A secret infiltration of neo-Nazi fight club Tennessee After the guardian’s inquiry, the martial arts school was prohibited from using it in the facility.
Last month, South Central Tennessee Active Club released a videotape on the messaging app Telegram showing its members attending combat training at Shelbyville BJJ Academy, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu school in Shelbyville, Tennessee, which provides courses for three-year-olds.
The group is part of a wider network of active clubs, which consists of dozens of scattered cells in the United States and abroad, using combat movements to attract people into white nationalists and neo-Nazi causes.
Experts warn that while other far-right groups like Proud Boys are less well known, they warn that active clubs are very dangerous as they recruit boys and young men into violent white nationalist circles, through the use of the concept of fraternity as a gateway to extremism.
“What makes them unique is the ‘wolf in sheep’s costumes’ approach, designed to deceive law enforcement into believing that active clubs are just sports,” Alexander Ritzmann, a political scientist and senior consultant who studies the movement’s anti-extremism program, told The Guardian.
In 2023 ReportRizman warned that the ultimate goal of the active club is to “create well-trained and capable militias [right wing extremists] Who can be activated when coordinated violence is required on a large scale. ”
At one point in the video posted by Tennessee Cell, an active club flag with a sonnenrad on it, a symbol of Nazi Germany adopted by neo-Nazis and other extreme extreme extremists, can be seen hanging on a wall where young children usually gather.
After introducing videos of active club training in its facilities, Shelbyville BJJ Academy told The Guardian: “This type of behavior in our gym is a direct violation of our ethics and opposes our community as a safe place for children and adults.
“The situation was quickly resolved and we appreciate your attention,” the school continued in a statement. “We can assure you that this will not happen again.”
The academy also rejected the extremist ideology of the active club, emphasizing: “We accept and welcome all. We all belong. Regardless of background, color, creed, nationality or status.”
As for how the group is entering, the school said it provides members with keyboard access so they can train outside of normal courses. It believes that the activity club entered using this method says the access code has been changed.
The active club in South Central Tennessee blurs the faces of most members shown in the videos it shot at BJJ Academy in Shelbyville, but one man’s face was uncensored. His name: William Chase May.
Record On Smoothcomp is a software for organizing and recording combat sports events, showing him being awarded to him by Shelbyville BJJ Academy in 2023.
The school confirmed May was a member, despite his seldom attendance and he appeared from “from time to time.”
The academy said he was banned after the guardian brought his identity to people’s attention and conducted an internal investigation into whether any other member had unauthorized use of the facility.
Riztmann told Guardian that the presence of active clubs in Tennessee at Tennessee College is particularly worrying because of the movement’s architect, white supremacist Robert Rundo “The main recruitment strategies were developed, which included contact with minors in the school”.
April, Guardian Report On the Telegram account, participants in many active clubs in the United States are between 16 and 18 years old.
In May, multiple images were posted on Shelbyville BJJ’s Google comment page, and under the performance of the alias “Chase Odinson”, he has trained him in school and interacted with young children.
May looked at the Guardian’s request for comment sent to him by telegram, but no reply.
According to a chat log with the Guardian, a cost independent researcher first discovered images of the Shelbyville school’s activity club training in September.
In December, they started release Some of their findings on the social media network Bluesky, they used the alias Inteltwink.
“It was through Chase May that Shelbyville BJJ was identified,” they told the Guardian, adding that they identified him after “infiltrating Tucker’s private telegram chat.”
While it is unclear how often or how long the active clubs use school facilities, the latest video confirms that the group is sharing documents for months of its activity.
Shelbyville Bedford County is a 23,000 city located 50 miles southeast of the state capital Nashville. In recent years, Tennessee has been identified by researchers and journalists as a hotbed of violent white nationalist activities.
2023, Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) reveal A statewide active Tennessee club holds network events and fight clubs at a grocery store in the Nashville area Call yourself “The actual writing Nazi.”
Last month, SPLC Report The statewide active club is secretly controlled by the Patriot Front, a racist and neo-fascist hate group.
March, News Channel 5 Report Patriot Front has built a 122-acre compound in Tellico Plains.
And, last fall, The Daily Beast Report One of Channel 5 was identified as the compound’s leader Ian Elliott, infiltrating another Tennessee Grab School in Athens (the school kicked him out).
Meanwhile, May is part of the active club that penetrates Shelbyville School, and he appears to be acquaintances with Elliott.
A picture he posted to his personal telegram account on October 26, 2024 shows him and the Patriots forward leader posing with a third man, his face obscured by Sonnenrad.
Health & Wellness Contributor
A wellness enthusiast and certified nutrition advisor, Meera covers everything from healthy living tips to medical breakthroughs. Her articles aim to inform and inspire readers to live better every day.
