On June 13, 2010, volunteers from the Washington DC area joined together to have a public remembrance of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum attack on June 2009 and to remember the tragic murder of museum guard Stephen Tyrone Johns by white supremacist, Holocaust Denier James Von Brunn.  We also remember that there were those whose hearts were burdened by hate, who praised Von Brunn’s terrorism, and that the struggle against white supremacism and anti-Semitism continues.

Near the end of the public remembrance of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Musaum attack, two members of a Charlottesville, Virginia-based “white nationalist,” anti-Semitic group, Occidental Dissent, sought to heckle speakers at the public remembrance.  The Occidental Dissent group claims to seek “the creation of a Jew-free, racially exclusive White ethnostate in North America.”    The group also has a history of seeking to deny women’s rights, and has publicly stated its goals are to infiltrate political organizations to promote “white nationalism.” The visitors included the group’s leader who calls himself the pseudonym “Hunter Wallace” or “Prozium”  (based on the movie “Equilibrium”) and Mike Capatano (who left after a moment).  The group’s leader “Hunter Wallace” remained behind, wearing a yellow Gadsden Flag shirt.

The group leader briefly heckled Mohamed Yahya, who is a well-known leader in fighting against genocide who has been recognized by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.  The group has previously criticized the efforts of Mr. Yahya and others in struggling against genocide, as well as those defying racial hatred.

As shown in a video of our encounter with the visitor, Mohamed Yahya’s response was “I love you… if you hate me, I give you love.”

R.E.A.L. founder Jeffrey Imm quickly reached out to the Occidental Group group leader, as one of our brothers and sisters in humanity who we must work to reach, and indicated this demonstrated an important reason why we held such a public remembrance.  The R.E.A.L. founder pointed out that we do not offer an upraised fist against white supremacism and anti-Semitism, but we offer an outstretched hand to all to choose love, not hate.  R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm then in fact extended such an outstretched hand to the group’s leader and urged him to choose love, not hate.

R.E.A.L. Video to White Nationalists at Holocaust Memorial Museum Attack Remembrance – Choose Love, Not Hate

A prayer was later said to call upon us all to remove the burden of hate from all of our hearts.

Choose Love, Not Hate.  Love Wins.