Lakewood – Atlanta Antifascists

The Racists on Ridgeland Way: Ground Zero for “Alt-Right” Organizing in Atlanta

Introduction

The house, located on a quiet, affluent street in the Peachtree Hills neighborhood of Buckhead, Atlanta, does not stand out. The comings and goings at 121 Ridgeland Way NE may not attract much neighborhood attention. However, this house is a hub for racist organizing not just for Atlanta, but for the South and arguably the country. It is owned by Sam Glasgow Dickson, a key player in the white nationalist movement. From this building, Dickson and his associates try to build the white power movement, especially its middle-class face. They also make moves in the Atlanta property market, both enriching themselves and building resources for their cause.

RW front — *121 Ridgeland Way NE. (Can you see a subtle algiz rune on the exterior too, or are we trippin’?)*

Our prior coverage of long-time white nationalist leader Sam Dickson includes a detailed article from last year on “Right-Wing Gentrification Gangs.” Apart from some background information and setting out Dickson’s importance within the broader white nationalist movement, we will not duplicate that earlier material here. This article has two purposes. First, we are updating our earlier coverage of Dickson and his white power associates. Second, by setting out five names associated with the Ridgeland Way property in Buckhead, we aim to provide a more complete picture of what goes on at the space, and how this activity fits within the white nationalist movement regionally and nationally. Continue reading “The Racists on Ridgeland Way: Ground Zero for “Alt-Right” Organizing in Atlanta”

Update: Evan Thomas Anderson, Atlanta Property, and May 13 Charlottesville White Power Rally

In late August, we published “‘Right-Wing Gentrification Gangs’: White Nationalists and Atlanta Property Development.” In the article, we discussed several white nationalists involved in the Atlanta property market. One of these figures is Evan Thomas Anderson AKA Evan Thomas Kuettner, a leader in the racist Identity Evropa organization. Anderson’s company Sun Rising LLC owns property in Atlanta.

In particular, our article drew attention to a building and adjacent lots owned by Anderson in the Lakewood neighborhood.

Lakewood

On Saturday, September 2 — days after the “Gentrification Gangs” article was published — Evan Anderson was seen at his building in Lakewood, removing the “For Sale or Lease” sign with his phone number. Anderson was assisted at the building by someone resembling Casey Jordan Cooper, another Identity Evropa leader and second-year law student at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School. (Our article also mentioned Casey Cooper’s hope to invest in Atlanta property.)

lakewood sept 2 2017 I

Within a week from the sign being removed, Evan Anderson sold his building in Lakewood. Sun Rising LLC/Anderson still owns nearby lots in that neighborhood as well as other property in Atlanta.

Evan Anderson and the May 13, 2017 Rally in Charlottesville, Virginia

We have also discovered that Evan Anderson did not just speak at the May 13, 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia — a racist gathering which set the stage for the bloody “Unite the Right” event there this August — but that Anderson booked a park used for this day of activity. Anderson reserved Pen Park for an alleged “Marketing Network Group Dinner.” This was actually where racists gathered and dined before their nighttime torch rally at Lee Park.

Charlottesville Evan Anderson May email

Charlottesville Marketing Network Group Dinner may 13 2017 — *Evan Anderson books Pen Park in Charlottesville for a “Marketing Network Group Dinner” — actually a white power rally.*

It is unsurprising that Evan Anderson supplied an Alexandria, Virginia address on this paperwork, since Anderson has posted to social media about spending time near Washington, DC (and has helped with National Policy Institute conferences in DC.)

evanthomas1985 aug 25 2017 tweet DC — *August Twitter post from “Evan Thomas” about spending time in Washington, DC (picture now deleted.)*

Alexandria, Virginia is also the current base of operations for white power leader Richard Spencer of the National Policy Institute, whose efforts Anderson assists.

If you have more information about Evan Thomas Kuettner/Evan Thomas Anderson or other racists operating in our region, please contact us.

“Right-Wing Gentrification Gangs”: White Nationalists and Atlanta Property Development

Update 10/11/2017 here.

Introduction

Since the early 2000s, Atlanta white nationalist attorney Sam Dickson has been accumulating property in Atlanta, making a profit from gentrification and rising property values in our city. Dickson has built a “multi-million dollar business” from purchasing unpaid tax debts, then using them as leverage to obtain properties at bargain prices. Dickson has focused on property in South Atlanta, often in neighborhoods that are historically Black and working class. Dickson has been accused of “bullying” tactics to gain title.

Dickson’s moneymaking from the Atlanta property market was highlighted in a 2006 article published by the state-friendly, anti-extremist Southern Poverty Law Center. Other white nationalist and far-Right figures — currently or recently involved in the Atlanta property market — have received less attention. This article discusses some of these figures, showing how organized white nationalists gain both politically and economically from gentrification in our city.

Sam Dickson

Georgia attorney Samuel Glasgow Dickson has been a major figure on the racist far-Right since the 1970s. In 1978, Dickson campaigned for Lieutenant Governor of Georgia on a segregationist platform, receiving 11% of the vote. A lawyer since 1972, Dickson was known for representing Klansmen. Dickson participated in organizations such as the World Anti-Communist League (which included war criminals and far-Right terrorists) as well as the Council of Conservative Citizens (which traces back to the segregationist White Citizens’ Councils.) Dickson was active in Holocaust-denial circles – he published “Revisionist” materials and hosted events in Atlanta. Holocaust-denier David Irving spent time at Dickson’s property in Key West, Florida while facing criminal charges in Europe.

In 1994, Dickson gave a talk at the first American Renaissance conference, a suit-and-tie-style white nationalist gathering. Dickson has presented at every American Renaissance conference since then. He is also a regular speaker at the “Alt-Right” gatherings of the National Policy Institute. Predictably, Dickson was a speaker at the “Atlanta Forum” gathering in Marietta, Georgia this January, which brought together racist Southern nationalists and “Alt-Right” white nationalists. When Auburn University in Alabama tried to cancel an appearance by white power leader Richard Spencer of the National Policy Institute, Dickson filed a lawsuit so the event could go ahead. Dickson gave a talk when white nationalists assembled in mass in Charlottesville, Virginia on May 13, 2017 – the white nationalists’ evening event was reminiscent of Klan ceremonies. Sam Dickson was again in Charlottesville for the bloody “Unite the Right” far-Right rally on August 12, 2017, where white supremacist James Alex Fields Jr. murdered anti-racist Heather Heyer and wounded over a dozen more in a car attack.

dickson charlottesville may 2017 — Sam Dickson holding megaphone at white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, May 13, 2017. “Alt-Right” leaders Richard Spencer, Nathan Damigo and Mike Peinovich (“Mike Enoch”) also visible in photo.

While staying active on the white power scene, Dickson has spent over a decade and a half buying up land around Atlanta, frequently using tax liens he has purchased to encourage property owners to sell low. When areas are redeveloped, Dickson stands to profit. Predictably, other white nationalists and far-Right figures now have their names on Fulton County property records, operating at various degrees of proximity or separation from Dickson himself. Continue reading ““Right-Wing Gentrification Gangs”: White Nationalists and Atlanta Property Development”