Andrew Anglin/En demonstration av alt-right-rörelsen i USA. (Wikimedia Commons/TT)

Veganen som blev ökänt troll och nynazistisk ledare

Andrew Anglin hade en normal uppväxt i ett medelklasshem i Columbus, Ohio. När han gick i gymnasiet blev han vegan och var uttalad antirasist. I dag driver han en av världens största nynazistiska hemsidor, ”The Daily Stormer” och beskrivs som alt-right-högerns mest ondskefulla internettroll.

I ett långt reportage i The Atlantic beskriver Luke O´Brian hur Anglins sajt sprider antisemitiska och rasistiska budskap som har lett till förföljelser av bland annat judar i USA. Han försöker också svara på frågan som många i Anglins hemstad ställer sig: Vad var det som hände som förvandlade honom till en nynazist?

Hans judiska dagisfröken Gail Burkholder beskriver honom som ett lyckligt barn som älskade dinosaurier: ”Varför skulle jag tro att en av mina studenter skulle växa upp och bli en nazist som vill döda mig?”

bakgrund
 
Alt-right
Wikipedia (en)
The alt-right, or alternative right, is a loosely defined group of people with far-right ideologies who reject mainstream conservatism in favor of white nationalism. White supremacist Richard Spencer initially promoted the term in 2010 in reference to a movement centered on white nationalism and did so, according to the Associated Press, to disguise overt racism, white supremacism, neo-fascism and neo-Nazism. The term drew considerable media attention and controversy during and after the 2016 United States presidential election. Alt-right beliefs have been described as isolationist, protectionist, antisemitic and white supremacist, frequently overlapping with Neo-Nazism, nativism and Islamophobia, antifeminism, misogyny and homophobia, right-wing populism and the neoreactionary movement. The concept has further been associated with several groups such as American nationalists and monarchists, men's rights advocates and the 2016 presidential campaign of Donald Trump. The alt-right has its roots on Internet websites such as 4chan and 8chan, where anonymous members create and use Internet memes to express their ideologies. Some sources have stated that it is difficult to tell how much of what people write in these venues is serious and how much is intended to provoke outrage. Members of the alt-right use websites like Alternative Right, Twitter, Breitbart and Reddit to convey their message. Alt-right postings generally support the policies of Donald Trump and Mike Pence and oppose immigration, multiculturalism and political correctness. The alt-right has also had a significant influence on conservative thought in the United States, such as the Sailer Strategy for winning political support, along with having close ties to the Trump Administration. It has been listed as a key reason for Trump's win in the 2016 election. The Trump administration includes several figures who are associated with the alt-right, such as former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon. In 2016, Bannon described Breitbart as "the platform for the alt-right", with the goal of promoting the ideology.

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