh, I went away from it. I mean I was involved with them peripherally in my teenage years.

Well, that is partially true, as these articles indicate he was active with the Heritage Front in his teen years (he would have been 18 at the time of the 1993 photo and 19 when they were published):

More Lemire Connections

A friend forwarded us a number of interesting screen shots from some of the hacked emails, including those from Kermit the Frog impersonator Bill Noble.

Back in late 2004, former WCFU co-founder and leader Glenn Bahr decided that he was going to engage in a massive (from his standpoint) flyering campaign to get out the "White Nationalist" message which would take place on January 15, 2005:

On this Stormfront thread, Bahr and other "White Nationalists" discuss how they will proceed and, once the campaign was over, brag about the success:

A Look Back at the WCFU: Lessons To Consider?

We started this blog in large part due to the emergence of the Aryan Guard in Calgary, Alberta because at the time we really were concerned that this gang would be a real threat to public safety. While this has been the case far too many times, the reality is that the Aryan Guard soon became the laughing stock of the, "White Nationalist" movement in Canada. Sex scandals (including not only McKee's tryst, but allegations of underage sex from people close to the gang), drug use and rampant alcohol abuse, constant infighting with other groups, founding members leaving and other forming rival groups which are even more embarrassing, and numerous arrests, not to mention some younger groupies coming to their senses and leaving the lifestyle behind, all of which took their toll and ultimately lead to gang basically dissolving and leaving only a few to claim membership.

That the Aryan Guard had lasted from late 2006 to almost 2010 (and, if you're to believe the ghost town that is their website, still exists) is remarkable considering the incompetence of the leadership, the animosity they engendered from other WN groups, the transitory nature of the membership, and violent acts that some of the membership was involved with. Sadly, while the Aryan Guard is rightly regarded with a healthy combination of contempt and ridicule, some real damage was done to individuals victimized by the gang as well as the reputation of Calgary and the province.

It never had to be like this.

The Aryan Guard was not the first group of it's kind to come into existence in Canada. Only 2 years before the Aryan Guard was founded by McKee, Price, and Reitmeier, another group tried to make an impact in Alberta.

Western Canada For Us (WCFU) was founded in early 2004. Their leadership under Glenn Bahr was an older and more stable than the drunken idiots and teenagers who made up the Aryan Guard. Like the Aryan Guard, WCFU held a rally in March (in the WCFU case the rally was in support of Ernst Zundel, pictured on the left, and was coordinated with a rally in Toronto organized by Melissa Guille). Bahr was courted by the media and was the guest of a nationally syndicated radio show. The WCFU even had serious plans to expand into other provinces with chapters already designated in British Columbia and Manitoba (though these efforts weren't particularly successful).

Bahr (left) with Melissa Guille

The WCFU had few of the Aryan Guard's problems, at least outwardly (co-founder Peter Kouba was ousted after a disagreement regarding the direction of the WCFU) and a lot of advantages.

The Aryan Guard lasted until December 2009 and the remnants remain active.

The WCFU lasted no more than 5 months and most of the original membership has remained silent since.

So, what happened? How did one group collapse so quickly while another filled with miscreant losers hold out for three years?

The answer to that might be a tale of two hate crimes divisions.

In Calgary the Aryan Guard were able to seemingly act with impunity, at least to some observers. Even when it's members were committing crimes (some of which were on film) the division that deals with hate crimes didn't seem to be all that focused on shutting the group down. We can speculate about the reasons; manpower, limited ability to collect intelligence, complacency, budget crunch, or any other reason or combination of reasons could have been factors. The fact remains that the Aryan Guard fell apart on it's own, but before it did, there were assaults, suspected firebombs and vandalism.

By comparison, the division that deals with hate crimes in Edmonton were very quick to recognize the potential threat the WCFU posed and moved quickly to gather the appropriate intelligence and evidence. Once done, they moved to shut down the WCFU.

Three years vs. five months.

The following link provides some details about the case against the WCFU. We would ask our readers to examine the document and ask themselves if there's a great deal of difference between the evidence used to shut down the WCFU and the same kind of evidence that the Aryan Guard left for investigators on their own website and other websites:

Citation: R. v. Bahr, 2006 ABPC 360

We've taken a stance regarding support for the police that isn't always shared by other anti-racist organizations. They know our position, we know theirs and we can respect our differences in opinion. The purpose of this article isn't to beat up on the police in Calgary or to praise the police in Edmonton. What we would like to see is that police departments throughout this country take these groups seriously. We don't need the membership of these gangs to hurt someone or damage someone's property before taking action. Legislation already exists to deal with groups like the Aryan Guard and Western Canada For Us.

Let's try to think a little outside of the box.

An Examination of Marc Lemire: Part I

In our previous article we accepted a challenge laid out by Mr. and Mrs. Fournier of Free Dominion. That challenge was to prove that Marc Lemire was a bigot, a member of the Heritage Front, the leader of the Heritage Front and that he had a close working relationship with Ernst Zundel.

Today we will deal with the first part. Is Mr. Lemire a bigot? We won't use the term "Nazi" or even "racist" because the two words are loaded and tend to be used inappropriately. In general, we refer to people as being Nazis or neo-Nazis if they adhere to the tenents of National Socialism. In that regard, Terry Tremaine (who calls himself a National Socialist) and most members of the Calgary-based Aryan Guard would fit the bill.

Paul Fromm Protest: Fail

So hey, Paulie. How've you been? Heard that you were organizing a protest in support of the 'Nazi Mom' and, to a lesser degree, 'Nazi Dad.' How'd that go for you?

