Neo-Nazi group has rally at state Capitol
A planned rally by a group widely classified as a neo-Nazi organization at the Arizona Capitol on Saturday was largely uneventful, with counterprotesters greatly outnumbering others in attendance.
Ahead of the rally, organizers of a unity march rescheduled because of concerns for violence, and fencing was erected around state buildings.
A few more than a dozen people gathered at the Capitol complex at 1 p.m., the same time as nearly double the number of counterprotesters.
The Arizona Department of Administration, which hands out permits for events, said it received a permit application for the event that was promoted on the National Socialist Movement website, but it rejected the permit because organizers could not provide adequate insurance.
The two groups largely stayed in separate areas. At times, people from the group attempted to engage with counterprotesters. Despite some heated verbal exchanges, counterprotesters largely dispersed by about 2:30 p.m. A handful of others remained at the complex, holding American flags and signs that said “Stop COVID Tyranny” and “Stop Illegals.”
Videos on social media also show interactions between a group of people who appear to be affiliated with the National Socialist Movement and counterprotesters at Eastlake Park.
The group Strength in Unity canceled its march against anti-Asian violence at Margaret T. Hance Park Saturday evening “out of an abundance of caution,” organizers said in a statement posted on Instagram. The organization said it was “very concerned with the potential for violence” and didn’t want to “put anyone in harm’s way.”
“The Unity March was spurred by a desire to bring multiethnic coalitions together, and we expect, with a commingling of these crowds, things could quickly escalate and get out of hand,” the statement read.
The event was rescheduled for Saturday, April 24, at 6 p.m.
A group called No Nazis Phoenix had encouraged supporters to counterprotest the Saturday afternoon event, calling for people to “laugh these Nazis out of town.”
The Anti-Defamation League states the group was once the largest neo-Nazi group in the country, but “the NSM has been in decline for several years and its core membership has fallen to one or two dozen.” In 2020, a similar event was held in Pennsylvania, and The Patriot-News reported about 15 people attended, with little incident. Another event in 2018 outside of Atlanta had about two dozen attendees, met by hundreds of police officers, reported the New York Times.
Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman Sgt. Kameron Lee previously told The Arizona Republic the department had “been in touch with organizers” but they had provided “very limited information.”
The Phoenix Police Department said its detectives regularly attempt to contact organizers of planned events to “educate them about City ordinances and City requirements.”
“We believe that the safety of the community is improved when the police department and community groups work together prior to any planned assemblies,” the department said.