Occultism – Atlanta Antifascists

Arieana Love and Ryan Burchfield: White Power Militants in Savannah, Georgia

Update 1/19/2020: According to a new article, Matthew Ryan Burchfield is currently in Ukraine.

Burchfield’s 2019 profile on the Fascist Forge networking site was connected to the profile for Luke Austin Lane, who has now been arrested with other Georgia members of “The Base” for an alleged murder conspiracy.

Introduction

A Savannah-area couple are heavily involved in white nationalist networks, ranging from Christian far-Right organizing to apocalyptic neo-Nazism. Arieana K Love, who is currently studying pre-Medicine at Georgia Southern University and was a member of the Georgia National Guard , and Matthew Ryan Burchfield, who moved to Georgia from Virginia last year, are well-connected in regional and national far-Right channels. Love is a member of Legio Christi, an antisemitic and far-Right “traditional Christian” group, while Burchfield describes himself as an “Esoteric Hitlerite” – someone who couches his devotion to Nazism in mystical terms.

*Matthew Ryan Burchfield and Arieana Love*

Both Love and Burchfield are friends with Haralson County jailer Trent East, whose racist involvement and neo-Nazi affinities we recently documented. Online photos show Ryan Burchfield engaging in what appears to be racist paramilitary training with East.

*Photo from Brandon Trent East’s Instagram account, March 2019. L-R: Matthew Ryan Burchfield, Arieana Love, Trent East and East’s fiancée Madison French.*

Both Arieana Love and Burchfield are connected to internet profiles for Dalton Woodward, Trent East’s associate in the whites-only “Ravensblood Kindred” of the Asatru Folk Assembly. Another figure who was linked to both Love and Burchfield on social media is Corwyn Storm Carver, an active duty Army member and ideologue of the Atomwaffen Division, a neo-Nazi group linked to at least five killings.

*Profile for Corwyn Carver, a Satanist and neo-Nazi, linked to both Matthew Ryan Burchfield and Arieana Love (profile as “Katherine Ludwig” in screen-capture).*

Although they have friends and political associates in common, Love and Burchfield also operate in somewhat different spheres. For example, Arieana Love declares herself to be a Catholic rather than a racist heathen (East and Woodward), a neo-Nazi Satanist (Carver), or a Hitler devotee (Ryan Burchfield). This difference does not diminish Love’s racist and far-Right commitments, but it does give her white nationalist activity a slightly different character. We will discuss Catholic antisemite Arieana Love first, then her Hitler-worshipping boyfriend Ryan Burchfield.

Fascist Lawyer Augustus Invictus Dropped from International Left Hand Path Consortium Event in Atlanta

Fascist lawyer and candidate for US Senate Augustus Invictus has been dropped as a presenter at the International Left Hand Path Consortium occultist event in Atlanta, April 8-10. The story of Invictus being removed from the Consortium lineup appeared on Watcher of the Dawn, a website serving as a “watchdog for the occult scene.” Invictus’ removal has also been independently verified by other sources.

invictus rac Augustus Invictus speaks in front of banner for Rock Against Communism, a racist and far-Right movement, December 2015

The decision to remove Augustus Invictus as a presenter appears to be partially due to some Consortium presenters dropping out from the event because of Invictus’ fascist politics and political organizing with neo-Nazis. A more proximate cause of Invictus’ cancellation, however, seems to have been Augustus Invictus having an online meltdown, in which Invictus goaded his critics to “kill me”. This appears to have unsettled event organizers and caused them to pull the plug on Invictus.

In recent weeks, main Consortium organizer Laurie Pneumatikos had staunchly defended Invictus’ appearance at the Consortium, removing any anti-racist criticism from the event Facebook page. With the cancellation of Invictus from the Consortium in Atlanta, Pneumatikos’ written defense of Invictus (in response to concerns raised on this site) has also vanished from the Consortium website.

At least one additional Consortium presenter has now dropped out of the event in solidarity with Invictus, a development which suggests that parts of the occult milieu remain deeply divided over fascism and how to respond to it (or not to respond.) Now seems like a good time to give kudos to those who made the potentially-uncomfortable decision to speak out against fascism and racism in their community.

Meanwhile, Augustus Invictus remains scheduled to speak at the flagrantly neo-Nazi gathering/rally of the National Socialist Movement on April 23 in Rome, Georgia.

Update: The International Left Hand Path Consortium has now issued a statement. For whatever it’s worth, you can read it here.

Fascist Lawyer Augustus Invictus to Speak at National Socialist Movement Meeting/Rally in Rome GA, April 23

Update 3/14/2016: Invictus has been dropped from the International Left Hand Path Consortium event mentioned in this article, see story here. Invictus remains scheduled to speak at the NSM gathering on April 23.

