7 March 30–april 5, 2023 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Beirich noted. Proud Boys and other white supremacists have violently clashed with at- tendees at drag queen story hours, including during events in North Texas. Coordinated acts of hatred against mar- ginalized communities are carried out virtu- ally every day, ADL’s Center on Extremism Vice President Oren Segal told The Texas Tribune. “These actions are also being docu- mented by the extremists themselves in or- der to signal back to their communities online, which provides an on-ramp to fur- ther engagement with white supremacy and hate,” he said, according to that outlet. The anti-LGBTQ climate has traveled to other parts of the world, including Australia and Britain, Beirich said, adding that the GOP has done little to distance itself from such bigotry. “So there’s nothing to tamp down these activities, right?” she said. “They’re essen- tially getting sanction from one of our major political parties, and that’s another huge, huge problem here.” The way Beirich sees it, one major issue is that the Republican Party is acting as if the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol was “no big deal.” Texas is a hotbed for insurrectionists, placing second in the number of alleged J6- ers roughly a year after the Capitol attack. Beirich said that the state has “one of the most radical Republican parties” in the na- tion. It passed a “very extreme platform” last year that took aim at immigrants, the LG- BTQ community and others. Plus, some Texans who believe the 2020 election was “stolen” have since run for of- fice, she said. “All of this is feeding into more and more extremism, and this report is essentially just representing that,” she said. “These people are active, they’re on the streets, they feel emboldened. They’re willing to put out this nasty propaganda. It’s just kind of an ugly scene, and Texas is one of the prime places where this is happening.” Many North Texans make up the insur- rection’s most high-profile arrests, including Frisco Realtor Jenna Ryan and Cooke Coun- ty’s Mark Middleton, the latter of whom later launched an unsuccessful bid for the state legislature. On March 17, a retired Air Force officer from Grapevine, 55-year-old Larry Brock, was sentenced to two years behind bars for his own Capitol riot role. He’d donned com- bat gear and brought zip-tie handcuffs to the attack on the Capitol. Recently Trump claimed that he will soon be arrested in relation to a probe into hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. He also encouraged his followers to protest in order to “SAVE AMERICA.” Beirich believes that if Trump does get arrested, it “could really rile up these folks.” And what about stopping the spread of white supremacist ideas or slashing extrem- ist organizations’ membership? Beirich thinks it would help if conservative political leadership in Texas and beyond would de- nounce their activities and distance them- selves from such groups. “But that’s clearly not going to happen,” she continued. “So, I don’t see anything that’s going to slow this down.” A D Brunch Event 21+ Only • Rain or Shine DoBrunchTheMorningAfter.com UNLIMITED BRUNCH BITES PROVIDED BY: Avery’s Savory Popcorn | The Berni Bean Cof ee Co. Bowldega Superfoods | Cafe Brazil Chiloso Mexican Bistro | First Watch Restaurants Gelu Italian Ice | Isla & Co. | Juiceland Los Primos Tacos & More | Mendocino Farms The Nest Craft | San Martin Bakery | Sweetgreen Tacodeli | Taqueria Taxco | The Trove EXCLUSIVE VIP RESTAURANTS Gus’s Fried Chicken | Snooze an AM Eatery PLUS MORE! Saturday, April 29th Dallas City Hall Plaza SCAN HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS BENEFITING: BROUGHT TO YOU BY: LEGAL NOTICE Application has been made with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission for a Distillery Permit by Duckworth Distillery LLC dba Duckworth Distillery, to be located at 6445 Cedar Springs, Suite 212, Dallas, Dallas, Texas 75235. Officers of said corporation are Managing Member Lee Foster Fuqua and Managing Member Julia Hagmann Fuqua.
