People of Philly chase White supremacists out of the city: 'They literally ran away'

When a group of White supremacists marched into Philadelphia like they owned it, they didn't account for the people in the city. Around 200 members of the Patriot Front were chased out of town by the people of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who weren't going to put up with extremist right-wing groups trying to push their agendas. More than 8 months after the Presidential elections, the Patriot Front is still feeding on conspiracy theories that the election was stolen. The right-wing group waved the American flag and held up banners reading: Reclaim America, and The election was stolen, before the fourth of July celebrations. 

The crowd of people marched outside Philadelphia City Hall on Saturday, protesting the results of the Presidential election. Patriot Front is a group based out of Texas but had on previous occasions, traveled to other states to spread their hate and conspiracy theories. Cops confirmed that the group had come from out of town. As the group marched through the city, people started sharing videos and pictures on social media. The group filled with hate faced opposition from locals who shouted at the group, banged on tracks, before chasing them away. The march happened on the eve of Jill Biden's visit to the city for July the fourth festivities.

“They started engaging with citizens of Philadelphia, who were none too happy about what they were saying,” said police officer Michael Crum, reported WPVI-TV. “These men felt threatened, and, at one point, somebody in their crowd threw a type of smoke bomb to cover their retreat, and they literally ran away from the people of Philadelphia," said the police officer. As the word spread, more local people stepped out to chase the crowd away. The internet cheered for the people of Philly as it chased away the White supremacists. Videos from the night showed them running in all directions as the people of Philadelphia stepped out to put an end to the rally. The crowd of 200-strong people wore masks, which is ironic considering right-wing groups have been at the forefront of demands for masks to be made optional during the pandemic. 

The police pulled their trucks over along Delaware avenue citing safety reasons and questioned members of the radical group. The cops didn't announce any arrests and added that there were no reports of injuries or of damage inflicted on property. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has deemed the Texas-based group to be "a White supremacist group" that "espouses racism, anti-Semitism and intolerance under the guise of preserving the 'ethnic and cultural origins' of their European ancestors." ADL states that the group "participates in localized 'flash mobs' and torch marches/demonstrations."

The group's manifesto calls for a White ethnostate, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. Patriot Front was established in the aftermath of the deadly "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017. One person was killed and 19 were hurt after a White supremacist drove into a crowd of counterprotesters in Charlottesville, reported CNN. Then-President Donald Trump stoked controversy and anger when he refused to blame the right wing for the incidents at the rally, but simply defended their action, stating that there were "fine people" on both sides. Trump was criticized across both sides of the aisle. "The organizers spent the evening before the rally chanting 'Jews will not replace us' to clear up that this was a White supremacist gathering in case anyone was confused," said Tim Miller, a Republican, reported USA Today. "Trump is using weasel words to defend these White supremacist marchers because he thinks they are his base supporters."