When I think of ‘Alt – Right’ or ‘neo – Nazi’ movements, I think of the U.S. or Ukraine. There have been political scandals where the Alt – Right has tried to infiltrate parties. However, individuals haven’t been identified (not that I’ve seen).
Until now.
ABC names and interviews two former white supremacists
The ABC did an article identifying two self – confessed former white supremacists. They collaborated with the Sydney Morning Herald for the investigation.
Canberra couple, Lisa and Justin Beulah are self -confessed former white supremacists. Their aim was not only to spread their hatred toward other races, Jews and LGBTQ+ people, but also infiltrate political parties.
They were involved in the white supremacy infiltration scandal that rocked the NSW Young Liberals and Nationals. They were two out of the twenty – two that were permanently banned from the Nationals.
Discord account expose troubling ideology
Both Justin and Lisa were active on the message app Discord. Their accounts were leaked to independent media outlet Unicorn Riot.
The Discord messages that the ABC were troubling. Lisa, under the username MsNatSocialist expressed a love for Adolf Hitler and a desire for a 1940’s themed wedding with men wearing Nazi uniform costumes. Lisa defended herself saying she said that to keep herself welcomed into the Discord chat.
There was also a chat where Laura made a mockery of a victim in the Charlottesville riots. She defended the chat saying it was a ‘joke’.
Have they reformed?
I can’t say for certain whether the Beulahs have reformed or not. However, going by what I’ve read and seen, they may have reformed later than what they claim.
In the televised interview, Justin and Lisa insisted that they had reformed, pointing out that if they were still white supremacists, they wouldn’t have agreed to do the interview.
A caution to the left and right
The Beulah’s story does really highlight the ugliness of white supremacy and antisemitism. Often, people who point out racism are slammed as politically correct or even accused of racism themselves. With the Beulahs, I don’t think their former activities are debatable. The Left should learn not to throw racism too liberally, either. Over the ears, I haven’t liked the way people use racism purely to smear others. Reading this article has just cemented my stance.
White supremacy is obviously not only ugly, but also dangerous. I don’t think it should be something that anyone in their right mind should or would aspire to.
A final thought on the article. I note the ABC’s mention that Laura was a fan of Pauline Hanson and her party One Nation.While I’m not a huge fan of Pauline Hanson or One Nation, I don’t think it’s fair to associate her with former white supremacists without givingPauline or another party member a chance to defend themselves. While I think One Nation have had issues, I thought that linking One Nation to Lisa’s radicalisation is unfair.
Did you read the article ‘Married to the Alt Right or watch the interview? What did you think about it? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.