American Outliers: March Through Berkeley
- Jul 12, 2017
- 5 min read
Berkeley, California.
In the 1950’s and 1960’s, Berkeley was known as the stronghold for the Free Speech Movement, Vietnam protests, and a garrison for the Civil Rights movement. Throughout the 40’s, Berkeley was the setting for protests against fascism. Though Berkeley has always been historically more liberal, it has also been a beacon for political activism and free speech—for everyone.
As referenced in my American Outliers interview with California activist Rick Write, Berkeley has most recently been in the midst of a firestorm of controversy. On February 1, 2016, former Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulos was set to give a speech at UC Berkeley, signaling the end of his speaking tour. According to several people who came to hear Milo, the campus of Berkeley erupted in chaos. ATMs were smashed, people were pepper sprayed, flares were thrown at bystanders, and a generator was even tipped over and was set on fire. Milo had to be escorted out by his security detail. Later on, Ann Coulter decided to cancel her speaking engagement at Berkeley as well, for fear of her safety.
This spurred several protests, including the ones taking place at Berkeley on April 15th and April 27th, which spurred the fame of people like Kyle “Based Stickman” Chapman, Based Windu, and Based Skywalker—all of whom came to Berkeley to protect protesters against the terrorist group Antifa.
Being one of the most liberal cities in the United States, Berkeley is a haven for Antifa members. They have shown their propensity for violence in places like Berkeley, where they incited riots. In New Orleans, they showed up in a deuce-and-a-half, maced pro-monument supporters and cut one pro-monument supporter’s leg open with a box cutter. In Boston and Philadelphia, they looted buildings and physically assaulted protesters. Most recently, in Europe, they have set the city of Hamburg, Germany, on fire, and assaulted journalists covering the G20 Summit.
For Antifa, Berkeley is perhaps the best place to be. With community support and a wide array of young, highly liberal college-aged citizens, Antifa can thrive. They are able to thrive so well that it has become a dangerous bastion for domestic terrorism and the suppression of free speech.
How do I know this?
I’ve seen it first hand.
On July 8th, 2017, I traveled to Berkeley with the media group The Red Elephants, Shuttershock 45, Very Fake News, and several other activists to conduct a social experiment: walk around Berkeley dressed in “Make America Great Again” hats, carrying American flags and Trump flags, just to see what the reaction would be.
It started out simply enough; we walked out of the parking garage and began walking toward the UC Berkeley campus. At first, we got a few questionable gazes and a few eye rolls from older people, and we even got praise from an older man who commended how brave we were to walk around Berkeley like that (though he could’ve meant stupid, too, because it definitely wasn’t the wisest idea). Once we got closer to the campus, things became much more heated.
One man with dreadlocks began to follow us, screaming obscenities and hurling insults. Several homeless people screamed “F*** TRUMP!”. Roadside merchants began to scream things at us as well, all the while, the man in the dreadlocks continued to follow us, screaming “F*** WHITE PEOPLE”, “F*** DONALD TRUMP”, “I HATE WHITE PEOPLE” and my personal favorite, “WHITE PEOPLE NEED TO DIE”.
One of the more infuriating aspects of this walk was that one family began to scream and curse us and even threaten us with physical violence, all the while pushing their toddlers in strollers. We aimed to be as non-confrontational as possible, and for the most part, tried to be respectful. See, the one thing people miss is that when people are hurling vile obscene insults in your direction, not responding doesn’t make you weak; it shows your character.
As we continued down the main strip in Berkeley, we saw several anarchists symbols. We also realized we were being followed by Antifa members. They were tweeting our location the whole time, all the while, the man in the dreadlocks continued to scream at us. One man who walked with us, who is known as Based Spiderman, was physically attacked at Berkeley on February 1st, and was the largest target of insults. Several people, identifying themselves as SHARPS (Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice) followed after us, calling us fa**ots, telling us to “go f*** ourselves”, and called Based Spiderman a “coon”, a “house n***er”, and an “uncle Tom”.
However, the biggest issue was when the SHARP man who had been screaming at us threatened to stab us.
Three separate times he began to draw his knife on us, getting closer to us as we tried to walk away. One woman with us continually called the police, but for nearly three blocks, the police did nothing. It was no longer about the flags or the fact that we were “conservatives”; it became evident that the man in dreads, as well as the SHARP, wanted us dead—or at the very least, wanted to physically incite violence.
What stood out to me the most was that, while there were a few hardcore Donald Trump supporters, the rest of the group was fairly moderate. If the people threatening to harm us had bothered to take a moment to discuss that, they would’ve figured that out. In fact, I’d wager to bet there were only a few “classical conservatives” among the group.
Eventually, we ended our march after the police showed up, after the third time the SHARP man came at us with the intent to stab us. We asked for police to keep a buffer around us as we walked to our cars—which they agreed to do. By the time we left, it become abundantly clear that we had proved our point: Berkeley is no longer a place for free speech.
After my experience, I realized two things: first, it was apparent that to speak outside the narrative is truly a dangerous thing. Second, there is such a strong cultural divide in this country that it is dividing people more than the media would like you to believe. Intellectual discourse is a thing of the past; no longer do people approach the political spectrum with a sense of rationality.
Will I go back to Berkeley? Probably not unless I have a large group of people with me.
Was it worth it? It showed me quite a bit. It showed me that America has a lot of work to do to unify the country. It showed me that above all else, we need to protect the United States Constitution. It showed me that we have to treat everyone with respect and kindness. And, above all, it showed me that we have to educate ourselves; to understand history and politics, economics and how our government is supposed to work.
More than anything, I learned that I may be considered “alt right” or a “radical conservative”, but I believe in freedom of speech. I believe in a small government. I believe in the Constitution. And most of all, more than anything else, I believe in America.
Here are a few shots from my walk through Berkeley, as well as a video by the talented Shuttershock 45. Look him up on Youtube and Instagram!
Look for the next American Outliers interview, and make sure to share and subscribe!
-AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqHHSZD3ATs
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