Monday, June 16, 2008

Children Taken from Neo-Nazi Parents

We received two email asking why we haven't said anything about the children whom Child and Family Services took from their home after one of the children went to school with a swastika drawn on her, as well as other nazi symbols. Oh, dear readers, don't think for a moment this one has slide under our radar. We've been following this quite closely and we know the name of the father involved and the group he used to run with. Since children are involved and we don't want to run afoul of the law, we'll tell you what we think we can say at this point:

1. The father's initials are [removed]
2. "Nazi Dad" and his now estranged wife, "Nazi Mom" live in Winnipeg, however at least he used to call Brandon, MB home for a period of time.
3 "Nazi Dad" has a profile on the White Nationalist social networking site "New Saxon."
4. "Nazi Dad" and "Nazi Mom" have posted on Stormfront, though neither have been active for some time. They also both posted, fairly briefly, on the Blood and Honour boards. Seems they were trying to start some sort of group in Winnipeg, but managed to antagonize most of the other Blood and Honour forum members whom they came in contact with.
5. "Nazi Dad" was a member of a small neo-Nazi group based out of Brandon and Winnipeg, though it likely was mostly a web based movement comprising less than 6 individuals:

Their group's symbol looked like this:


We would hasten to add that it didn't surprise us in the least that "Nazi Dad" did something stupid enough to cause Child and Family Services to come in and take his kids. We do have to admit we're not of the same opinion when it comes to the actions taken by the authorities in this matter. There are those of us who feel that the ideology espoused by "Nazi Dad" and his wife constitute child abuse and justifies the actions taken by Child and Family Services. Then there are those who feel that this action could have a a ripple effect; if the state decides so and so are bad parents based upon their political and social beliefs, who's to say that the state won't also feel that they should dictate how we should raise our children as well. We'll let the readers decide what to think on this matter. A word of advice for "Nazi Dad" though. Given the losing track record of Paul Fromm, do you really want him advocating on your behalf?

Children seized over neo-Nazi allegations

Girl, boy 'may be at risk due to the parents' behaviour'

Mike Mc Intyre, National Post Published: Tuesday, June 10, 2008

WINNIPEG - A Manitoba court is hearing a custody case in which child welfare authorities have seized two youngsters from a Winnipeg home over fears their father, an alleged neo-Nazi, was filling their heads and marking their bodies with messages of hate.

Child and Family Services is seeking a permanent order of guardianship based on ongoing concerns about the safety of a seven-year-old girl and a two-year-old boy.

"The children may be at risk due to the parents' behaviour and associates. The parents might endanger the emotional well-being of the children," CFS wrote in court documents obtained by the Winnipeg Free Press.

Winnipeg police confirmed their involvement in the case, which came to a head in late March when school officials raised concerns about the little girl.

A source familiar with the case said she showed up one morning in class with disturbing scrawlings on her body, including a swastika and the common white-supremacist tag of "14/88."

The number 14 refers to a familiar slogan containing 14 words -- "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children." The 88 represents the letters HH (the eighth in the alphabet) to mean "Heil Hitler."

Constable Pat Chabidon confirmed the father was recently interviewed based on allegations he was involved in "hate crimes involving children."

Police had questioned him regarding similar concerns in 2005, Const. Chabidon said. No criminal charges have been laid at this time, but police turned the file over to CFS, Const. Chabidon said.

The mother of the children is also named in the CFS application as being unfit to parent, based on her relationship with her husband. He is the young boy's father and the girl's stepfather.

Yesterday, one of Canada's most notorious white supremacists described the mother as a loving parent dedicated to getting her children back.

Paul Fromm, executive director of the Canadian Association for Free Expression and himself a disgraced former teacher fired from the Ontario College of Teachers in 1997 for links to neo-Nazi groups, said the children's mother has been in ongoing correspondence with his association seeking help.

"I think if children are being sexually molested or starved [by their parents], that's wrong and the state has a right to look at that. But because the parents have unusual or non-mainstream beliefs, shouldn't put them at risk," Mr. Fromm said.

Mr. Fromm, who identifies himself as an advocate for "white nationalists," said he met the parents in Winnipeg last December at a three-hour group meeting focusing on his involvement in court cases in Alberta and B. C. about hate speech.

