White supremacist group crashes New Jersey Labor Day parade and tries to march

On Tuesday, The Daily Beast reported that members of a white supremacist group crashed a Labor Day parade in South Plainfield, New Jersey, and tried to march with their own banner promoting their group's ideology.

"South Plainfield Mayor Matthew Anesh says the group of racists, part of the New Jersey European Heritage Association, tried to sneak into the back of his city’s annual parade but were quickly stopped by police. The group never registered with the city and were treated as protesters, Anesh said," reported Josh Fiallo. "The group’s unofficial status didn’t stop pissed off parade goers from heckling and recording the men, however. 'You know these guys are racist pieces of sh*t, you know who they are right?' one man says on the video. 'You guys are not welcome here. Not welcome.'"

"The group donned matching white tees, sunglasses and wore American flag bandanas over their faces, all while holding a massive sign that read, 'DEFEND AMERICAN LABOR … CLOSE THE BORDER.' They stayed quiet as parade goers heckled them, though, one member briefly stepped to the front to snap a photo of the sign before the recording cut out," said the report. "It’s unclear how long the group was on the parade route, as video only shows them standing silently as police flanked them, no floats in sight. Mayor Anesh did not answer a phone call or text from The Daily Beast on Tuesday afternoon seeking clarification."

“In no way shape or form did I, the Governing Body, the Public Celebrations Committee or any other group or organization in South Plainfield condone or welcome this group to the Parade,” said Anesh in a written statement after the incident.

The New Jersey European Heritage Association are best known for their flyer campaigns; according to their report, their flyers feature QR codes that direct to a site showing photos of pregnant white women and espousing the "Great Replacement" conspiracy theory, which states that there is a deliberate plot by elites — sometimes depicted as Jews — to flood majority-white countries with nonwhite immigrants and breed white people out of existence. Some of these flyers were even found in the U.S. Capitol after January 6.

This comes amid new reporting on efforts by white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups — who had been laying low after the blowback from the deadly 2017 Charlottesville, Virginia "Unite the Right" rally — to redouble their recruiting efforts. Some of these groups have been focused on recruitment in the Northeast, with Boston a particular target for hate groups like Patriot Front and NSC 31.