Rage Against the War Machine rally

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The Rage Against the War Machine Rally was a so-called "anti-war rally" which took place on February 19th, 2023 in Washington DC.[1] Despite it being promoted as a protest movement which would "unite the left and right" against American involvement in the Russo-Ukrainian War, its attendees largely included politically syncretic to far-right elements, and its message largely entailed support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, rather than an end to such a war.

Participants

Members of the rally predominantly included right-wing libertarians, including Ron Paul, along with syncretic elements such as Patriotic socialists, largely those who were organized in Caleb Maupin's Center for Political Innovation as well as with a small assortment of "MAGA communism" promoters. Among the main organizations present at the rally which attempted to cement the image of a united front of the "left-wing and right-wing" was the People's Party, an organization which hold a platform which combines elements of both left and right-wing populism (but is largely capitalistic in its stances).[2][3]

The rally saw significant attendance from Neonazi and alt-right organizations (including the Khu Klux Klan and National Vanguard). Neonazi figures Matthew Heimbach (founder of a hate group known as the Traditionalist Workers' Party) and Shandon Simpson (who is linked with the terrorist organization Atomwaffen) were present at the rally and actively propagated antisemitic and other racist canards. Strasserists and National Bolsheviks were also present.[4][3][5]

Aftermath

The Rage Against the War Machine Rally was relatively unimpactful, with it only seeing a maximum turnout of around 750-1,000 people, despite it being promoted beforehand by the far-right news pundit Tucker Carlson.[3] However, the rally itself indicated the extreme-right political turn Patriotic socialists are undergoing, with them openly allying with far-right, even Neonazi elements, and with the aforementioned Neonazis leaders Matthew Heimbach and Shandon Simpson being spotted soon after the rally in an after-event hosted by the Center for Political Innovation.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Rage Against the War Machine website
  2. ↑ Rage Against the War Machine: A Reactionary “Right-Left Antiwar” Alliance by Jeff Mackler (February 6, 2023) Socialist Action
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The “Rage Against the War Machine” rally: A reactionary political freak show by Jacob Crosse, Joseph Kishore (February 20, 2023) WSWS.org
  4. ↑ Rage against the Putin Machine by Jason Unruhe (February 22, 2023) YouTube
  5. ↑ Fascists Are Attempting to Win Followers by Rebranding as Antiwar by Shane Burley (March 19, 2023) truthout
  6. ↑ Post by Socialism for All (February 20, 2023)
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