For all of our friends and supporters who've been following our efforts to shut down a white power conference scheduled for this weekend in Boston, here's the great news. Below you'll find our initial news writeup on the cancellation of Patriot Action by its previously unsuspecting Boston venue. More details to follow as we get them.
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Boston Pulls the Plug on Hate Conference
Ever since the white nationalist group East Coast White Unity began promoting a conference in Boston, slated for April 11th, reaction from the community was strong. The Patriot Action Conference, which would have included speakers from various hate groups and several well-documented white power bands, advertised sponsorship by both ECWU and Volksfront. The location remained closely guarded and unknown to the many organizations and individuals seeking to protest the event – until today.
Boston Indymedia published a report by Anti-Racist Action and the North-East Anti-Fascists, detailing the location of the Patriot Action Conference as the South Boston VFW Hall. The report provided the hall’s phone number and encouraged readers to phone in their thoughts on the VFW’s plans to host a hate conference. A call to the VFW by Turn It Down found that the event had already been canceled quickly and decisively. A management source at the South Boston VFW emphatically explained that the venue had no idea as to the nature of the event they were scheduled to host: “We want no part of that. It has no place here, and it ain’t welcome. We shut it down as soon as we knew.”
The Turn It Down Campaign would like to congratulate Boston’s bands, music fans, anti-racist activists, and everyday citizens for taking such a strong stand against the efforts of hate groups to gather in their communities. Many people and organizations have been working against this event since it was announced. Its cancellation is proof that a community can keep hate out.