Dozens of members of the neo-fascist, white nationalist group Patriot Front marched through the streets of Austin Saturday. The group did not announce the demonstration in advance, leaving no time for opposition groups to mount a counter-protest. It was the largest public gathering of the group’s members since they held a similar march in Washington, D.C., on May 13.
They’ve been emboldened by far-right candidates winning elections. Gerrymandering districts has contributed to those wins, by forcing the primary candidates to be more hard-line than the rest, as they don’t have to compete for moderate voters in the general. Fixing the elections will snap back to reality the fact that these extreme views are not shared by the majority of society.
I truly wish I was capable of that level of optimism