Sources say a search warrant was recently executed at the family's home in Winnipeg. Several items, including a computer, were seized.

"There are also concerns about parental drug and alcohol use in the home," CFS wrote.

A lawyer for the couple could not be reached to comment on the case.

"In my view, the state should be held to the absolute strictest proof before they take the child from the parents," Mr. Fromm said.

The case -- being heard in child protection court -- was adjourned yesterday to June 23.

That will allow the child's mother time to retain her own lawyer, rather than be represented by the same counsel as her husband, according to court documents.

It's not clear why they can't be represented by the same lawyer.

Child protection cases such as this are closed to the public and media.

Mike on Crime
DATE: Jun 14, 11:01 AM
By Mike McIntyre and Gabrielle Giroday
Winnipeg Free Press

They have been dubbed a “terrorist threat” by the FBI and linked to numerous acts of violence across the United States, including murder. But now they have their sights set on Winnipeg — and a controversial case that has seen two young children taken away from their alleged neo-Nazi parents. 

August Kreis III, the leader of the Aryan Nations, told the Free Press his organization is prepared to mobilize whatever resources are necessary to ensure the decision isn’t allowed to stand.

He said the case is unlike anything he’s ever heard of and he fears it will set a dangerous precedent across North America.

“We’re all family people. If they can do this in Canada, how long until they are doing it down here?” Kreis said in a telephone interview from his home in South Carolina.

Kreis claims the Aryan Nations have numerous Canadian “affiliates” who are also outraged. They contacted him this week after the Free Press broke the story of how a seven-year-old girl showed up at her St. Vital school with several white supremacist markings on her body — including a swastika and the words “Aryan Pride.”

Child and Family Services then seized the girl and her two-year-old brother. They have filed for a permanent order of guardianship, but are close to an out-of-court settlement with the mother that would see the children slowly reintegrated back to the home under close supervision. The woman says she has ended her relationship with her husband.

Kreis wouldn’t give specific numbers of members in Canada, but said they are plentiful and represent all walks of life — “we’re doctors, lawyers, professors … people up and down the economic scale.”

“The Canadians need to know we support this fight, that they are not alone. We’re all over, and there are a lot of Canadians who feel the same way we do and are fed up with all this multiculturalism.”

Kreis said he has fathered 10 children and has five grandchildren, all of whom have attended schools and not hidden their beliefs. He said members of the Aryan Nations, including himself, have gotten into heated disputes with teachers and educators, but have never seen the state intervene and seize their children.

“The teachers will try to tell them this is abnormal behaviour,” Kreis said. He responds by voicing his own disgust with some of what is being taught to his children, such as ripping up a brochure on Martin Luther King and sending it back to the teacher with one of his kids.

“When I was young, I always used to draw swastikas on my books in schools. I’m sure I even drew some on my arm. And I know of lots of kids who do that,” said Kreis, who believes such children are simply exercising freedom of expression.

Kreis said he wouldn’t advise his followers to turn their children into so-called “billboards” — such as what is alleged to have happened in Winnipeg — but added that’s hardly grounds to have children removed from a home.

Kreis questions why similar seizures haven’t been made of children being raised by homosexual or lesbian parents.

“We’re not going out there and demanding their children be taken away,” he said. He said similar concerns could also be raised about parents who don’t feed their children healthy food or ensure they get enough exercise.

The Aryan Nations have been forced to go deeper underground in recent years because of tighter controls on hate speech in the post 9/11 era, Kreis said.

He said Canadians and Americans regularly converse through password-protected chat rooms and those deemed to have strong enough beliefs are welcomed into the Aryan Nations.

“We have lots of affiliates in Canada, but they can’t let themselves be known,” Kreis said. He will be watching the Winnipeg case closely and offering financial, legal and other resources to the parents, if desired.

Alleged Winnipeg neo-Nazi mom may regain custody of kids
Mike McIntyre and Gabrielle Giroday , Winnipeg Free Press

WINNIPEG - Two young children who were taken from their parents over concerns the youngsters were being exposed to Nazi propaganda are on the verge of being returned to their Winnipeg mother - a self-described "white nationalist."

Manitoba Child and Family Services agency is prepared to return the seven-year-old girl and the two-year-old boy and drop an application for permanent custody, the Winnipeg Free Press reports.

