Free Speech or Die?
The paradox of self-victimization by the alt-right
In May 2017, a white nationalist decided to harass a teenage Muslim girl for wearing a hijab on a train in Portland, Oregon. His name was Jeremy Christian, and on social media he wrote about his desire to join “Donald Trump’s SS”. When three men—one of them an Army veteran—confronted Christian about his abuse, he pulled out a knife and slashed all three men in the throat, killing two of them. During his arraignment, he yelled out, “Free speech or die! Get out if you don’t like free speech! You call it terrorism! I call it patriotism!” Christian had decided that if people would not allow him to be a hateful bigot to a Muslim teenage girl, then he had the right to murder them in the name of free speech.
In addition to praising Donald Trump, whom he adores, as the next Hitler on Facebook, Christian also often used social media to espouse anti-Muslim beliefs and to call terrorists like Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh a true patriot. In March 2017, at an event in Portland called March for Free Speech that was organized by alt-right and conservative types, Christian showed up with an American flag wrapped around his shoulders like a cape, casting Nazi salutes while yelling, “Die, Muslims!”
Jeremy Christian was not the only white nationalist in 2017 who turned to violence in…
