NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 03: Gavin McInnes attends "Creative Control" New York Premiere at Sunshine Landmark on March 3, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images)
A popular right wing figure who is taking the Southern Poverty Law Center to court for defamation has raised nearly $200,000 for his lawsuit.
Gavin McInnes’ lawsuit, which he levied against the SPLC for labeling the Proud Boys a “hate group,” has raised $184,000 so far.
The Proud Boys, founded by McInnes, is a fraternal organization that supports President Donald J. Trump.
Though most Proud Boys are mainstream conservatives, the SPLC has labeled them a “hate group,” and they have been slandered as such by the mainstream press, which takes its cues from the Alabama-headquartered legal nonprofit.
The SPLC, founded decades ago to fight the KKK, has made a tremendous amount of money fighting “hate groups,” which appears to be loosely defined as any group that supports conservatism. This fundraising model has drawn the ire of some who recognize that the SPLC fill its coffers by scaremongering with labels of “hate.” The organizations reportedly has $500 million in assets.
McInnes’ legal battle is an important one for conservatives, many of whom have had their livelihoods – and even in some cases, their physical safety – threatened by the SPLC.
Floyd Lee Corkin II pleaded guilty on terrorism charges for attempting to massacre employees of the Family Research Counsel in Washington, D.C. in 2013.
The FRC is a pro-traditional marriage group. Corkin cited the SPLC’s website as the means by which he chose his target. Fortunately, a security guard stopped Corkin from executing his plan.
“The day after Floyd Corkins came into the FRC headquarter and opened fire wounding one of our team members, I stated that while Corkins was responsible for the shooting, he had been given a license to perpetrate this act of violence by groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center which has systematically and recklessly labeled every organization with which they disagree as a ‘hate group,'” FRC President Tony Perkins said.
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