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Protest Warrior is a right-wing political activist protest group. It is an international organization with mostly American members; its main focus is on the U.S. and Israel. The group was formed in 2003 by Alan Lipton and Kfir Alfia in Austin, Texas. Its slogan is "Fighting the left... doing it right".
Motivation
Protest Warrior believes that left-wing politics constitute a threat to the future of freedom and individualism, and would inevitably result in totalitarian police states. Seeing "liberals" (in the U.S. usage of the term) as "morally and politically bankrupt" and having a monopoly of media attention, Protest Warrior believes that the voices of the left "are heard disproportionately, demoralizing our troops, and emboldening dictators around the world."
Generally accepted ideas in the Protest Warrior community include support for the Global War on Terror and Operation Iraqi Freedom, opposition to Islamic fundamentalism as dangerous, threatening, oppressive. A newsletter on the site published by Alan and Kfir expressed objection to Islam itself, rather than fundamentalists in particular:
- "What's becoming clear is how the religion of Islam is addicted to war and mayhem. Not a radical minority, not a rogue sect, but its very essence is about submission and sacrifice and proving your worth by worshipping death in this life to gain a paradise of orgies and drunkenness. Their entire history is of warfare, and any accomplishments of their so-called Golden Age has been proven to be merely parasitic off the cultures they've conquered and reduced to dhimmi servitude. That every country under sharia is corrupt, belligerent, desolate and barbaric obviously gives them no pause, except to constantly drive them into further psychotic rage as they refuse to ever accept any responsibility for their conditions. They are akin to the powers in Orwell's 1984; there must always be an enemy. It's no surprise that women are treated like property in these countries as that's the only way Muslim men can feed their egos, to dominate others rather than ever actually produce something."
Most members also express opposition to illegal immigration and current immigration proposals of the Bush administration, support for free enterprise and fiscally conservative economics, a disbelief in Global Warming, general support and respect for U.S. military institutions as the "defenders of freedom", and support for Israel.
Methodology
The group's primary method of activism is crashing left-wing events, chiefly anti-war protest marches, and counter-demonstrating within their ranks. For instance, Protest Warriors have attended rallies against Halliburton, Caterpillar Inc., Israel, and George W. Bush, displaying support for these causes. When doing so, the Protest Warriors carry large signs often designed to appear similar to those held by the participants of the event they are crashing, enabling them to mingle until observers are close enough to read their signs' sarcastic fine-print.
Examples of Protest Warrior Signs:
- "Saddam only kills his own people. It's none of our business!"
- "Except for ending slavery, Fascism, Nazism and Communism, war has never solved anything!"
- "Islam - Religion of Peace'
After large operations, videos are posted documenting the events. The videos include confrontations with other protesters and the reactions of those protesters. Protest Warriors claim that these videos demonstrate that leftists' "true feelings and agendas...have nothing to with hating war, and everything to do with hating America."
Tactics
Protest warriors have engaged in various tactics when infiltrating protests. These have included:
These tactics are intended to turn public sentiment against the surrounding demonstrators.
Reactions
Conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh featured a Protest Warrior action in San Francisco on his website and complimented the group on its work.
As documented by Indymedia's San Francisco affiliate and elsewhere, a group of Protest Warriors led by founder Kfir Alfia were the target of animosity at a conservative counter-Cindy Sheehan rally in Crawford, Texas. Despite the Protest Warriors' assurances that they were on the same side, the other protesters repeatedly shouted "Go home!", destroyed the Protest Warrior signs and forced the Protest Warriors to leave the rally, mistaking them for anti-war protestors.
Website
The group maintains a website as an organizing and information hub. It also acts as a source for the many slogans and signs presented by Protest Warriors at protests, as well as offering various tutorials on sign creation. A shop is also run from the website, to help cover the costs of keeping the website and organisation running.
The active forums of Protest Warrior have a large selection of topics for discussion; the group prides itself on permitting people of any ideology to join in on the discussions. According to Protest Warriors, very few users have been banned, but when they have been banned it was typically for posting obscene material such as pornography, repeated spamming, and for deliberate personal attacks, but unpopular speech, including racist speech is not a bannable offense. In July 2006 an active-duty-military Protest Warrior "made death threats against another user" a Muslim, causing "credible legal threats" for Protest Warrior. Because of this, any sort of physical threat is no longer allowed on the forum.
Protest Warrior's administrators/founders have pursued legal action against people who have used their website for criminal or potentially criminal purposes, such as Jay Czaja, a military member who began stalking a female member of the forums. Between January and February 2005, Jeremy Hammond, an individual affiliated with Hack This Site, hacked Protest Warrior's website as an attempt at "hacktivism", illegally gaining access to sensitive information, including hundreds of the site members' credit card numbers, allegedly intending to commit credit card theft. Hammond was caught by Protest Warrior and the group subsequently pursued charges against Hammond through the FBI. A search warrant was issued for Hammond's home and Hammond was indicted by a grand jury on May 23, 2006 for violating US Code Title 18, Sections 1030 (a)(2)(c) and 2.
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Criticisms
Protest Warrior is on a 'watch list' of Centex Anti Racist Action, a watchdog group which claims to monitor racist and hate groups in the Southwest. who liken the organization to Brown shirts (a label which, as the article mentions, the Protest Warriors have applied to leftists) . The same article also accused the forum on the website of hosting White supremacist views.
Past operations
Local and National chapters of Protest Warrior have carried out operations in the United States and abroad. Examples of past Protest Warrior operations include:
- On January 20, 2005, Protest Warrior National 'Operation Hail to the Chief' drew thirteen Protest Warriors to Washington D.C. to oppose those protesting the second inauguration of President George W. Bush.
- 'Operation Military Shield' took place October 31st 2004 in Miami, Florida. Members of Prostest Warrior first warned the local recruiters of a planned protest, then counterprotested at the anti-military demonstration outside the recruting center.
- 'Operation Tiger Claw' took place in May 2004, and consisted of a lone high school student posting Protest Warrior signs in the halls and classrooms of his high school, and his confrontations with the school administration, after they deemed the signs racist.
Future campaigns
Kfir, the founder of Protest Warrior, was quoted saying that the organization will be expanding its operations to counter-protest at pro-choice rallies, gay rights rallies and other rallies to show strong support for social conservatism in the future, according to an interview he gave to the Dominionism proponent Lee Duigon from the Christian Reconstructionist Chalcedon Foundation.
Kfir claimed, on the PW forum, almost two years after the article was published, that he had been misquoted.
See also
External links
- Official Protest Warrior Site
- MSNBC: "Partisan Protesters"
- Washington Times: "Protest Warriors fuel rage on left"
- Right and Right
- Protest Warriors or Protest Losers?
- Moonbats Target Protest Warrior
- Indictment in ProtestWarrior Hack Case
- Protest Warrior Harmful To Campus Right
- Badger Herald: "Left must stay organized against the right"