The Proud Boys are a nationwide fraternal organization that tasks its members with physically defending “the Western way of life”. The group embraces male chauvinism, getting into street fights with leftists, and denigrating feminism and Non-christian religions. If you’ve seen any of the videos from the confrontations in Berkeley, you’ve probably seen the Proud Boys in action, wildly throwing punches at Antifa members (and anyone nearby), and pepper spraying protesters.
According to the Utica-based website LoveAndRage, The Proud Boys following has leaked into the Albany. The “fraternity” endorses what is referred to as “radical traditionalism,” an ideology based in subjugating women and returning men to bread winner status. And it’s all run by this guy, who isn’t happy about needing to poop again because it’s such a hassle with his romper on.
Gavin McInnes has been hopping all over the board of politically-induced internet media since he was a co-founder of VICE, where he wrote classics such as The VICE Guide to Picking Up Chicks, all before getting the boot in ’08 due to “creative differences”. But don’t worry, his career didn’t flounder. He went on to publish masterpieces like How to Piss in Public, Transphobia is Perfectly Natural, and how could we forget Ten Things I Hate about Jews. His career has lead him to become a news anchor on YouTube where people watch him talk about God knows what, all while dressed like a hipster would dress if he were told to dress like a hipster for Halloween.
Now the leader of The Proud Boys, Gavin is also a husband and Father of 3. And what’s even better than that? A following is growing here in Albany. And what’s even better than that? Almost all have been employed at Lark Street Tattoo.
There is no hate for Lark Street Tattoo, as these associated members have either left the studio or are still there (and probably making the office suuuper awkward). But no owners are involved with said gang. We would know what the members were up to now, except most of them have deleted their social media presence after being called out by association.
But screen shots never lie.
Anyways. More about why this group has no business being in the 518. Or anywhere, really.
The Proud Boys have a hierarchy of membership, denoted by “degrees.” This ranges from first degree to fourth. Getting these degrees requires pretty standard gang initiation rituals – including getting a “Proud Boy” tattoo and getting hazed by other members through a gang beating. The fourth, and most sought-after, degree is the one which presents the most immediate security concern. It requires that a member seek out an antifascist/leftist and physically beat them in public.
So far the squad of 4 (or so) members here in Albany have only established themselves with their online reputation, and I don’t believe they’ve done anything in real life. But with tattoos like that, they could have it written across their chest and I’d have no idea.
Anyways, Albany is a home to a lot of things but this shouldn’t be one of em. If people want to protest, let them protest, it’s a beautiful right as a citizen of this country. The Proud Boy’s interests are scaring everyday people from going to said protests because they are scared of what could happen.
But do you know what you should actually be scared of? The gang’s rule on masturbation:
Proud Boys are told to “lay five bricks a day”, meaning to talk to females. Proud Boy rules state that members can only ejaculate if they are within five feet of a female.
All while publicly taking part in the classic game of “how many beers” which consists of posting a picture of a girl and their peanut gallery commenting how many beers it would take them to sleep with said girl.
I checked out the Proud Boys website because I wanted to learn how they their purpose to the public. Do they put a good spin on it, or convince me that what they’re doing isn’t so bad as I’m absorbing them to be? Well I’m happy to report that after a quick trot around their website, I can affirm to you that they definitely did not.
My first click brought me to a page dedicated to ANTIFA Unmasked, aka a map locating real people who they deem “ANTIFA.”
What is ANTIFA? Anti-Fascism, those who oppose the ideation of fascism.
What is Fascism?
Fascism is a form of radical authoritarian nationalism, characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition, and control of industry and commerce, that came to prominence in early 20th-century Europe.
And yeah, they put a real life tracking map so people on their site can locate said ANTIFA members and where they and their real families live in real life.
But don’t worry, they give a disclaimer saying “The information on this website is made available solely to advise the public. Do not use this information to commit a crime or to harass an individual or his or her family.” Which is essentially the same thing as handing somebody a gun and saying “but don’t go shoot this person we hate at the address I have written right here.”
Jesus Christmas. However, to be fair, being part of this organization may not make you a shitty person. As the TU reported, Shahila Abbasi – who identified herself as a lesbian Muslim – said she’s been tattooed by the artist listed in the original article.
“He’s the only one that’s ever done any of my ink,” said Abbasi, who recently had an Arabic tattoo done at the shop. “If you ever meet him, he’s so soft-spoken, he’s all about peace and love. He’s such a good guy, it just doesn’t sound right to me.”
Just some food for thought.
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