James Allsup

James Allsup
Allsup on the air on a KZUU radio show in 2016
President of the WSU College Republicans
In office
2015 – August 14, 2017
Personal details
Born James Orien Allsup
(1995-09-07) September 7, 1995
Beaverton, Oregon, U.S.
Nationality American
Political party Republican
Residence Pullman, Washington, U.S.
Education Washington State University
Occupation Activist, YouTuber
Known for YouTube, Unite the Right rally
James Allsup
100,000 subscribers 2017

James Orien Allsup (born September 7, 1995) is an American far-right political commentator and YouTube personality. He is also the former president of the College Republicans chapter at Washington State University (WSU). Allsup's views have been described as White nationalist,[1][2][3][4] an allegation that he denies.[5][6]

In August 2017, Allsup attended the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, mainly to record events for his YouTube channel. After the rally turned violent, he resigned as president of the College Republicans at Washington State University in 2017 before being re-elected later in November of the same year.[7] However, he was unable to take the position per university rules as he was set to graduate.[7]

In June 2018, he was elected to the minor position of a precinct committee officer for the Whitman County, Washington Republican Party.[8][9]

Early life and education

Allsup was born in Beaverton, Oregon on September 7, 1995.[10] He graduated from Bothell High School in 2014,[11][12] and then enrolled at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington,[13] graduating in 2017.[14] While attending WSU, he was president of WSU College Republicans and hosted events that brought Republican candidates such as Bill Bryant[15] and Chris Vance[16] to the university.

Activities

President of the WSU's College Republicans

Allsup was elected president of the WSU's College Republicans chapter in 2015, and remained president until resigning on August 14, 2017. According to one student who attended meetings of the organisation Allsup changed the nature of the organisation dramatically.[17][18]

In January 2017 Allsup arranged for Milo Yiannopoulos to speak at WSU; the event ended up being cancelled due to weather.[18] The President of the WSU Young Democrats Gavin Pielow continued to host a "Civics 101" program that was planned as an "alternative event" to Milo's planned visit.[19]

As President of the College Republicans, Allsup consistently participated in public forum debates with his counterpart Gavin Pielow, the President of the WSU Young Democrats. In the spring of 2017, ASWSU Senator Kevin Schilling moderated a debate between Allsup and Pielow in which the two discussed Russia's involvement in President Donald Trump's administration, Supreme Court confirmations, U.S. foreign policy, the proposed border wall between the U.S. and Mexico, the national budget and health care.[20] Debates between Allsup's College Republicans and Pielow's Young Democrats range as far back as October 2016.[21]

In 2016, Allsup served as the Washington State Coordinator for Students for Rand, the youth division of Rand Paul's presidential campaign.[22]

Students for Trump

Following the suspension of Paul's campaign, Allsup was hired by Ryan Fournier to serve as the Senior Advisor at Students for Trump,[22] a non-profit political organization based in Campbell, North Carolina supporting Donald Trump's presidential campaign, unaffiliated with the official campaign organization.[22]

Allsup helped to organize the May 9, 2016 construction of the "Trump Wall" at the University of Washington. The wall was 10 by 8 ft (3.0 by 2.4 m) and built out of plywood, painted to resemble a brick wall, with the phrases "Blue Lives Matter" and "Make America Great Again" painted on the front.[23] The event, which was co-hosted by UW Students for Trump and UW College Republicans, was met with "about 100" protesters,.[24] Allsup stated that the intended message of the event was "that we need to have a strong immigration policy and enforce the law," and regarding the exposure the event generated, that "the reason people demonstrate is for exposure, media or otherwise."[25]

In January 2017, he attended an inauguration celebration outside the National Press Club in downtown Washington, D.C., where he stated he had been attacked by a protester with a flagpole.[26]

Unite the Right rally and aftermath

Allsup attended the Unite the Right rally in Charlottsville on August 12, 2017. At the rally, he documented events and delivered a speech defending the protesters there.[18] Allsup was open about his participation in the rally, including his plan to speak, which was disrupted by left-leaning protesters.[27] On Monday after the rally, he resigned from his position as head of the College Republicans group at WSU, a move he said he had been planned in advance but had subsequently expedited.[28][27] In an interview with KREM, he said that he attended the rally "in a media capacity" and was unexpectedly asked to speak by one of its organizers. He also said that he disagreed with the violence that occurred there and with the hateful symbols, such as swastikas, that were being displayed by some of the rally's attendees.[29] After attending the rally in Charlottesville, it was reported by unnamed sources that he uploaded a video documenting his experiences there, which was almost immediately taken down.[18]

