When members of the Proud Boys and another far-right group founded by a former Proud Boy member protested at the same Oregon LGBTQ Pride event this weekend, the two factions ended up brawling on a sidewalk. The fight—which saw Proud Boys and members of the Rose City Nationalists exchange haymakers outside an Oregon City burger joint—was one of the frequent spats that populate the far-right social scene. But footage of the fight has gone viral as part of an ongoing effort to whitewash the far right, with conspiracy theorists and lawmakers describing some of the movement’s gangs, describing the Proud Boys as patriots and their opponents as federal agents. “This is the BEST video on the internet right now,” conservative internet personality Benny Johnson tweeted, describing footage of the brawl as a “Pro-America Patriot rally” interrupted when “feds show up dressed as ‘Nazis,’” until “Patriots for Feds out of rally.” The clip actually shows uniformed members of the Proud Boys yelling at a small contingent of Rose City Nationalists near a Pride event that both had showed up to oppose on Saturday. RCN is part of a larger network of white nationalist “Active Clubs,” which promote violent beatdowns against enemies. The group and the Proud Boys (which also glorify street brawls) have crossed paths before. RCN’s founder, Casey Knuteson, has been affiliated with multiple far-right groups in the Pacific Northwest, including area Proud Boys, who yelled at him by name and called him homophobic slurs during the Saturday confrontation. (Knuteson did not return The Daily Beast’s request for comment.) Activists have long documented both groups’ presence in Oregon. Nevertheless, lawmakers like Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) amplified Johnson’s allegation that RCN members were federal agents.
via daily beast: GOP Lawmakers Side With Proud Boys After Their Wild Brawl With Neo-Nazis