The deal would involve having the children slowly integrated back into the home, first on weekends and eventually back to full-time care.

The development came after the mother - who can't be named to protect the identity of the children - recently separated from her husband, an admitted white supremacist who has made a series of disturbing online posts in recent months.

It could bring a sudden resolution to a unique case that has made headlines around the world.

The man is the young boy's father and girl's stepfather.

"He's a bigot. And I have no tolerance for bigotry or ignorance," the mother said Tuesday.

Calling herself a "white nationalist . . . but not a neo-Nazi skinhead," the woman said she will abide by whatever conditions Child and Family Services wishes in order to regain custody of her children.

"The lead investigator of the hate crimes unit can come and handcuff himself to my couch if he wants. I have no problem jumping through their hoops," she said.

A spokeswoman for Manitoba Child and Family Services said Tuesday the department cannot comment on the case, due to privacy legislation. The custody case is before the courts and will next appear on June 23.

According to a Child and Family Services case summary, case workers were called to a city elementary school on March 25 after the little girl showed up to class with disturbing markings on her body.

"There were symbols written and drawn on (the girl's) arms and one leg in permanent red and blue marker pens," the summary states. The markings included a Swastika symbol on her arm, the words "Hail Victory" and "Aryan Pride" and the number "14/88," is a popular reference to Hitler in the white supremacist community.

Police and Child and Family Services quickly went to the family's apartment and seized her two-year-old brother. While inside, police found "indication of the parents' neo-Nazi, white supremacist" beliefs," the report states.

The children were seized based on a belief by the provincial agency that "the children may be at risk due to the parents' behaviour and associates. The parents might endanger the emotional well-being of the children," according to court documents.

Other concerns were expressed, including the fact the little girl had missed 39 days of school this year. She told authorities that's because her parents sleep in and don't want to get her ready or take her to school. Authorities also expressed concerns about alcohol and drug use in the home.

The children are under the jurisdiction of Child and Family Services but are residing with their aunt and grandmother, the mother said Tuesday.

A Canadian legal expert said this is the first time in years she's heard of children being taken from their home because of their parents' beliefs.

"Not all children raised by neo-Nazis are going to be seized," said Karen Busby, a constitutional law professor at the University of Manitoba.

"There must be something more extreme. A presence of physical violence, perhaps the presence of abuse of the mother or drug or alcohol abuse.

"Parents do have the basic right to raise their children as they see fit. They have free expression rights, liberty rights and religious rights. When do these views cross the line into harm, causing emotional harm to the children is really up to a child psychologist to decide."

The Free Press obtained a series of recent postings made on two websites - www. winnipegpunks.com and www. resistance.com - which purport to be from the two parents. There is also a picture of the couple standing in front of a Nazi flag, with the man raising his arm in salute.

The mother confirmed Tuesday the postings attributed to her estranged husband under the name of "Stage 88" were made by him. She claimed to have no memory of the ones attributed to her under the name of "Aryanprincess1488" but didn't deny writing them.

In them, the woman speaks of posting "White Pride" posters in Winnipeg, uses racial slurs to describe black people and makes a series of derogatory comments about aboriginals in the city.

The woman also writes of how her children "goose-step all the time. It really is adorable, it's more fun when we're in the mall and I do it, too," she wrote.

Her husband claims he has "dedicated my entire life to being a skinhead" and vows to never change.

"I will raise my children the same way I was raised and will teach them the importance of standing their ground, of not being afraid to speak the truth to others, to not be afraid of getting detention, but most of all to honour themselves, their family, their faith and our folk," he wrote.

The biological father of the little girl is a 62-year-old Winnipeg bar owner who hasn't seen his daughter for five years. Although he's not seeking custody, he is vowing to fight to ensure the girl is raised in a safe environment.

He fears his daughter was turned into a "billboard" so the parents could get a platform to express their racist views.

Paul Fromm, executive director of the Canadian Association for Free Expression - and disgraced former teacher fired from an Ontario public school board in 1997 for links to neo-Nazi groups - said Monday his organization is outraged by what police and CFS have done and want to help the parents.

Other groups, including the U.S.-based Aryan Nation, have also voiced concerns and vowed to get involved.

The biological father says he'll try and mobilize his own forces, including B'nai Brith and the Anti-Defamation League, if it comes down to a legal battle.

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