NEWS RELEASE about SolidarityMigration posted on August 17, 2010 by fathima

PRESS RELEASE: Anti Racist Activists Denounce Neo-Nazi Paul Fromm

by NOII VancouverNOII - Vancouver

August 16, Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories –  Anti neo-Nazi and anti
racist activists are horrified at the public platform and brazen public
organizing of well-known white supremacists and neo-Nazis such as Paul
Fromm in recent weeks in response to the Tamil asylum seekers landing on
BC’s coast.

Last week in Calgary Paul Fromm and a group from the Aryan Guard protested
in front of Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s constituency office with
signs ‘Stand Up, Send the Illegals Back’. This weekend, Paul Fromm
organized a rally at Esquimalt to oppose the landing of the MV Sun Sea. In
a press release, he made absurd and false allegations about the boat being
found with drugs and explosives.

“Paul Fromm, now fronting as the leader of the Canada First Committee, is
a known neo-Nazi leader and one of Canada's most notorious white
supremacists. Fromm has spoken at Heritage Front events, including a
celebration of Hitler's birthday. He cannot be given an uncritical
platform to spew his hate,” says Maitland Cassia of Anti Racist Action-
Vancouver.

Fromm received prominent media coverage all weekend including by the
Toronto Star, Canadian Press, CTV, and CFAX 1070 with little mention of
his notorious links. According to Shane Calder of the Victoria Anti Racist
Network, “Government officials and media outlets should all be aware about
his extremist white supremacist links, and should report on them. It
should be absolutely unacceptable that well-known neo-Nazis and white
supremacists are openly organizing rallies for the ship to be sent back.
We should all be organizing counter-rallies against in response to their
hateful and oppressive views.”

“It is frightening when Vic Toews and Paul Fromm are parroting the same
unsubstantiated lies about terrorists, criminals and illegals to justify
public hysteria and a large security operation. Is this really the
direction we want to be going in? Or do we want to stand on the side of
refugee justice, compassion, and respect for life?” states Magin Payet
Scudalleri, a member of No One Is Illegal-Vancouver.

No One Is Illegal has released a factsheet on Myths and Realities about
the 490 Tamil asylum seekers aboard MV Sun Sea, encouraging people to
educate themselves rather than rely solely on sensationalist sound-bites.
This factsheet is available here: http://noii-van.resist.ca/?p=2167.

The group has also released a poster “What Is Your Opinion”
(http://bit.ly/cDm40C) encouraging people to think more critically about
the refugees, and is organizing a National Day of Action in support of the
Tamil migrants on Saturday August 21 at 3:30 pm. More details are
available at: http://noii-van.resist.ca.

“We should refrain from stereotyping these migrants and remember that they
have survived a long and arduous journey in the hopes that the Canadian
state will fully comply with its international refugee and human rights
law obligations to the right to asylum” further states Scudalleri.

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