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Weed Nazis?
There are Nazis in Eugene, Oregon! I guess this shouldn't be a surprise: Eugene is a very white city, Oregon has an intensely racist history, and the University of Oregon has had some, errm, incidents in its past, but it's also extraordinarily liberal/progressive, so it's disappointing to see it in the news now for its few noisy neo-Nazis, some of whom are profiting from the marijuana trade — Weed Nazis are now a thing.
That stubborn legacy of bigotry persists in Eugene, where city officials this year have recorded nearly 60 hate crimes, up from 44 last year. Officials said vandalism and graffiti made up 20 percent of the hate crimes reported between January and October.
Statewide, hate crimes were up 60 percent in 2016 from the previous year, representing one of the largest increases of any state, according to an analysis of federal data by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino.
In 2016, Eugene had more hate crimes than any other place in Oregon, said Brian Levin, director of the center.
I'm sure no one is surprised that Nazis are feeling empowered nowadays — they've installed a few in the White House. It's also sad, though, that my old neighborhood is featured in the story.
The city's Whiteaker neighborhood, a vibrant arts and entertainment district, attracted a rash of Nazi-inspired graffiti in February. Residents and business owners also awoke during that time to find the area leafleted with recruitment fliers that proclaimed, "Diversity is a code word for white genocide."
Yikes. We lived with our two little boys, one just an infant, on Clark street, and I remember it as a quiet residential neighborhood with flower gardens, a nice view of Skinner's Butte, and a short walk to the Willamette River — I'd take my oldest on little red wagon rides across the footbridge to the movie theater. And now it's got Nazis. That's just not right.
At least Eugene also has a vibrant and active antifa presence, which helps.
Politics, History, and Law
microraptor says
I think Eugene might be seeing this more than other cities in Oregon because it's so liberal: the Nazis feel safe in places like Grants Pass or Roseburg, where liberal is a dirty word and 65% of people still support Trump. In Eugene, there's enough people who disagree with them that they might actually feel threatened.
ahcuah says
It may have had Nazis before, while you were there. They just weren't emboldened the way they are now.
gijoel says
timgueguen says
I'm sure the assholes who produced the "Diversity is a code word for white genocide." flier would call you a libtard or something similar if you used the term cultural genocide regarding the treatment of the area's Native American population.
WMDKitty -- Survivor says
Name a subculture, hobby, or form of entertainment. Just throw out any you'd care to think of, no matter how obscure or out-there. Got one in mind?
Yep, there's Nazis there, too.
Artor says
These particular Nazis live about 5 blocks from me, not actually in the Whit. It turns out that several of my friends have known them personally for years, and never had a clue they were antisocial fascist psychopaths. They kept it on the down-low, until someone in the Eugene Anti-fa did some sleuthing and connected them to the social media accounts of the organizers of Nazi rallies and coordinated harassment campaigns. Fortunately, the fallout seems like it's going to be hard. They've resigned from their weed business, and I think they're planning on leaving town. Their bridges here are all smoking ruins.
PZ, my ex's mom owns a tri-plex on Clark street, and I've done a bunch of work there. Now I'm wondering which house was yours? No need for an address, a few cryptic clues would pinpoint it for me.
elysof says
Lions and tigers and nazis, oh my! Fuck it, my new year's resolution is to punch one in the mouth. I'll come off much worse, but just don't care anymore. Sick of it all, something's gotta give.
JoeBuddha says
Is there a kind of Rule 34 for Nazis? As in, "There are Nazis in every field. No exceptions."