Images of Allsup attending the rally posted on social media led to demands on social media platforms that WSU expel Allsup,[18] including a petition.[30] Allsup stated on Twitter that if college administrators did expel him, it would result in a "huge civil rights lawsuit win for me."[29] As of the week of August 14, he was not enrolled in classes for the fall semester at WSU.[31]

Allsup's account on Twitter was suspended on Christmas Day 2017.[32] At the time of the suspension, his account had 24,000 followers.[33]

Election to local Republican Party position

In an uncontested election in June 2018, Allsup was elected to be the Precinct Committee Officer (PCO) for Precinct #129, a minor "hyperlocal" position of the Washington (state) Republican Party. PCOs elect the Republican leadership in their respective counties.[8][9][14]

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors hate groups, Allsup's intentions have been to achieve his white nationalist anti-immigration agenda "through the infiltration of the Republican Party rather than by the radical, revolutionary action favored by vanguardist groups on the extreme fringe." Allsup told a white nationalist podcast in 2017 "You have a seat at the table, and that’s the most important thing, getting that seat at the table, and you can get that seat at the table by, yes, showing up, yes, by bringing people in." Keegan Hankes, a senior research analyst at the SPLC, commented that "Anytime that someone who holds extreme political positions has any foothold in mainstream politics, it’s a problem," and pointed out that using uncontested elections to get a foot in the door has long been a strategy for white nationalists.[14]

Views

Allsup has described himself as a "paleoconservative" and a "right-wing libertarian".[34] He has been described as a white nationalist by The Atlantic[35] and a "budding alt-right figure" by The Washington Post.[36] He is a former Liberty Conservative writer.[37] He argues that he is not a white nationalist. Shortly after stepping down as president of the WSU College Republicans, he told KCPQ that "I have fully condemned the KKK, I have fully condemned Nazis, all of that kind of stuff."[6] According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Allsup "...advocates for advancing white nationalism through the infiltration of the Republican Party rather than by the radical, revolutionary action favored by vanguardist groups on the extreme fringe."[38]

In May 2017 he expressed support for the views of psychologist Richard Lynn, a professor at the University of Ulster known for his belief in racial differences in intelligence.[39]

