Not everyone in the movement appreciated the moment at the end of the conference when some in the audience raised stiffened arms, echoing the Nazi salute. Discussions afterward reflected the divisions in the loosely aligned ranks, as well as an acute awareness of public perception and the need to make their messages somehow more palatable.
Paul Ramsey, a blogger and retired computer programmer in Oklahoma, generally follows an alt-right ideology, though he said he did not believe in a white ethno-state. He said he had long feared a hijacking of the movement by the “neo-Nazi/K.K.K. element,” which would lead to vilification and a relegation back to the fringe.
Those salutes confirmed his fears, Mr. Ramsey said, and he is now disassociating from the alt-right movement, even though he understands that Mr. Spencer may believe in a big-tent, all-publicity-is-good philosophy.
“The new Nazism is very demonized and toxic, and associating your brand with that is crazy,” he said.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member