Armed Nazi Group Protests Pride Event Featuring Drag Show

An armed Neo-Nazi group protested a Pride in the Park event in Watertown, Wisconsin, on Saturday afternoon that featured a drag story time and drag shows.

Video journalist Oliya Scootercaster took to Twitter on Saturday to document the protest and wrote, "BLOOD TRIBE group marching in Watertown Wisconsin protesting Pride in the park." In her videos, one Neo-Nazi group member can be seen carrying a weapon. It is immediately unclear if more members were armed. Newsweek has not been able to independently verify if the group seen in the video is Blood Tribe.

According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Blood Tribe is described as "a neo-Nazi group with semi-autonomous chapters in the United States and Canada. Blood Tribe promotes hardline white supremacist views and openly directs its vitriol at Jews, 'non-whites' and the LGBTQ+ community."

Drag events have been targeted by right-wing activists across the United States in recent months, with a particular focus on those accessible to children. In Tennessee, Republican lawmakers have voted to ban "adult cabaret performance" from public property, or any location which could be viewed by a child, with similar legislation being proposed in a number of other states like Kentucky and Oklahoma.

Newsweek has reached out to the ADL for comment via email.

In another one of Scootercaster's videos on Saturday, the group could also be heard chanting, "No pedos in our streets," and "there will be blood, blood, blood." Later on in the same video, a member of the group can be seen yelling, "Pedophiles get the rope!" in the face of a bystander. Newsweek has also reached out to the Watertown Police Department via phone for comment.

Elizabeth Richter Boxell, board member at large for the Unity Project of Watertown, told Newsweek: "Yes, we had a Neo-Nazi group show up to protest our event. But you know who else showed up? The police department working hard at keeping us safe and the event peaceful. A group of religious leaders including rabbis, pastors, and priests affirming the individuals and community at the event. Allies and members of the LGBTQ community who spent the rest of the day laughing, sharing joy, making friendships, and spreading love. The Neo-Nazi group tried to derail us, but they failed. At Watertown's Pride in the Park, love won."

While speaking to Watertown Daily Times on Thursday about Pride in the Park, Trent Kangas, president of Unity Project of Watertown and one of the event's organizers, told the newspaper, "We want to be a beacon for those who can't be themselves publicly and we want to show them Watertown is a safe place for them."

Meanwhile, Pride in the Park was also called out on Twitter by the account Gays Against Groomers.

"Our team has gone inside the Watertown, WI event. Here is a sampling of what children are being subjected to. Shame on the parents that bring them here. Shame on those in our community that think this is okay. PRIDE IS NOT FOR KIDS," Gays Against Groomers tweeted on Saturday afternoon.

In a separate tweet, Gays Against Groomers added, "Watertown is a tiny little town. The population is slightly over 20,000 people. This is not just happening in the big cities. It's a cancer that has spread EVERYWHERE."

Independent journalist and filmmaker Ford Fischer also documented the protest and tweeted on Saturday, "Update: I only managed to livestream on Facebook, but armed Neo-Nazis from 'Blood Tribe' showed up here at the pride event in Wisconsin. I'll have video up here ASAP."

Update 7/31/23, 11 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Elizabeth Richter Boxell.

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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