by Helena Lovick | Jun 17, 2024 | LGBTQ+ Issues
Great Falls, MONT
Mayor Proclaims He Won’t Proclaim Support for LGBTQ+ Community….
Early in June, the Great Falls Mayor Cory Reeves posted a statement on Facebook that he wouldn’t be issuing a proclamation for LGBTQ+ Month. And we’re still seeing the fallout on our town from the mayor’s clueless-at-best position.
Mayor Reeves’s Facebook proclamation that he’s not making a proclamation
Sure, I agree with the mayor that people should be “treated with equal respect and dignity without government interference in personal matters”. BUT ARE THEY?
Of course we know they are not. We all know that the LGBTQ+ community is marginalized, discriminated against, and faces continued stigma for just being who they are.
And Hate Speech Follows
Why didn’t Cory just stay silent and not issue a proclamation? Instead, he made it worse by openly refusing to make a proclamation of support. That clearly sends the message that our city government DOESN’T support the LGBTQ+ community. And like clockwork, bigots come crawling out of the woodwork. Affirming organizations, including our blog, are getting hate messages because we openly support actual “equality for all individuals” by speaking in support of the LGBTQ+ Community. The neo-nazi “wHitE LiVes MatTeR” crowd was emboldened to put up their racist and homophobic stickers in our town the night of June 15th. More than 60 anti-LGBTQ+ stickers and and dozens of racist white lives matter stickers were found throughout the downtown area. Below are some images of the hate-speech, lie-filled stickers.
Loser neo-nazi unsurprisingly spreads lies and hate speech stickers in Great Falls, Montana
Of course the neo-nazi who put up the stickers is still too big of coward to do it publicly. And yeah, Great Falls is NOT filled with bigots (nice strawman argument Rick Tryon, we never said it was). It is likely one or two fucking pieces of shit putting up those stickers. But that doesn’t stop the harm it causes.
Let this inspire those of us who don’t support hate
One person can have a huge impact. Love is Love! Put up a “Hate has NO home here” sign at your home, wear a rainbow. Be a visible ally. We can use more love in this world.
And Cory, if you’re reading this, you were wrong. You can own your mistake and issue a proclamation now. It won’t undo the harm you unleashed but it will be better than just letting the hate continue to froth up. Our community deserves better.
by Guest Writer | Feb 28, 2024 | Guest Articles
A Tale of Cats, Cows and Anti-Vaxxers
or
How the John Birch Society Bit Ravalli County and Gave It Rabies
By: Bill Lacroix
First published: https://billlacroix.blogspot.com/
I don’t call my cat “Fatso” lightly. It’s not who she is, it’s where she likes to sit and when, which is on my lap when I’m using my laptop. Her body blobs onto my keyboard and, when I try to write, my minimal hand movements harsh her mellow, which prods her to give the back of my hand a nip of annoyance. That’s endearing, but, not too long ago, one of her love bites broke the skin and became infected, which recalled a ‘70s pop song that should have been killed at birth (“Cat Scratch Fever”) which, in turn, triggered a temporary bout of irrational cognitive dissonance (anger mixed with conspiracy theories), the sort of thing that short-circuits your brain and sends you to an emergency room for drugs because you never know WHO or WHAT is out to get you in Ravalli County. It could be your cat. Or Ted Nugent.
To point: Ravalli County has had a problem with science, for a while. During the Covid-19 pandemic, our local cops couldn’t possibly enforce humane safety protocols to keep other peoples’ grandparents from dying because of other peoples’ conspiracy theories. Alas—and as a direct result—more people died of Covid than in traffic accidents. Paradoxically, these same cops could and did enforce speed limits throughout the pandemic, including ticketing me for going 29 MPH in a 25 MPH zone. Paradoxically-squared: local paranoia over Nazi-nurses torturing transplanted retirees with freedom-smothering N-95 masks birthed the local “Breathe-Free Montana” group, a John Birch-flavored extremist outfit whose adherents recently succeeded in orchestrating a coup against the already-entrenched, already-hard-right-but-apparently-not-hard-right-enough Republican Central Committee that has had a stranglehold on our local politics since that black guy became president.
