Counter-Currents
1,682 words
On May 3, 2016, Identity Europa, the recently formed pro-white advocacy group led by Nathan Damigo, released a statement revealing their plan to hold an event in Sproul Plaza on the campus of the University of California at Berkeley. This was followed by a social media campaign and support from the National Policy Institute, led by Richard Spencer. The purpose was to create a “safe space” for a discussion of race and white interests.
Such a goal seemed perfectly in line with contemporary academic culture. And it was: from the message and language of the event to its location at the epicenter of the (in)famous Free Speech Movement of the mid-1960s, there was nothing to which an objective observer could logically take exception. But, as we are all taught daily, whites who don’t apologize for being white are “problematic.” And whites who openly celebrate being white and dare to assert their racial interests are the single greatest threat to mankind that ever has or ever will exist. Right?
Leftists often attach revolutionary language to their actions, however ad hoc, misguided, or pointless. They cover their faces, smash police cars and store windows, scream obscenities at bystanders and then retreat to the marijuana smoke-stained walls of their various hovels. They then gloat about the “Battle of Oakland” or the “Battle of Seattle” as if they are the Baader-Meinhof Group reincarnate. But they understand better than the Right that they are building a mythology, creating (what they believe) is a parallel radical history that will inspire future action and, in the style of the Holocaust, create mountains out of molehills to be used in aeternum as political referents. As I have argued before, there is an extant language of radical politics that White Nationalists too often fail to use to advance our interests.
It is then, with a frank admission of strategic hyperbole, justified to refer to the Identity Europa event as the “Battle of Berkeley.” After all, it takes far more courage to show oneself publicly as a pro-white advocate in an area internationally famous for being hostile to white interests than it does to sneak, under cover of darkness, into an urban area with a mask and a bat and join many dozens of other human failures in various acts of “vandalism for the establishment.” Not one of us in attendance knew what to expect. Anything could have happened. There is a formidable antifa presence in the Bay Area, and that so few of them showed up is not our fault. A battle easily won is no less a battle.
Knowing Berkeley very well, I followed the social media chatter with interest and was not only curious to see how the event would play out but wanted to add my physical presence to the mix to show support and to help in case things got ugly, which I was almost certain they would. To my surprise and, to be quite honest, an equal amount of relief and disappointment, the event was peaceful. But this is a credit to Mr. Damigo, Mr. Spencer, and the caliber of supporters in attendance, each of whom was smart, confident, and composed. I do not believe there was a single supporter in attendance who would not have been prepared to physically defend the group if necessary, but due to the deftness with which the organizers handled the crowd and the affability of the supporters in attendance, we gave them no opportunity to get violent.
I arrived early, made my way up Telegraph Avenue, past the usual crowds of hippie street merchants, homeless people, drunks, and students, and sat in Sproul Plaza watching the crowd. As is always the case on that campus, the majority of faces were non-white. I saw no one who appeared to be there for any particular reason, save a large group of Asians taking photos — most likely tourists who had been advised by some uninformed or malevolent travel agent that Sproul Plaza was worth visiting while in Berkeley. As the designated starting time drew closer, a few of us had managed to connect. We chatted, waited, and watched. It was a cool, gray day and rain had been forecast. I mentioned to the initial small group that this was “white people weather.” And then they arrived.
Mr. Damigo’s entrance into Sproul Plaza was, in my opinion, the highlight of the event. Unfortunately this moment was not captured on the Red Ice live-stream, but his intensity was immediately apparent. My first thought was that he looked like a fighter entering a cage match. As soon as he reached the center of the plaza, he began speaking loudly and fearlessly about white interests, moving to and fro like a boxer, with confidence bordering delightfully on aggression. Slowly, a crowd gathered around him while Mr. Spencer began interacting with reporters and well-wishers. I do not know if this entrance was calculated but it seemed so because it worked so well. While Mr. Damigo attracted attention and engaged hostile audience members, Mr. Spencer stayed on the fringes of the crowd controlling, in a sense, the narrative.
Nathan Damigo
As the event gained some momentum, the supporters (most of whom appeared to be in their 20s and early 30s) maintained two largely separate groups, often drifting between them to offer support where needed. The first was composed of those who encircled Mr. Damigo, posing questions to him in order to guide the discussion and helping him respond to objectors. The second was composed of those standing by Mr. Spencer, who as one journalist reported, was indeed “civil, articulate, witty and charming.” The skill with which he handled those questioning him was impressive. He never lost his composure and was never at a loss for words. He refused to give an inch to those who were trying to debate him but he did so in such a way that I honestly believe more than a few of those who challenged him ended up actually liking him. Much of this was captured on the live-stream, which is well worth watching if you have not already seen it. Johnny Monoxide, from therightstuff.biz, did a very good job recording the event, despite the problems inherent in live-streaming from a phone and having to run back and forth between the various “happenings.”