References

  1. ↑ Gershman, Jacob (August 16, 2017). "Tech Firms Ban White Supremacists, Shifting From Hands-Off Policy". Fox News. Uber Technologies Inc. blacklisted white supremacist James Allsup
  2. ↑ "A running list of websites and apps that have banned, blocked, deleted, and otherwise dropped white supremacists". Quartz (publication). August 16, 2017. Retrieved March 3, 2018. After white supremacist James Allsup was kicked out of his Uber for allegedly making racist comments to his driver, the company permanently banned Allsup from using its app.
  3. ↑ Statt, Nick (August 17, 2017). "Uber says it will continue to ban white supremacists from its platform". The Verge. Retrieved March 3, 2018. Over the weekend, Uber banned notable white supremacist James Allsup after Allsup and his passenger, alt-right personality Tim "Baked Alaska" Gionet, made racist remarks while riding past the National Museum of African-American History and Culture in Washington, DC. The Uber driver, an unidentified black women, felt so uncomfortable that she asked the two to leave the car.
  4. ↑ O'Donovan, Caroline (August 15, 2017). "Uber Bans Racists Too". Buzzfeed. Retrieved March 3, 2017. Uber permanently banned white supremacist James Allsup from its ride-hail platform on Saturday after an Uber driver in Washington, DC, kicked him and alt-right leader Tim Gionet, better known as Baked Alaska on Twitter, out of her car for allegedly making racist remarks. The decision makes Uber one of a handful of tech companies that denied service to groups or individuals associated with the violent white supremacist rally that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday.
  5. ↑ "A year after the 'Trump wall,' WSU navigates issues of speech and diversity". The Spokesman-Review. October 22, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018. James Allsup denies he's a racist. He also denies he's a white nationalist. The term is "not very descriptive" and "used as a slur term by the media to label people as something that they know is unpopular," he said in an interview. "I prefer the term American nationalist
  6. 1 2 "WSU student says 'ridiculous totalitarian people' aiming for expulsion after Charlottesville appearance". q13fox.com. August 15, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018. He said he's not a white nationalist, describing himself as a paleoconservative or right-wing libertarian
  7. 1 2 Kolowich, Steve (December 1, 2017). "Spotted at a White-Power Rally, but Still Popular With Campus Republicans".
  8. 1 2 Charlottesville Hate Marcher Elected by Republican Party
  9. 1 2 Jackson, Scott. "'Unite the Right' marcher elected as county PCO". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
  10. ↑ "James Allsup". Facebook. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Bothell High School graduates 477 students". Bothell-Kenmore Reporter. June 20, 2014. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  12. ↑ "WSU College Republicans leader steps down after being exposed as white-nationalist protester". The Seattle Times. August 14, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  13. ↑ reporter, Forrest Holt | Evergreen. "Trump tabling sparks debate". Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  14. 1 2 3 Frej, Willie (June 5, 2018) "White Nationalist Who Marched In Charlottesville Elected To Local GOP Office" Huffington Post
  15. ↑ reports, From staff. "Gubernatorial candidate speaks to WSU students". Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  16. ↑ reporter, Hannah Street | Evergreen. "Senate candidate visits WSU". Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  17. ↑ Knauf, Ana Sofia (August 15, 2017). "WSU Student James Allsup Wrote Hateful Posts on Facebook Before He Went to Charlottesville". The Stranger. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 Francovich, Eli (August 14, 2017). "Former WSU College Republican president James Allsup radicalized campus politics, students say". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  19. ↑ Quinn, Shanon (January 17, 2017). "WSU College Republicans: The show will go on". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  20. ↑ "Student political leaders to debate tonight". The Daily Evergreen. March 22, 2017. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  21. ↑ Olsen, Sarah (October 13, 2016). "Student leaders debate". The Daily Evergreen. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  22. 1 2 3 "About Students for Trump - Students for Trump". Archived from the original on October 9, 2016. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  23. ↑ "College students erect 'Trump wall' at University of Washington". May 9, 2016. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  24. ↑ "University of Washington students erected an 8-foot 'Trump wall' and had to tear it down when a Mexican student climbed over it". Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  25. ↑ "The UW Trump Movement Is a Perfect Microcosm of the Donald's Ridiculous Campaign". Seattle Weekly. May 20, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
  26. ↑ Sokol, Chad (January 20, 2017). "WSU College Republicans leader says he was attacked amid D.C. inauguration protests". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  27. 1 2 Sailor, Craig (August 14, 2017). "WSU student seen at Charlottesville rally resigns as head of college Republicans". Bellingham Herald. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  28. ↑ TEGNA. "WSU College Republicans president resigns after attending 'Unite the Right' in Charlottesville". KING. Retrieved October 30, 2017.
  29. 1 2 Knauf, Ana Sofia (August 14, 2017). "What We Know About James Allsup, the WSU College Republican President Who Rallied in Charlottesville". The Stranger. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  30. ↑ White, Rebecca (August 18, 2017). "University maintains stance on free speech as students demand action". The Daily Evergreen. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  31. ↑ Associated Press (August 20, 2017). "Hundreds March Against Racism at Washington State Univ". U.S. News & World Report.
  32. ↑ McNamara, Neal (December 26, 2017). "Twitter Suspends Bothell Man Seen At Racist Virginia Rally". Woodinville Patch.
  33. ↑ Sokol, Chad (December 27, 2017). "Twitter suspends James Allsup, WSU student and far-right provocateur". Seattle Times.
  34. ↑ Ortutay, Barbara (August 14, 2017). "WSU College Republicans leader steps down after being exposed as white-nationalist protester". The Seattle Times. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  35. ↑ Gray, Rosie (August 14, 2017). "'Alt-Right' Leaders Won't Condemn Ramming Suspect". The Atlantic.
  36. ↑ Phillips, Kristine (August 22, 2017). "The man who organized the Charlottesville rally is in hiding – and too toxic for the alt-right". The Washington Post.
  37. ↑ "Google slammed over pressuring foundation, reporters". Russia Today. September 1, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  38. ↑ "James Orien Allsup". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
  39. ↑ Sokol, Chada (May 4, 2017). "WSU President Kirk Schulz launches investigation into racist video". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
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