So there I sat in a Ravalli County examining room which, in a reality-based county, would be a “safe space,” but, remember, we’re talking Ravalli County. The nice nurse left to “get the doctor” and, less than two minutes later, a Hamilton Police officer barged in unannounced, in “full metal jacket,” demanding that I either surrender my cat to be quarantined for 10 days in kitty jail or that I sign an affidavit that I will do it myself and that, if my cat escaped during that time and caused damage to other peoples’ property, I would be liable. As an example, he cited the possibility that my cat could bite a cow and give the whole herd rabies.
His logic, of course, was impeccable but, as my hand throbbed in my lap, I also thought that maybe I had contracted rabies or some other hallucinatory microbe. I had to get rid of this guy so I could get drugs and, thankfully, cognitive dissonance is usually a passing thing, and so I told him that I would be glad to produce a record of her recent rabies shot. Never mind, he countered. I must either surrender Fatso or sign, which I did. The catch: the affidavit stipulated that, after her 10-day quarantine, I would bring her in to the station to prove she wasn’t a rabid John Bircher yet, which was beauty-cubed, since I thought a conversation with local law enforcement about cows being more important to them than people would be priceless. I have no intention of taking Fatso in for her parole hearing and, to date, we are still on the lam, awaiting a wonderful conversation. BTW: Anyone know a good lawyer who doesn’t have rabies yet?
by Jasmine Taylor | Feb 14, 2024 | Militia and Hate Groups
An out-of-state NeoNazi named Christoper Pohlhaus finds himself without anywhere to get his pump on. After learning that Pohlhaus has been frequenting a local Bozeman gym, What The Funk reached out to the business. It appears we weren’t the only folks to voice concerns. By the time the business responded, poor Mr. Pohlhaus was no longer a member of the facility.
Some might question if it’s wrong to target Neo-Nazis to limit their access to society’s little pleasures. Short answer- Fuck no. Long answer- Neo-Nazis are violent and they preach violence. They venerate Hitler, and seek the extermination of groups they hate. It is not only okay to exclude them from public life, it is necessary. Actions have consequences. Threatening minority groups is never acceptable, and one way we push back is by creating social and economic consequences for such behavior. This resistance is intended to make it harder for Neo-Nazis to spread their hate and violence.
Further, businesses operate for-profit. It is to their benefit to have policies and procedures that prevent liability. Every business should have measures in place to protect their customers and employees from discrimination. That surely means not allowing in a Neo-Nazi who has a well documented history of threats and harassment, including screaming slurs at people, to use their facility.
In their response, the gym also noted that Pohlhaus has left the area. We can’t confirm this information, but heartily hope it to be true. Montana has no room for Nazis.
Read about Polhaus’s prior NeoNazi activity here: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/neo-nazis-florida-march-1234817532/
by Jasmine Taylor | Jan 10, 2024 | Militia and Hate Groups
The Nazi propaganda that has plagued Great Falls over the past year turned up in Bozeman earlier this week. Montana State University has confirmed that NeoNazi stickers were placed throughout the campus, but their response leaves a lot to be desired. MSU did not take any steps to notify students of the event and seemingly did not put any measures in place to provide safety for affected students, claiming that no safety risk was identified. I can’t help but wonder if Jewish students at MSU share this view.
You can read the full story about MSU here: https://dailymontanan.com/2024/01/05/montana-state-university-hit-with-white-supremacist-nationalist-stickers-and-posters/
The Big Sky Active Club has seemingly taken credit for the propaganda at MSU. This group is closely affiliated with White Lives Matter, with a handful of pathetic White dudes participating in both groups. White Lives Matter is the NeoNazi group that has been distributing similar materials in Great Falls.
Most recently, White Lives Matter shared a video of themselves placing White supremacist materials in Great Falls Public Library materials. Great Falls’ response to this event was far stronger, more supportive, and more effective than what we’re seeing from MSU. GFPL and the YWCA launched the “Hate Has No Home Here” campaign, making signs available at both locations. Although Great Falls is not out of the woods yet, there have been no reports of further propaganda since the campaign was launched.