I paid special attention to the enemies on the scene, both out of curiosity and because I have always had a very strong tendency towards physically protecting those to whom I am loyal or feel some sort of affinity. As can be seen on the video, there were many non-whites in the plaza but most behaved reasonably well. There were a few older hippies who appeared to be Jewish and whom I had seen earlier but had not realized were there intentionally (including the fellow with the bicycle who can be seen confronting Mr. Damigo in the beginning of the footage). They behaved precisely as one would suspect — flabbergasted at the notion that people like us even exist after all the ever so meaningful concert-going and acid-dropping they did in the 1960s and ’70s. And, though I don’t remember it being in the video despite Mr. Monoxide’s mention of it, there was indeed a young Jew with an Israeli flag attached to his jean jacket. We spotted him early on and, of course, chuckled fashily. Someone mentioned to me that he overheard a different Jew suggesting to his friend that our haircuts were threatening and wondered if that could be used to get us removed from the premises. If nothing else, this helps explain why rock-throwing Palestinians get shelled with white phosphorous so often. All in all, I would estimate no more than ten people were there in advance to actively oppose us, but most did nothing but occasionally yell “white supremacist” into the wind. What transpired is well-documented. The Red Ice coverage provides a very good overview of the events so there is no need to go into much more detail.
A friend of mine who watched the live-stream mentioned that a few people made comments in the chat section that Mr. Damigo’s debating tactics were not as effective as they could have been. Though I disagree, I also do not care. These people likely have never debated anyone in public, let alone while being swarmed by a group of argumentative non-whites and various Leftists. If a certain question could have been better answered or a particular point should have been made that wasn’t, I would strongly suggest that these individuals walk onto a university campus and try to do a better job. And, of course, I mean this very seriously — because this is the entire point. There will come a day when keyboard warriors will be forced to hit the streets and when they do it will not be the autistic nitpickers who will be leading the charge.
Let this be the first of many such events across the entire country and let us all hope that the next battle has men like Mr. Spencer and Mr. Damigo front and center. I want to thank both the organizers and the supporters I met that day for engaging in this action. I look forward to many more like this but larger, louder, and surrounded by even more copious controversy and butthurt. To those who were not there, I want to add that each of us in attendance took a huge physical and social risk for you. Now it is time to up your game. In the meantime, Mr. Spencer, Mr. Damigo, and the other supporters in attendance should be commended on their composure, their intelligence, and their courage. At that particular time and place, they did everything they could possibly have done to help the white race. If only each of us every night could get ready for bed, reflect on our actions, and be able to say that. And now I will sit back and eagerly hope, only partially ironically, for the release of some sort of “Ballad of Berkeley” from Seventh Son, Morrakiu, or one of our other bards.
17 comments
I watched the live stream with intense interest. Yes, congratulations are in order for all the participants – speakers, placard holders, bodyguards and anyone else who came to help. I believe Nathan Damigo was quite effective, although the thing that impressed me most was his courage – moral and physical – in stepping up in such a hostile environment to speak for his people. The word, audacious, comes to mind.
No one should expect Nathan to have the ultra-focused, razor-honed and experience tested rhetorical skills of Jared Taylor at this stage of his very young and promising life. But he will get better each time he does this, and as Mr. Thoreson points out, respect is due – especially from those of us on the sidelines – to the man in the arena.
That said, I would disagree that this was a battle, which might imply Sproul Plaza was captured permanently by the alt right. I will also employ military jargon and say that it looked to me (who wasn’t there) more like a successful probe into enemy territory than a pitched battle. Or perhaps a raid, if that is acceptably dramatic.
FYI, one hostile comment in the thread below the article about the event in the Berkeley edition of The Tab (www.thetab.com) promised that lots of people will show up next time to shut-down any alt right safe space. Apparently the antifa was caught flat-footed this time. I saw only one loud, fat one on the video, and he was handled beautifully by our team.
Thank you for the nice comment.
I thought I was clear in explaining my use of the term “battle.” But if not: no, it was nowhere near a battle in any traditional sense, even though it easily could have been. My point was that the overblown language used by Leftists to describe their political actions should be used by White Nationalists in order to create an aura of danger and excitement around ours, both as inspiration to our friends and as warnings to our enemies. It works extremely well in Leftist circles. It gets young people fired up.
You were clear, and it’s a valid use of the term, and I basically agree with you. I’m an old English teacher who was in the Army, so I resist exaggeration even when tactically useful, and maybe I’m too wedded to denotation rather than connotation. Also, the way this movement is going, there are going to be some real pitched battles soon, and the aura of danger won’t just be an aura, it will be real.
But, again, I agree with your desire for our side to use inspiring, invigorating language.
I saw the replay. The highlight of the event was Richard talking to that girl reporter at the end. And her being clearly enthralled with him and her trying to hold it together and defiantly retain her leftism which was about to crumble.That is the kind of image we need. That will sell. It’s a narrative, a story, like a play. It’s romantic. It was a little slice of magic.
If we got that kind of stuff out there in the way political parties get out their slogans and propaganda we would recruit a ton of people, particularly women.