Planned protest fizzles 

By: Lindor Reynolds23/06/2009 5:03 PM

Oh, that doesn't sound so good. Well, you won't mind if we add our own bit of commentary to the article, right Paulie?

A planned protest by a Winnipeg group linked to white supremacy fizzled Tuesday morning when only three of the group’s supporters showed up.

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! THREE PEOPLE? YOU COULDN'T GET MORE THAN THREE PEOPLE? Christ, that's almost as bad as Murphy's rally a few years ago when he was the leader of the Manitoba chapter of the WCFU! Three? Really? So, how emasculated do you feel right now Paul?

They were vastly outnumbered by media and counter protestors who gathered in front of the Law Courts Building.

Oh god. This is too funny for words!

The rally was intended to show support for the mother of two children seized by CFS after the daughter was sent to school with Nazi symbols inked on her body.

And you did a bang up job of that Paulie!

Child and Family Services is seeking a permanent order of guardianship for the girl and her younger brother. The agency seized the children following the school episode and have argued in court that the parents’ racist views amount to emotional abuse and put the children at risk. 

"Children are always better off with their parents," said protester Margaret Feakes. "It doesn’t matter their religion or politics or whatever. If the children are clothed and well fed they should stay. It’s just another freedom being taken away."

Hey, did the mother even show up for her own protest? We think she may have. Since we're feeling so sorry for Paulie right now, we will say that 4 people showed up. Maybe.

The protest was organized by the Canadian Association for Free Expression (CAFE). Director Paul Fromm issued a statement calling the seizure of the children "the state kidnapping of the children of dissidents."

Or they're terrible parents.

In a telephone interview, Fromm said his group has 50 supporters in Winnipeg.

Oh no! Milk came out of our nose on that one! We didn't think that could actually happen! We can hardly breath! Jesus this is funny stuff!

He denied they are white supremacists, insisting they simply support freedom of speech.

Come on Paulie. No one is buying what you're selling.

However, Fromm has been called a neo-Nazi due to his links with far-right political parties and Holocaust denial.

Perhaps because he is one too?

CAFE has been vocal in what it sees as injustices against whites in the Canadian system, has argued that the law does not robustly defend the free speech of whites, and is too weighted towards minorities. The group is a signatory of the New Orleans Protocol, indicating a kinship with white nationalism.

Didn't Kevin Strom sign that document as well?

Counter protestor Cynthia Wolfe-Nolin said she believes in freedom of speech but doesn’t think the children should be kept in a home where they are taught to hate minorities. 

The biological father of the girl, who has not seen the child in years, said yesterday that if he’d known the white supremacists were outside the court building he "would have kicked their (expletive) asses." 

Helmut-Harry Loewen, a sociology professor specializing in hate crimes, said CAFE was simply trying to use the mother as "a poster girl" for the far right. 

He said Fromm is "trying to re-energize a lost cause."

We think that this proves that Paulie is a lost cause. Is there a Viagra powerful enough to pump up his reputation and ego to what it was before?

A visibly upset Margaret Feakes left the Law Courts building after being denied entrance to the courtroom where the hearing is being held. Only immediate family and the media are allowed in. 

"The world is watching this," she said. "I can’t believe it’s a closed hearing. I can’t believe this is going on in Canada."

No they aren't! Iran? Yes, the world is watching. Neo-nazi parents in a custody case? Sorry, not happening. We're watching, but mostly to laugh at them and since no one reads us (according to the FreeDom folks) that's even colder comfort. Hell, more of the world is interested in "Jon & Kate Plus 8" right now. Perspective people, perspective! Besides Margaret, this isn't about you and your needs.

Two police officers on bicycles were on hand to quell any possible clashes but left shortly after the scheduled start time of the protest.

And there's the kicker. The police left because they were bored.

Congratulations Paulie. You've proven yourself to be less than significant. Epic fail son. Epic fail.

UPDATE: And look! Here we have pictures of the three of them.

Wow. the master race has really let it's self go.

November Odds and Ends

Those of us who participate in gathering information and writing articles for Anti-Racism Canada have been very busy this month, though our business is more a matter of our rather full and hectic lives than anything the far right are up to. November has been filled with hockey practices and piano lessons for our children, vacations to Spain, and getting marks ready for midterm report cards.

It helps that the activities of the far right have been pretty low key too.

So, we thought we'd write a short blurb about what has been happening over the last couple of weeks.

Terry Tremaine was in the news again today as the federal court upheld the ruling against the former University of Saskatchewan lecturer in which Tremaine was found guilty of human rights violations. Tremaine is also soon to be on trial for criminal charges related to his online postings, primarily on Stormfront and his own website. This news was greeted with the usual reaction of the far right as Canadian Stormfront moderator "OdinPatrick" speculated on the faith of the presiding judge:

Is Judith Snider Jewish? She appears to be a "champion" donor for the Canadian JFSA (Jewish Family Service Agency)

Cue the conspiracy accusations. If our readers would like to know more about the trials and troubles of Terry Tremaine, they can go to a well researched article found on the website of our friends with the One Peoples' Project.

Citizens Are Mobilized

We have said that we are not members of Anti-Racist Action (ARA), however we do support the aims of non-violent movements that oppose racism. In that vein, we will post the following announcement by ARA Calgary, a group that uses non-violent means to educate citizens about the dangers of the Aryan Guard and other such movements. ARA Calgary has acted within the law in their activism and have only acted in self-defense when they themselves have been attacked.

Anti-Racist Action Calgary have a proven record of success when it comes to shutting down racist groups such as the Aryan Guard. In recent years the efforts of ARA Calgary contributed to the collapse of Glenn Bahr's and Peter Kouba's racist group Western Canada For Us (WCFU) after only a few short, though active, months of existence in Alberta.