Read more about the campaign here: https://www.montanarightnow.com/great-falls/local-library-launches-hate-has-no-home-here-campaign/article_71df091c-9577-11ee-9156-8f14c6a8c61f.html
While we remain hopeful that a strong community response will prevent further incidents, we also want folks to know what to do should they encounter these materials. Check out this article from last year to learn how to remove Nazi propaganda:
https://wtf406.com/2023/08/neonazis-vandalize-downtown-great-falls/
So remember, Great Falls friends, don’t be like MSU. If YOU see Nazi propaganda, don’t stay silent. Stand up for our neighbors and speak out against hate. We’re a better community when we look out for each other.
by Jasmine Taylor | Dec 23, 2023 | Elections, Militia and Hate Groups
Trebas Spreads Anti-Semitic Lies
Earlier this week, Great Falls Senator Jeremy Trebas retweeted a horribly offensive Anti-Semitic tweet. We’ve included the tweet at the end of the article, but we ask that you don’t share it on your socials. (Why? Because we don’t want to further spread these harmful and inaccurate tropes about Jewish people. After discussion we decided it was important for folks to actually see what Trebas shared. People need to see that this ugliness really exists, and that Senator Trebas is actively contributing to it.)
If you aren’t familiar with the many forms of anti-semitism, that particular tweet is based on “blood libel.” Blood libel is the entirely FALSE allegation that Jewish people use the blood of children for ritual purposes. No, seriously. This disgusting lie has been used for centuries to persecute – and justify the MURDER of- Jewish people.
Trebas’s disgusting retweet resulted in him being called out by the Montana Human Rights Network, Montana Jewish Project, and the Anti Defamation League You can read all of those responses here:
https://www.mhrn.org/resources/mhrns-response-to-sen-jeremy-trebas-antisemitic-retweet?fbclid=IwAR3g8XZ4tXpo8hddRrlNA_JCHQ1gdNv8nzS8LdxyKcNQ8J-IKMy7Yz0mALA
https://www.facebook.com/montanajewishproject
https://twitter.com/ADLPNW/status/1737540722608476453?fbclid=IwAR086jXSzABELV4qtz0FWln26og9Qk4CZBiq49uxIgaqiG-a6dN6OfKe88M
When the Montana Jewish Project voiced their concerns regarding Trebas’ retweet, his first response was to publicly argue with them. Apparently Trebas felt he was owed a personal phone call rather than a public call out. To be clear, he wasn’t owed this. No one should have to tell a state senator that it’s not okay to spread lies that Jewish people use the blood of children in rituals. I mean, even typing that sentence is wild, right? Regardless, Trebas’ first instinct was to act like he himself was the wronged party. Unfortunately for ol’ Jeremy, the Montana Jewish Project had attempted to contact him first. Seemingly, Trebas had not checked his messages from his legislative accounts. Although the Montana Jewish Project now reports they had a productive phone call with Trebas, an apology is still nowhere in sight.
Trebas’ History of Bigotry
Over the past year, Great Falls has been inundated with Neo Nazi activity. We’ve seen our Black, Jewish, and LGBTQ+ neighbors targeted by hate literature and our downtown littered with nazi propaganda. Some local Republicans have taken an actual stance, condemning this activity and even helping us clean it up. Then there’s Senator Trebas and his ilk. Rather than fighting this flurry of hate, Trebas instead contributes to it.
We’ve already written about Trebas’ extreme anti-lgbtq views, and his disgusting behavior towards Rep. Zooey Zephyr. You can read about that here: https://wtf406.com/2023/04/transphobic-trebas-hateful-twitter-rant-reported-by-nbc/
We even contacted the Great Falls Rescue Mission, where Trebas serves as Director of Operations. (Their lackluster response made it clear they aren’t taking any measures to protect the unhoused from Trebas’ bigotry.) So, here we are again. Senator Trebas is using his public platform to spread hate, and this time it’s towards the Jewish community.
Where’s The Apology?
Trebas did indeed remove his offensive retweet, which is a positive step. It’s also the bare minimum and doesn’t take any real accountability for the damage he’s already done. He didn’t say “Hey guys, sorry I spread horrible, harmful, completely libelous things about the entire Jewish community.” He didn’t acknowledge the impact this has on Great Falls, or the very real ways rhetoric like this results in violence. He didn’t even accept responsibility. Instead, he’s seemingly trying to sweep this bad behavior under the rug because he’s been called out by more than just the Left this time.
Forgive us if we don’t feel hitting “delete” rights the wrong he has done here. There’s no place for Anti-Semitism in Great Falls, and least of all from those who are elected to represent us.
So, we’ll go ahead and ask for it formally now.
Senator Trebas, when can Great Falls expect your public apology?
