Democratic state and local officials are targeting alt-right and free speech groups who plan to hold rallies in nearly a dozen U.S. cities over the next few months despite last weekend’s violent ending to a white supremacist event in Charlottesville, Va.
San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi have asked the National Park Service to rescind its permit to a group called Patriot Prayer, which has permission to hold a rally on Aug. 26 at Crissy Field.
The organizer maintained the event is a “day of freedom, spirituality, unity, peace, and patriotism,” making it more difficult to understand the group’s intention in light of accusations it is a hate group. One of the speakers at the event is “trans patriot” Amber Gwen Cummings.
Cummings has also planned a second event Aug. 27 in Berkeley. “No to Marxism in America” will take place at University of California Berkeley’s Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park.
Another alt-right group in Boston dubbed Boston Free Speech is facing pushback ahead of a rally planned for Saturday. Boston Mayor Martin Walsh said he does not want the group in his city, but the group has been able to hold onto its permit despite being deemed hateful.
The group’s Facebook page states “every individual is entitled to their freedom of speech and defend that basic human right” and that it “will not be offering our platform to racism or bigotry,” but the claim could be a cover.
Meanwhile, the #MarchonGoogle blog has canceled nine events across the country that were meant to condemn the tech company’s handling of a male employee who said women are not necessarily the best candidates for tech-related jobs.
Events in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Seattle, New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., Austin, Texas, and Mountain View, Calif., were canceled Wednesday due to “credible Alt Left terrorist threats for the safety of our citizen participants,” the organizer wrote.
The Google events’ organizers said they do not identify as alt-right and are focused on free speech issues.
