[ [link removed] ]The text reads, "Tell President Bendapudi: No Hate at Penn State!" It
is on a red background with a photo of Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes.
The COC logo is in the top righthand corner.

John,

Penn State is hosting an event on campus named “Stand Back and Stand By,”
scheduled for this Monday, October 24.^1 If the title sounds familiar, it
should; it’s the refrain President Trump used to call up the Proud Boys in
his fight to overturn the democratic process during the 2020 presidential
election.^2 The featured guest of the event? 

Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes. They’re even paying him with student
fees, collected from some of the very same people McInnes and his Proud
Boys wage violence against. Freedom of speech does not mean freedom to
harm. Penn State is under no obligation to facilitate and amplify the harm
that McInnes and the Proud Boys encourage and carry out. 

John, the event is THIS MONDAY, October 24, and we need all
hands on deck to send a message to Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi.
Will you join us?

[ [link removed] ]SEND AN EMAIL TO PENN STATE’S ADMINISTRATION AND TELL THEM TO CANCEL
THE "STAND BACK AND STAND BY" EVENT!

The Proud Boys is a white nationalist terrorist organization as designated
by the Southern Poverty Law Center and the national governments of Canada
and New Zealand.^3,4,5 The Proud Boys call themselves “Western
chauvinists” who are “anti-political correctness” and “anti-white
guilt.”^6 Though they deny holding racist or anti-Semitic views, the Proud
Boys and the group’s founder are known for anti-Muslim, misogynistic, and
white nationalist commentary and activities that often lead to real-world
violence.^7 Most recently, six members of the organization, including
former national chairman Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, have been charged with
seditious conspiracy and other offenses due to their involvement in the
January 6th insurrection. In their investigation, the US government found
that the active Proud Boys members “conspired to prevent, hinder and delay
the certification of the Electoral College vote, and to oppose by force
the authority of the government of the United States.”^8 A confirmed Proud
Boys member attended both the deadly January 6th insurrection and the
deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, VA, and Jason Kessler,
a former Proud Boy member, organized the deadly Unite the Right
event.^9,10 Where the Proud Boys go, hatred and violence follow. Given the
violent history of the organization, Penn State must outright condemn the
Proud Boys and their hateful ideology.

Hate speech has serious consequences, including inciting real-world
violence and encouraging online targeting and harassment. When a powerful
person or institution directly or indirectly sanctions hate leaders like
McInnes, violence is far more likely.^11 Simply put, hatred should never
be platformed. That’s why we need you to join us in calling on Penn State
President Bendapudi to cancel the event and enact a policy prohibiting
anyone with ties to alt-right and white nationalist groups from appearing
in Penn State-sponsored events.

[ [link removed] ]TELL PRESIDENT BENDAPUDI: NO HATE AT PENN STATE!

 Until justice is real, 
—Color Of Change HQ

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

References: 

 1. Emily Bloch, “Proud Boys leader Gavin McInnes is headed to Penn State
for a comedy show. Students are pushing back.,” the Philadelphia
Inquirer, Oct 13, 2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 2. Sheera Frenkel and Annie Karni, “Proud Boys celebrate Trump’s ‘stand
by’ remark about them at the debate,” New York Times, September 29,
2020,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 3. “Proud Boys,” Southern Poverty Law Center,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 4. The Government of Canada, “Currently listed entities,” Public Safety
Canada,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 5. Nick Perry, “New Zealand designates Proud Boys a terrorist
organization,” Associated Press, June 30, 2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 6. “Proud Boys,” Southern Poverty Law Center,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 7. Center for International Security and Cooperation, “Proud Boys,”
Stanford University,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 8. “Leader of Proud Boys and Four Other Members Indicted in Federal Court
For Seditious Conspiracy and Other Offenses Related to U.S. Capitol
Breach,” US Department of Justice, June 6, 2022,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

 9. “Unite the Right: Four Years Later, Major Players Still Grappling with
Fallout,” ADL, August 10, 2021,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

10. “Jason Kessler,” Southern Law Poverty Center,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]

11. Benjamin Newman et. al., “The Trump Effect: An Experimental
Investigation of the Emboldening Effect of Racially Inflammatory Elite
Communication,” British Journal of Political Science, February 17,
2020,
[ [link removed] ][link removed]



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