Survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Awarded Nobel Peace Prize for Nuclear Disarmament

[Social Media]

 

The influence of far-right figures from the United States is increasingly seeping into Ireland’s political and social landscape. American extremists, including former members of the Ku Klux Klan, antisemitic conspiracy theorists, and QAnon promoters, are now advising Ireland’s far-right groups, helping to shape their narratives and tactics. These claims mirror the rhetoric seen on far-right platforms in the US, suggesting a concerning cross-Atlantic connection.

 

A striking example is a fabricated report from a website called *The Irish Channel*, which falsely suggested that Irish lawmakers were transporting refugees to polling stations to sway elections. This conspiracy is nearly identical to claims in the US that undocumented immigrants are being brought in to manipulate voting results. Researchers from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue recently revealed that such false narratives are created using generative AI, drawing heavily from US election denial efforts. In addition to election fraud claims, Irish far-right circles are recycling other American conspiracies, such as accusations that teachers and librarians are "groomers" for promoting discussions on gender and sexual health.

 

One of the most outlandish false claims to emerge recently is that Irish schoolchildren will be forced to watch pornography as part of a new curriculum—another entirely fabricated story.

 

This flow of conspiracies from the US to Ireland highlights a growing relationship between the two far-right communities. According to Mark Malone from the Hope and Courage Collective, this connection underscores the Irish far right’s lack of domestic support, forcing them to turn to American extremists for guidance. "Irish neo-Nazis are looking for friends and intellectual leadership," says Malone. While he doubts their influence will translate into electoral success, he warns that the violent tendencies of these groups are a serious threat.

 

Despite Ireland’s progress in recent years—legalizing same-sex marriage, easing abortion restrictions, and electing an openly gay, mixed-race leader—the country has become an attractive target for the US far right. They view Ireland as one of the last bastions of white Christian values in the West, even though the Catholic Church no longer dominates Irish society. Agitators within Ireland’s far-right movement have been using national issues, such as the housing crisis and rising immigration, to stoke fear and provoke action. These groups have organized violent protests, often targeting locations designated to house asylum seekers, leading to the destruction of property and several arson attacks.

 

The situation escalated in November 2023, when riots broke out in Dublin following a stabbing that left three children and one adult injured. The alleged attacker, a naturalized Irish citizen from Algeria, became a symbol for the far right’s anti-immigrant narrative. In the aftermath, police cars were set on fire, and widespread looting ensued. Among those amplifying the situation was UFC fighter Conor McGregor, who tweeted: "Ireland, we are at war," just before the violence began. His comments helped elevate the riots to a global stage, drawing attention from prominent US figures like former Trump adviser Steve Bannon and white supremacist Nick Fuentes, who suggested Ireland was on the brink of civil war.

 

US extremists aren’t just offering rhetorical support; they’re actively advising Ireland’s far-right agitators. Frank Silva, a former Ku Klux Klan member and neo-Nazi, has joined multiple online calls with Irish extremists, offering strategic advice on how to make anti-immigrant protests go viral. Similarly, Jon Minadeo II, founder of the antisemitic Goyim Defense League, has provided Irish activists with posters and flyers filled with hate speech, encouraging them to plaster their neighborhoods with these materials.

 

American QAnon promoter Jeffrey Pedersen also recently joined an Irish extremist platform to spread antisemitic conspiracy theories. Pedersen framed the global political struggle in religious terms, claiming that the people in power are not loyal to any faith but are instead Satanists. He emphasized the importance of Donald Trump’s re-election in the US, arguing that if America falls, "the whole world falls."

 

The financial connections between the US and Ireland’s far-right movements are also strengthening. Justin Barrett, a notorious Irish far-right figure, recently launched a fundraiser on the Christian crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo, soliciting funds for his political party’s "protection unit." While his efforts have raised only a fraction of his goal, many donations have come from American supporters, with messages of encouragement like "Much love from America" and warnings to "fight the invasion."

 

This growing relationship between the US and Irish far-right groups marks a troubling shift. Ireland, while lacking the same access to firearms that characterizes American extremism, is beginning to adopt similar organizational tactics. Localized groups, like the Irish Freedom Party's newly established "watchdog" initiative, aim to mobilize men to respond to supposed illegal immigrant threats in their neighborhoods. The group's name, *Sinne na Daoine*—translated as "we the people"—echoes the rhetoric used by American far-right movements for the past decade.

 

Based on a report from Wired 2024-10-12