There is something about sitting behind a computer screen that seems to bring out the absolute worst in some people. And it’s even worse for people who are already in contention for being some of the worst people to begin with.
This week’s poster child for the worst being brought out in the worst comes to us from beautiful Grand Traverse County, the so-called “pinkie” of Michigan. The story starts last year when Grand Traverse County Commission Chair Rob Hentschel invited the Proud Boys to a Commission meeting to defend their reprehensible positions regarding guns and general fascism. In fact, Hentschel gave them far more time to spew their hateful speech than public comment rules typically permit.
22 Jan 2021
A liberal activist was demanding a northern Michigan county commission denounce the Proud Boys when a commissioner held a gun during a Wednesday virtual meeting.
Keli MacIntosh was calling on the Grand Traverse County Commission to be critical of the group, which does not have a presence in the area.
“Welcoming such a group and having that message go out has changed the environment of northern Michigan from a hunting culture to a gun culture,” MacIntosh said during the virtual meeting, ABC 7 reported.
During MacIntosh’s brief remarks, which were made during a public comment period, commission vice chairman Ron Clous left his seat and moments later returned with a rifle.
“The only thing I know about them (Proud Boys) is when they came and spoke to us,” Clous said to the Record-Eagle. “They were probably the most respected folks that got up and talked (at the March meeting). They were decent guys and they treated us with respect.”
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center and Anti-Defamation League, the Proud Boys are a far-right, hate group with ties to islamophobia, anti-immigration attitudes, misogyny and white supremacy. However, the group has denied any connection to the racist alt-right.
MacIntosh said to the Record-Eagle that she felt threatened when she saw Clous gun.
Grand Traverse official flashes gun after resident mentions Proud Boys in online meeting Slone Terranella, Detroit Free Press
Traverse City County commissioner flashes rifle during virtual meeting
Replay Video UP NEXT
A Grand Traverse County commissioner flashed a rifle during a virtual public meeting on Wednesday after a resident expressed her concern with the Proud Boys and northern Michigan gun culture.
During the meeting s public comment period, East Bay Township resident Keli MacIntosh spoke about Grand Traverse County as being a Second Amendment sanctuary and her worry about the encouragement of violence, citing the insurrection of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 as an example.