Experiencing alt-right protests; Hearing alumni Kylie Redding’s perspective

     Alumni Kylie Redding is a student at Towson University. On Feb. 20, she decided to check out the alt-right protest on her campus.

     Redding says, “a group called ‘The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property’ came to campus and were protesting against socialism.”

     She continues, “they were handing out pamphlets titled ’10 Reasons to Reject Socialism,’ but a lot of it was just propaganda that didn’t make sense. They also had big signs, periodically held a prayer with rosaries, and were playing bagpipes.”

     The group started out on campus, but the Towson University police asked them to leave. The group then moved to the street directly next to the campus instead.  She says, “the organization that was protesting are also very vocal about their conservative anti-abortion and anti-LGBT+ stances.”

     For people who don’t know what socialism is, it is a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.

     Redding says, “a small group from a democratic club I’m in went to document what was happening, and peacefully counterprotest. But I definitely was not participating in the alt-right protest.”

     She continues, “I was even kind of scared to pass the protest group to meet up with the other YDSA members at first when I arrived, considering I’m a young woman who was openly wearing leftist apparel, and it was a group of close-minded men who are older than me.”

     The longer that Redding was there, the more comfortable she got in the environment. Some of the counterprotestors began to make signs that said things along the lines of “honk for gay rights,” but Redding chose to observe and document everything that was going on. 

     The only interaction that she had with the protest group was when she approached them to ask for a pamphlet they were handing out.

     “I nicely approached [the protesters], and asked for [a pamphlet] saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you so much.’ I was then confronted by a different protester with a video camera in my face, asking if I planned to rip it up.”

     She continues, “I asked why he would think that, considering prior to asking for a pamphlet, I completely minded my own business.”

     The man then called Redding “aggressive” because she asked “too loudly.” Meanwhile, they were playing bagpipes and cars were honking. The man said that they must have “different customs” where he is from.

     “He was very clearly trying to get a rise out of me, which he wasn’t able to do. I’m not sure if it was the fact that I was wearing an anti-racism t-shirt and trans rights earrings, or the fact that I’m a woman, but a male friend of mine – who was clearly in the same group as me – asked for a pamphlet as well and had zero issue receiving one.”