Originally tweeted by Laura Jedeed (Misanthrophile) (@1misanthrophile) on September 5, 2020.
Hi there, coming at you live from Esther Short Park in Vancouver, WA, where maybe 200 people have gathered for Joey Gibson’s 4:00 event
I was honestly not expecting this size crowd, wow. Let's see what happens
Seeing an absolute ton of this shirt: "Justice for J." This refers to Aaron "Jay" Danielson, the man who was shot and killed in Portland one short week ago
This appears to be a memorial
An announcer steps forward to announce the agenda for this gathering
She thanks Joey Gibson, David Anthony, Audra Price, and a couple names I don't catch for making this event possible
My mask stands out here. "Are you a BLMer?" an older woman asks. I say I'm a journalist. She is not impressed
She tells me her daughter is a BLMer but she loves her very much. We talk about how sometimes families disagree with each other but love each other anyway
A prayer for Jay. It talks about how Jay was on a quest for justice, and compares his quest to that of Paul the Apostle
The prayer asks God to grant that everyone here seek the same kind of justice with "kindness yet firmness"
He quotes Jesus: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they are the children of God"
Amen. The crowd applauds
An acoustic guitar number next
Lotta mainstream media here
The older woman takes a video of me and describes me to her audience as "a BLMer"
Cool
The crowd here is mostly what I'd describe as the family-friendly face of the right. Men and women who look like they could be your aunt or uncle–as opposed to the militants who look like they belong on an Idaho compound
A few folks in body armor. No obvious weapons
The kids performing the acoustic number are clean-cut: that Christian look I remember from my own childhood in Colorado. All the kids here have that look
I remember the shit I was up to while I looked that squeaky clean. I hope they're being careful. Christ I'm getting old
The National Anthem plays. That question at the end. "Oh say does that star-spangled banner yet wave/o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?"
It's a good thing I'm constitutionally incapable of crying in public
The crowd chants: "USA!"
Oh boy it's Joey Gibson time
Gibson says he knows Jay's spirit is alive. He can feel Jay encouraging him to "fight for what we believe in"
He talks about how horrible it is for Jay's family to hear all the "slander"
Gibson says no one should do violence in Jay's name. That Jay wouldn't want that
This is somewhat at odds with the posts that got him banned from Facebook and also the message of the "quest for justice" earlier
Gibson talks about the importance of courage. Talks about how Jesus walked into death "like a warrior," just like Jay
Anyone who's studied the history of the Patriot movement in the PNW will recognize this rhetoric
Gibson is saying all the right things about not giving into hate. About not trying to get revenge, about struggling against the fury at injustice, all of it
This is the family-friendly crowd, and Gibson is delivering the family-friendly message for the cameras
Gibson emphasizes that everyone is arrayed against the Patriots: government, money, culture, all of it. But that they'll win anyway
The victim outlook is central to the American far-right worldview. He does not mention that his boy is in the White House
Chandler Pappas takes the stage. Gibson and Pappas embrace
Pappas talks about how his friend Jay. How he was a uniter, bringing people together on the left and the right. He says Jay was his hero
The next speaker, Michelle, talks about what a supportive friend Jay was. Pappas also talked about this
The thing I remember about the far right is that this is probably true. There is camaraderie and kindness there. You'd hardly believe they're capable of cruelty to others
Michelle is crying, realizing she'll never see her friend again
I wish we lived in better times
Michelle demands that the media get it right. She says he wasn't a Nazi or a white supremacist. No. He loved his president and Patriot Prayer
The crowd chants "Get It Right." It's deafening
"We will fight to keep his good name!"
The crowd chants "USA" and the media scrambles to snap pictures of the maskless crowd
The next speaker does not give her name. She asks everyone to demand peace. She quotes Martin Luther King: "Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that"
Look I'm just reporting what's happening ok?
The next speaker, David with Oregonians for Trump, emphasizes the diversity of the crowd
He calls on the dishonest media to report this accurately so I will:
Yes, there are people of color in the crowd. Yes, it's mostly white
David says they could organize something violent that eclipses the America unrest so far, and that they'd be justified to do that
He says they're choosing not to
These messages can be seductive to newcomers because the speakers truly believe what they're saying about the power of love and rejecting hate. You can feel the sincerity
But when they attack leftists on the street, they believe they're right about that too
The far right sees no contradiction between words of peace and actions of violence, because they have left truth behind. What they do is right. What others do is wrong. It is truly that simple
Someday, God willing, I will go to grad school and write books about this
David urges prayer: for Trump, the government in Washington, and even for the "dishonest media" (a phrase repeated several times throughout this speech)
Like many speakers who did not know Jay personally, Daniel urges people to view Jay as an example of how to be and how to act. As an image of a follower of Jesus
This mythmaking goes somewhat beyond normal eulogizing
Gibson announces there will be a candlelight vigil for Jay at 8:00 tonight here in Vancouver
Joey Gibson just said he's not going to get political and I do not laugh sometimes my job is really hard
He demands an apology from Ted Wheeler and Kate Brown for Jay's murder and subsequent slander
"He has built a city of violence" and advanced lies of white supremacy
Gibson decries people for getting on megaphones and celebrating Jay's death
I have not heard that happen, not once
He is building a narrative that Portland is either indifferent or celebratory of Jay's death. The crowd is loving it
The Christian band is back. The crowd starts to get up and mingle. I gather this is the portion of the memorial where people eat food and talk
I'm eavesdropping on a group of Proud Boys talking about how they're accepting a lot of new pledges. They're not wearing their Perry Masons and they are not aware of their surroundings
A small cadre of on-duty police relax at the periphery of the Patriot gathering
Seeing some weaponry now. I mean, fair enough
Some uniformed Proud Boys over here, one of whom is carrying a lovely assault rifle
Ugh this was so much easier before Covid. I just flashed the big smile and people left me alone. But I'm not taking this mask off in this sea of maskless deniers and I think I'm starting to attract notice
Probably about time to dip
Yep, just got calles a sick Antifa and told to fuck off. My battery is almost dead anyway
Ugh, this world. See y'all tonight. End thread
(here's the last pic that got me on trouble)
Sorry, epilogue: just got wolf whistled. Did not even know the wolf whistle was still a thing, so there’s some late-breaking news for you, people still literally do the whistle from Looney Tunes
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