By Marc Randazza
Andrew Anglin, a neo-Nazi whom many online publications refer to as a vicious online troll, is being sued by a Jewish citizen of Whitefish, Montana. Tanya Gersh accuses him of invading her family’s privacy, urging his supporters to attack her family with hateful and death-threatening messages, and unleashing an online anti-Semitic trolling campaign against her, her relatives, her 12-year-old son, and other Jewish citizens of the local community.
I represent Anglin in this suit. I realize that Anglin’s story is full of controversy, hate, and nationalistic views, which he reportedly spread among his followers. However, the court may be on the verge of creating a dangerous precedent when deciding this lawsuit. Anglin has every right to ask people to share their views, even if those views are absolutely abhorrent.
The First Amendment protects unpopular speech and I firmly believe that everyone deserves their constitutional rights to be defended. Even though it appears that the neo-Nazi movement is gaining momentum in the US and evoking public disturbances, this fact should not be used as an excuse to forget that Anglin’s right to freedom of speech is granted by the First Amendment. Restricting it in court will impose severe damage on free speech in America.
In Anglin’s case, it is the shitty price we have to pay for freedom. The lawsuit is supposed to enter the pre-trial stage in December, so we will have to see how this case unfolds.
See coverage of Andrew Anglin’s story in the December’s issue of The Atlantic magazine.
