David Alan Grier: Boston Patriot Front Participants "The New Klan"

Source: MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images / Getty

Patriot Front, a white nationalist group born in the ashes of the Unite The Right rally in Charlottesville, gathered in Boston over the weekend for a public demonstration event. Comedian and actor David Alan Grier shared an image via social media referring to the group as “the new Klan.”

Seemingly emboldened by the likes of former President Donald Trump and the larger so-called “alt-right movement,” the Patriot Front took to the streets of Boston on Saturday (July 2) armed with police shields, masks, and United States flags bearing just 13 stars to represent the original colonies.

CNN reports that the marchers took to the streets in the early afternoon hours, dressed in khaki pants, dark shirts, covered faces, and eyeglasses in what seemingly is an attempt to obscure their faces and hide their identities. The network added that along with flags representing the group, they also flew flags with Benito Mussolini’s National Fascist Party symbol on them.

As the march went on, reports surfaced that members of the group reportedly injured a Black man after an exchange of words. The man was said to be pushed towards the group, shoved, and physically assaulted to the point of injury. Local outlet The Boston Herald reports that he was taken to a local medical center for treatment.

Grier, 66. shared an image of the marchers to his Twitter account with the caption “Meet the new Klan.” Grier’s tweet garnered a number of retweets, especially considering the events of the weekend led to a violent altercation. Activists in the community intend to return to the site of the march and attack on Monday (July 4) in counterprotest according to reports.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu shared a statement of the incident via Twitter, vowing to stand tall in the face of the group’s actions.

“The disgusting hate of white supremacists has no place here. Esp when so many of our rights are under attack, we will not normalize intimidation by bigots,” began Wu’s tweet.

She added, “As we mark Boston’s legacy as the cradle of liberty, we celebrate the continued fight to expand those liberties for all.”

On Twitter, folks are reacting to David Alan Grier referring to the Patriot Front as a modern version of the Ku Klux Klan. Those comments are listed down below.

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Photo: Getty