[imagesource: Mark Peterson/Redux]

On September 29, during the first horrendous presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, the latter was given the chance to publicly condemn right-wing violence.

Instead, he launched an attack on the left, before telling an alt-right, anti-immigrant group called the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by”.

Of course, the Proud Boys saw this as a vindication of their extensive history of violence against left-wing and anti-fascist protesters like those in the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as a call to arms ahead of the upcoming election.

If they thought they could stand back and stand by indefinitely, without some backlash, they had another thing coming.

Over to The Washington Post for why if you search #ProudBoys on Twitter, you’d have to scroll for days to find anything about the white supremacist group.

Activist George Takei suggested a clever comeback in a tweet posted on October 2, that set off a movement:

The response was overwhelming, and the call to action quickly went viral, with thousands adopting the hashtag and posting images and messages of love and support –  all with the intent to take over a moniker that has until now been linked to hate.

Here’s a taste of what the campaign looks like:

#ProudBoys on route 😂🏳️‍🌈 pic.twitter.com/RABayty2i6

— Being LGBTQ Podcast🏳️‍🌈 (@BeingLGBTQPod) October 4, 2020

Gay twitter has claimed the #ProudBoys hashtag from alt-right white supremacists and filled it with images of love, positivity, and true PRIDE! Go and take a look, it’ll make your day 🌈♥️ pic.twitter.com/gVnvYuDU7P

— Jordan Daly (@jcrdandaly) October 4, 2020

Good morning America!! #PrideBoys #ProudBoys pic.twitter.com/3ruu5vdRAt

— Dr Gráinne McEntee (@pongosapien) October 4, 2020

The Twitter account for the Canadian Forces in the United States also posted an image with a service member in uniform kissing his partner:

🇨🇦🏳️‍🌈 #ProudBoys pic.twitter.com/rEFL7xIqXu

— Canadian Forces in 🇺🇸 (@CAFinUS) October 4, 2020

In a follow-up tweet they said:

“If you wear our uniform, know what it means. If you’re thinking of wearing our uniform, know what it means. Love is love. Know what we mean?”

The Royal Canadian Navy retweeted the image with the caption: “Our #ProudBoys. Love is love”.

Obviously, all of this is a massive kick in the nuts for the white supremacist Proud Boys.

According to Forbes, they’re furious.

The Proud Boys have been banned from Twitter for a while now after flinging hate speech around. Instead, they all gather on Parler, a two-year-old social media app popular among many conservatives.

After they found out that their moniker had been hijacked, they took to spewing hate online.

Enrique Tarrio, the Proud Boys’ chairman, said in a separate Parler post that the left was attempting to turn the group’s name into “a slur” and that the gay pride campaign with #proudboys was an attempt “to drown out the voices of our supporters.”

The tweet by the Canadian Forces made them especially angry.

A screenshot posted on Parler of the tweet from the Canadian Armed Forces in the United States received some of the strongest reaction and was widely shared on Parler.

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?????” wrote one user, @Tanamir, in reply to the screenshot.

“Fags,” was another response, from @Ryanha5150. “Can’t stand gay people…should be illegal.”

Then, if there was any doubt that this lot are basically Nazis, here’s one user on how to deal with the ‘issue’:

“There is a solution.” Along with that line, @Jettrail posted an image full of Nazi regalia—swastikas, bright Reich red.

The image also contains several lines of text encouraging people to follow the Final Solution, the Nazi idea that led to the extermination of six million Jews during the Holocaust.

There aren’t words strong enough to describe these guys, but I’ll settle for ‘hate-spewing shit gibbons’ until I can find something more appropriate.

As for the gay and queer folks out there – keep that hashtag up and running.

We’re loud, proud, and here to stay.

[sources:washingtonpost&forbes]