Thread by @FordFischer

I’m at Courthouse Square in #Dayton. It’s a little after 9am now.

An armed, masked Klan group expected to rally 1-3pm.

Their numbers will be low, but big community/coalition counter-demo expected.

I will be tweeting here and live-streaming today at Facebook.com/n2sreports

Cop holding riot helmet walks past city-posted sign that say “inclusion.”

Again to remind people: if I’m not tweeting, the place to check is the @N2Sreports Facebook, which is where I do my live-streams.

Be sure to follow/bookmark that page.

Facebook.com/n2sreports

#Dayton

2nd and Ludlow, the North side of the blocked off area of Courthouse Square, is where the KKK people will be driving in with a police escort.

A cop tells me this spot won’t be accessible when that happens, so that moment may be hard to film.

Never seen that before. City- posted metal street signs direct “HSK Supporters” in blue and “HSK Opposition” in pink.

“HSK” stands for “Honorable Sacred Knights” ie the Ku Klux Klan.

#Dayton

A handful of local folks already out here waiting to stand against the KKK coming to town.

#Dayton

https://twitter.com/marcusdipaola/status/1132288993175986176?s=21

This guy just showed up. He lives two blocks away and says he wants to “laugh at the idiots.”

“Food not bombs” folks show up with aid for the community counter-demonstrating the Klan.

In addition to following @marcusdipaola and I, I’d recommend following @RodWebber who just showed up.

State troopers arrive. They seem to be using the KeyBank tower directly north of the rally zone as their HQ.

Most of them have bags which include their riot equipment, but one “less lethal” shotgun visible.

A few community members showing up early now. “KKK = Incest” says this guy.

Sheriff’s Dept squad shows up with riot shields.

From experience, my guess is they start wielding/wearing the heavy gear preemptively when the KKK show up.

For now the cops doing policework are in normal cop outfits.

This guy showed up with a cap that says “Make Racists Afraid Again” and he sure means it: Rifle with a drum mag, plus a sidearm.

“Ignoring then away does not work. We’ve been doing that for quite a while,” one masked Ohio native tells me. “And we’ve got one of them in the White House now.”

I interview @Naziri, an anti-fascist activist who brought a rifle and sidearm. He says the community needs to protect itself against the Klan, who he sees as using the second amendment on the “offensive against minorities.”

I’m about to go live at Facebook.com/n2sreports

Today between 7 and 9 KKK members showed up in #Dayton Ohio.

Police put a barricade. 60 meters, two police lines, and two fences between them and everyone else.

No violence or arrests that I saw.

HD footage to come. In meantime, here’s the livestream: facebook.com/N2Sreports/vid…

Starting to import my footage.

First of all, I just gotta say, this guy is a TOWER of antifa.

Kalashnikov for scale.

Importing my footage, but in the meantime: There were a LOT of different groups in the coalition counter-demonstrating the KKK people.

Here, I speak to a self-proclaimed antifascist furry about the intersectionality between antifascist work and - well - being a furry.

Just finished importing my footage. About to start going through it.

Biggest observation I can't emphasize enough: Lots of people brought lots of tactics.

Here's @Naziri talking to @freehugsproject as a masked person goes by.

One brought hugs. One brought guns. Same team.

This guy brought his "Fascist hunting permit" sign.

"2019, Also Valid for: Nazis and Neonazis
Klansmen & Racists
No Bagging Limit
No Tagging Required
No Expiration"

"Who do you protect? Who do you serve?" was on frequent chant.

A big theme today among protesters against the Klansmen was the notion that the police are protecting/siding with klan rather than townspeople.

"Cops and the Klan go hand in hand!" was another.

"Black power! Black power!" chanted the Dayton chapter of the New Black Panther Party, which came heavily armed to oppose the KKK.

I spoke to their members and a leader, who say they see police as favoring the Klan side, so they believe in constitutionally defending themselves.

To give perspective on how far apart these two sides were, here's me fully zoomed in on the KKK people, then zooming out to the perspective the counter demonstrators had through cops and fence.

You could barely see them, and definitely couldn't hear a word they said all day.

Toward the end of the rally, one of the KKK people took out a "It's ok to be white" sign with the "ok" part symbolized as the "ok👌" hand sign.

When the KKK people finally left around 3pm (with a hefty riot police escort, of course), the tuba player did "Ride Of The Valkyries" in a slow and mocking tempo.

"Fuck the KKK! Fuck the KKK!" chanted the rest of the crowd for good measure.

The last thing I saw there was actually this: Police on horses tried to prevent people from petting them, but then gave in. Some local folks pet the police horses before calling it a day.

I didn't personally witness any arrests or violence the entire day. However, @marcusdipaola did photo as an individual was arrested, apparently for J-walking.

A witness later told me this person was let go on location, and police claim the same.

https://twitter.com/marcusdipaola/status/1132365590285492230

Nobody was milkshaked given the distance and fences between both sides, but this lady told me she generally likes that "resisters are throwing milkshakes at nazis, and shaming them because they're idiots, so it's pretty awesome."

Today's event by the numbers (according to @TIME)

-9 Members of the "Honorable Sacred Knights" Indiana Ku Klux Klan chapter
-Approximately 600 counter-demonstrators
-350 total police deployed
-$650,000 taxpayer money spent

time.com/5596103/kkk-ra…

Here's my HD summary of today's Klan rally and community counter-demonstration

In the spirit of free-speech and anti-censorship, I have it first on @minds - a social media platform based on those principles and blockchain technology.

minds.com/newsfeed/97918…

news2share.com/start/2019/05/…

I also talked to the @FreeHugsProject guy. He goes to events like this one trying to give free hugs and spread peace.

We chatted for a bit and - yes - hugged.

Watch my video summary of the whole day, now on Youtube in 4K resolution.

All footage available for licensing, as always.

One of the most interesting elements today in #Dayton was the heavily armed attendance of the "New Black Panther Party for Self Defense."

If you wanted to hear more about them, I've put my full interviews with them into this separate video.

I framed one question to the NBPP as how the group would respond to a "white liberal mom" who thinks arming up is the wrong way to go.

"If your opposition has a gun, you better have one too. That's the truth," they said.

Watch the full video:

Alright guys. I've been reporting on this for literally 14 hours. I need to sleep. Bus ride home tomorrow.

PM me for licensing or with any questions you have.

@Twitter should make me @verified #VerifyFord

I'd love your support on Patreon: Patreon.com/fordfischer

Goodnight.

Photos by myself, @OhioViews, @YoJoshMartinez, @marcusdipaola, @chefrahn, @Local12David, @_miciagirl, @ShawneeSoc, @haleighharr, @dansewell, @fruitgayke, and @awonderoflife featured in @RawStory.

#DaytonOH #DaytonUnitedAgainstHate

rawstory.com/2019/05/here-a…

My work from yesterday featured in today’s story by @ValRichardson17 at @WashTimes.

#DaytonOH #DaytonUnitedAgainstHate

washingtontimes.com/news/2019/may/…