Hate in Gilroy, California

“Read ‘Might Is Right' by Ragnar Redbeard. Why overcrowd towns and pave more open space to make room for hordes of mestizos and Silicon Valley white twats?”

Police identified the shooter who is believed to have opened fire at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in Gilroy, California, killing three and wounding 12, as Santino William Legan, a 19-year-old from Gilroy. William Legan, who identified himself on Instagram as an Italian-Iranian, held white supremacist views. As additional information becomes available, it seems his motives may constitute a hate-crime.

An act of terror.

By now, many Americans are learning of the contents of the book, Might is Right, the white supremacist, anti-Semitic manifesto. The book was authored under the pseudonym Ragnar Redbeard in 1890 which, among other things, advocates for women as property.

Suggesting that folks read the manifesto while referring to Latin Americans using a slur for people of mixed race speaks for itself. Sure, he was upset with Silicon Valley.

Which far-right extremist isn’t?

As the pieces of the puzzle begin to come together, it becomes increasingly difficult to avoid the conclusion that this mass-murder was driven by hate. The actions of William Legan follow the rhetoric of Donald Trump and his white supremacist cohorts such as Stephen Miller - the architect behind most of Trump’s rhetoric. His rhetoric becomes increasingly more alarming with each day. His attacks on people of color growing more dangerous.

While far-right conservatives try to spin this as: “he was Muslim.” and he: “hated white people.” his words and actions clearly indicate that he was not, and no he didn’t.

Saying the words “Silicon Valley white twats” doesn’t make him anti-white, as many would like to suggest. Instead, he’s referring to them as traitors to the cause - much like Donald Trump has done. Calling out white folks from Silicon Valley indicates a sense of betrayal and animosity, not anti-whiteness.

The fact that this attack occurred in a majority Latin American community with many who commute to work in Silicon Valley every day, is not lost on me. When someone shouted to William Lagan: “Why are you doing this?” he replied: “Because I’m really angry.”