A member of the Proud Boys, a far-right group known for racist, misogynistic and violent rhetoric, sits on a city commission representing the predominately Hispanic population of Fennville in western Michigan.
Morgan Bolles, who has an extensive criminal record, was appointed to fill a vacant commission seat on Dec. 2. Soon after the appointment, city officials began making disturbing discoveries about Bolles, a 32-year-old who’s been charged with four assaults, at least three involving women. He also was charged twice with drunken driving, The Detroit News reports.
The Proud Boys are self-described western chauvinists with a history of engaging in violent street brawls and promoting racism, anti-semitism, homophobia, and closed borders. The Southern Poverty Law Center designates the Proud Boys as a hate group.
Bolles tweeted a photo of himself wearing a shirt depicting the Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara with the words, “Socialism is for f*gs,” and flashing an OK gesture, which has been adopted by some white supremacists to promote hate, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The rhetoric prompted Facebook and Instagram to ban the group.
Morgan Bolles just got written in as a City Commissioner for Fennville, MI and will be confirmed on December 16th. There's one big problem: he hates LGBTQIA people and has ties to the Proud Boys.
— Vigilant AFA (@AfaVigilant) December 7, 2019
Given the gesture here, he likes "white power" as well. pic.twitter.com/uUEr4Xw6d6
At a December council meeting, about 50 residents turned out after learning about Bolles’ ties to the Proud Boys. He insisted the group is anti-racist and promotes limited government.
That wasn't the case in October 2018, when 10 members of the Proud Boys were charged following a violent street brawl in New York in which they were seen beating protesters and shouting homophobic slurs.
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