January 21, 2008

American Renaissance’s 2008 Conference: Thank You, Loonies!

By Jared Taylor

[See also American Renaissance’s Conferences: Talking About The Taboo, 2004; American Renaissance’s 2006 Conference: A Gathering of Thought Criminals, and Alexander Hart's coverage of the 2006 MSM coverage American Renaissance: Fashionable Clothes, And Unfashionable Ideas]

Every two years since 1994, the magazine I edit, American Renaissance, has held a conference. Every two years, assorted loonies do us the favor of trying to shut it down. Which is to say that every two years, they both ensure splendid press coverage and reveal the true goal of the tolerance-and-diversity crowd: utter intolerance of diverse views.

American Renaissance takes the position that racial differences are real, that racial solidarity is part of human nature, and that multi-racial societies will always have racial conflict. All this is obviously true, which is why the lefties fly into such a rage when someone says so. Since the people at AR conferences are among the most thoughtful, persuasive people who have ever said so, their rage is intense.

This year the raging started earlier than usual. Last November, no less than three months before the 2008 conference, a group of living-dead who call themselves Students for a Democratic Society put out the word that "neo-nazis and racist bigots will be planning more racist terror at the American Renaissance Conference," where they would "vent their hatred and spew their racist venom towards communities of color." (This isn’t satire; those were their words.) They called for "a day full of actions (in many forms)" to "shut these racists down by any means necessary." (NY Protest Calendar (Beta) » white supremacist conference, D.C., February)

This is the sort of thing we hear every two years. So what can we expect from their "day full of actions"? Perhaps a dozen shaggy, braying, throwbacks to the 1960s, who will divert conference-goers and passing motorists alike with quaint slogans and eccentric attire. Nothing could be more edifying than the contrast between the detritus on the sidewalk and the crisp, good manners in the conference hall.

The braying also ensures excellent media coverage, which promotes our message and brings more people to the next conference.

I am therefore deeply grateful to the loonies for three reasons: They entertain, they show the other side up for what it really is, and they are the best PR agency I ever worked with. I wish 200 would show up rather than only a dozen.

The loonies, you see, have the magic touch with the media. This year, we are particularly indebted to a web page and an answering machine known as the Jewish Defense Organization. This obscure offshoot of the Jewish Defense Organization phoned up the newspapers in Northern Virginia, where we will hold the conference, to announce "Operation Nazi-Kicker," the silly name for their plan to shut us up. Sure enough, the Washington Post   Washington Jewish Week  , the   Herndon Observer   , the  Fairfax Times , and the  Herndon Connection  all sprang into action and wrote up the conference. We couldn’t have gotten that kind of advance publicity if we had sent out press releases promising a Storm Trooper rally, a cross-burning, a lynching, and free beer. Thank you, JDO! [White Nationalist Group's Meeting Prompts Protest | Jewish Defense Organization Urges Herndon Hotel to Halt 'Neo-Nazi' Conference in February, By Fredrick Kunkle Washington Post, December 13, 2007]

The left is always claiming to have spotted Nazis, but everyone knows it’s mostly wolf-crying. Even the Southern Poverty Law Center, when sufficiently pressed, will concede that American Renaissance, though fearfully loathsome, is hardly Nazi.

This Jewish Defense Organization, however, may believe its own foolishness. "Taylor is a Nazi pig," its spokesman explained to the Fairfax Times, claiming that the many Jewish speakers we have had over the years were all tricked. One of those Jewish speakers wrote to tell them that if they were looking for Nazis, they were barking down the wrong hole—and was met with a blast of insults. Even the Anti-Defamation League  calls these people "extremist," so they must be pretty far gone.

In any case, thanks to volunteer press agents, the 2008 conference has attracted even more attention than usual. But we will always make space for VDARE.COM readers. How could we not admire people who read the second-best website on the entire Internet?

Our full lineup of speakers—including Philippe Rushton, Fred Reed, Michael Walker, Paul Gottfried, Bruno Gollnisch, and other prominent figures—is described at our website, along with registration details.

Please join us for a most stimulating and memorable conference, with the bonus attraction of an authentic troop of performing loonies. It will be a weekend not to be missed.

So, again—register here.