Florida lawyer, candidate for US Senate and fascist Augustus Invictus has announced that he will give another speech in Georgia this April. As discussed earlier, Invictus is being hosted as a speaker on April 10^th by the International Left Hand Path Consortium occultist gathering in Atlanta. Now, Invictus has also agreed to talk at the National Socialist Movement (NSM) national meeting plus white power rally planned for Rome, Georgia on April 23^rd. The NSM is a blatant neo-Nazi organization. Its April 23^rd rally in Rome GA is co-sponsored by groups such as the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan as well as remnants of the Aryan Nations.

augustus invictus speaking at NSM Rome rally dl 3 9 2016 National Socialist Movement announces Augustus Invictus as speaker at April 23^rd gathering in Rome GA

Invictus announced that he will speak at the National Socialist Movement gathering in a March 8^th Facebook post at the “Augustus Invictus for US Senate” page. This post is no longer available on Facebook at the time of writing. However, its complete text has been archived at the American Third Party Report website. In his announcement, Invictus claims that “I am not endorsing the National Socialist Movement” while he sets out his reasoning for participating in the neo-Nazi event in Rome. (As usual, Invictus cites his “Hispanic children” as evidence for his lack of racism.) The overarching theme of Invictus’ piece is the need for “unity of Libertarians, patriots, and nationalists against a common enemy.” Invictus claims this enemy is the “Federal Government” controlled by “globalist”/ “internationalist” forces; it is on this political basis that Invictus argues for an alliance with neo-Nazis.

Invictus’ fascist politics were already apparent when Atlanta Antifascist Notes first raised the issue of Invictus’ participation in the April 10^th Left Hand Path Consortium event. However, since that time Invictus’ far-Right worldview plus his role in regrouping and organizing white supremacists have all become even more apparent. For example, while visiting the Pacific Northwest late February Invictus spoke before a gathering of neo-Nazis affiliated with the American Front, the organization whose Florida leader Marcus Faella Invictus represented in court. Following his time in the Northwest US (including a minor fracas with antifascists while visiting Portland, Oregon) Invictus attempted to enter Canada to speak in Vancouver, BC. Invictus was turned away at the border due to his links to neo-Nazis; white supremacists including a former leader of a “Blood & Honour” neo-Nazi faction had planned to attend Invictus’ Vancouver event.

Despite Invictus’ role in far-Right organizing–including his increasing efforts alongside neo-Nazis–the International Left Hand Path Consortium organizers insist on hosting Augustus Invictus as a speaker at their upcoming Atlanta event. At times, these organizers have taken ludicrous positions while defending their decision to host Invictus–for example arguing that Invictus’ use of the symbol of the fasces does not imply any sympathy towards fascist ideology, a point which is easily debunked.

invictus american fascist Augustus Invictus describes himself as “American Fascist”

If you wish to express concern about Invictus’ speaking engagement at the International Left Hand Path Consortium, contact the Sheraton Atlanta Airport Hotel venue here.

Background on the NSM event in Rome is here. If you have further information about Invictus’ appearance or the Rome rally, please get in contact.

Occultism and Fascism: Augustus Invictus to Speak at April “International Left Hand Path Consortium” in Atlanta

Update 3/14/2016: Invictus has been dropped from the International Left Hand Path Consortium event, see story here.

An occultist gathering to be held at the Sheraton Atlanta Airport Hotel on April 8-10th will feature a Florida lawyer and candidate for US Senate who circulates fascist iconography plus writings online, and who proudly claims to be “friends” with militant neo-Nazis.

Augustus Invictus

The “International Left Hand Path Consortium” gathering in April has included Augustus Invictus as a presenter at the occultist event. As a Libertarian Party candidate for US Senate, Invictus’ campaign website prominently displays the fasces, the original symbol of Italian fascism. In October 2015, the then-Chairman of the Libertarian Party of Florida, Adrian Wyllie, resigned from his position within the Party in protest of Invictus’ nomination as Libertarian for US Senate, citing Invictus’ far-Right politics as the reason for this resignation.

Fascist symbol incorporated into Augustus Invictus’ campaign logo

While Invictus has claimed that he does not endorse the racist pseudoscience of eugenics, his US Senate campaign site criticizes the US Federal Government because:

It has abandoned its eugenics programs & elitist mindset in favor of a decadent ideology that rejects the beauty of strength and demands the exponential growth of the weakest, the least intelligent, and the most diseased.

Invictus claims not to be a racist because “My four children are Hispanic.”

As a lawyer, Invictus has defended Marcus Faella, Florida leader of the American Front (a white supremacist organization.) Invictus however goes beyond legal work in referring to Marcus Faella as a “friend” on his campaign website.

Invictus’ legal/political website includes readings from the works of Francis Parker Yockey, one of the major theorists of post-war fascism. Augustus Invictus also expounds on his beliefs on the website of the “National Anarchist Tribal Alliance,” a neo-fascist group. (For information on national anarchism, see here.)

If you wish to object to Invictus’ speaking engagement at the “International Left Hand Path Consortium,” the event organizers may be contacted at: [email protected]. Contact info for the Sheraton Atlanta Airport Hotel may be found here.

* * *

Note 2/23/16: the main organizer of the International Left Hand Path Consortium has issued a response to this article, most of which consists of rationalization and excuse-making. Two points are enough:

“National anarchism” is a distinctly fascist brand of politics that has little to do with anarchism proper. See for example this article stressing that: “despite the [‘national anarchist’] name, National-Anarchists have not emerged from inside the anarchist movement, and, intellectually, their origins are not based in its ideas.”
The International Left Hand Path Consortium response explains a pro-eugenics quote from Augustus Invictus this way: “Augustus wrote that paper while he was in law school and has since recanted it […] Can you name one person who has not written or said something in their youth who later regretted it?” In fact, the quote is taken directly from Invictus’ “Declaration of the Failings of Federal Government” not his earlier pro-eugenics paper. Invictus’ “Declaration” remains live on the Invictus for Senate campaign website without any sort of retraction.