Great initiative. No better way to build morale, confidence & comradery in an organization such as this. Keep up the good job.
I was in bed with a cold in SF but went over to Berkeley for a while for this, just to add another body. Got to say hello to Richard Spencer who, indeed, handled interlocutors unflappably. Nathan Damigo did a good job. It was all more low-key than I had expected and/or feared.
While Nathan was speaking, some Latina chick near me eye-rolled and said to her Mohammedan hijabbed classmate,”Well, he did manage to leave out stuff like, you know, imperialism and colonialism.” Without which, of course, neither she nor her pal would be where she was, in the middle of a uniquely White Western institution. The parasite should be glad I wasn’t armed.
We few, we happy few, we band of shitlords;
For he to-day that egresses his mom’s basement
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall fash his faggotry;
And NEETs everywhere now a-fapping
Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That stood with us at the Battle of Berkeley.
That was excellent! I am, however, somewhat ashamed to admit that, after having read it, my mind went not to Shakespeare but to the first episode of Blackadder.
Offtopic sorry, but as the foremost cultural outlet for the right resistance, I thought I’d post this idea here (too):
Librivox:
When I am out doing things – like walking the dogs – I quite appreciate Librivox, which is an audio library of out of copyright classical works narrated by volunteers. I download to a podcast app and listen through.
But its catalogue deficiencies made me aware that perhaps we were missing a trick and that there may be some advantages to getting some additional robust content on there or more particularly: out there, hopefully clustered together and tagged.
With the growth of alt-right radio shows, there’s a greater willingness to listen to content now as people’s reading facility has tended to diminish in the internet age.
And it may be that the enticing narration of a female voice (as well as a robust male one) would encourage people to connect to works that they might not tackle otherwise, thus increasing awareness and interest and creating the appetite for knowledge that is the driver to actually reading and exploring more.
Librivox is mostly novels and some history, but there’s no reason why we might not create novels, journals, political works, history books etc etc
As Librivox has a content selection process through its volunteers (maybe with Wiki style gatekeepers), it will likely be that any content is best placed elsewhere. It can always be uploaded both to there and elsewhere. I would suggest the best ‘elsewhere’ is Archive.org with an appropriate tag to find all the contributed content. Free, accessible etc
20 people agreeing to contribute one – two books a year would be a good start.I was going to start contributing to Librivox (I had looked for novels by the likes of Drieu la Rochelle, Henry Williamson, Wyndham Lewis, Robert Brasillach, Louis Ferdinand Céline, Junger, Belloc etc etc) but then a wider coordinated project occured, not just novels, but both iconic and under read works. But their forum does have some good advice for reading equipment, apps and technique.
Thoughts?
I have never heard of Librivox. But, since you mentioned Robert Brasillach, I thought I would mention that I am still eagerly awaiting a translation of his book on film. It seems like something that would be very worthwhile.
Are you referring to Maurice Bardèche and Robert Brasillach’s Histoire du cinéma, translated into English by Iris Barry as The History of Motion Pictures? The English translation has recently been reprinted by Kessinger Publishing, and copies of earlier editions (Norton, Arno Press) are available from used book dealers.
I was entirely unaware of that. Thank you!
It’s usually unwise to expect translations. The economics of publishing (the market for translations, the availability and cost of good translators, the slender profit margins of publishers in general, etc.) doesn’t favor the publication of translations, and usually forbids it. Even when publishers promise to issue a translation of a particular book, you can be waiting a long time.
If you’ve examined the history of the reception accorded to a particular thinker’s work — regardless of ideological persuasion or subject area — you may be struck at how long it takes for important works to be recognized or to be translated. (Even in “the land of poets and thinkers,” the work of Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, and Clausewitz was recognized quite belatedly.)
If you want to find out what a particular author has written, and whether their works have been translated into a given language, Worldcat.org can be a good place to search. You might even be able to locate a copy of a work you seek in a library within your reach.
If you want to search for an out of print book, BookFinder4u.com is a good search engine for books in English. It casts an especially wide net, searching the catalogues of many online book dealers. This makes it especially useful for searching for very rare books.
By the way, there is an English translation of Robert Brasillach’s Notre avant-guerre, but it’s extremely expensive.
I use Worldcat frequently but it seems that I have not looked for the Brasillach book as recently as I had thought. I was unaware of BookFinder4u.com. Thank you.
Well, considering the treatment whites have received at the Trump rallies, physically attacked and beaten, there seems nothing wrong with the creation of “safe spaces” for white advocates. If Chicano, black, Asian, etc. can have their advocates protest peacefully and have safe spaces, it’s only fair that Caucasian American students can as well.
While out and about today, it occurred to me that I failed to mention that I have no connection to Identity Europa or the National Policy Institute. My opinions do not necessarily reflect those of either organization.
The Alt-Right occupies Berkeley! Well done to everyone involved. Very impressive. I’d love to participate if you hold an event in the OC/Long Beach area. University of California -Irvine (UCI) might be a promising venue.
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