News Release

May 2022

Solidarity Over Supremacy is pleased to present

UNDERSTANDING ANTI-DEMOCRATIC EXTREMISM, PROTECTING COMMUNITY VALUES

Featuring Dr. Cynthia Miller-Idriss

Director of Research at the Polarization and Extremism Research Innovation Lab at American University,

Solidarity over Supremacy warmly invites you to join a virtual educational event with leading extremism researcher Dr. Cynthia Miller-Idriss on June 13 at 6pm. Please register for the event here! 

Dr. Miller-Idriss is one of the nation’s foremost authorities on far-right extremism. She works closely with our partners at Western States Center to help communities understand anti-democracy movements, and work powerfully to counter them. 

Dr. Miller-Idriss directs the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab at American University, and she has generously offered to help us understand anti-democracy groups’ recruitment strategies so that we can interrupt them here on Whidbey Island. 

We believe the vocabulary, resources and context Dr. Miller-Idriss will share at this gathering will help us protect and expand our community values of equity, safety and inclusion. Dr. Miller-Idriss’s new book, Hate in the Homeland, will be available for purchase at Moonraker Books after the event.

April 2022

South Whidbey Community Group Stands up to Hate

Calls for “Do Not Patronize” Effort after Extremists Plan April Gathering

South Whidbey island community members and groups are launching a Do Not Patronize campaign of Deer Lagoon Grange, which is hosting another anti-government extremist gathering on April 16.

In October 2020, far-right militia groups used the Grange to stage an anti-democracy extremist event. They then targeted the Grange, once a beloved community institution, as detailed in this Seattle Times story. When a diverse group of community members grew concerned and applied for Grange membership to reclaim this beloved institution, all were rejected for membership. 

"Anti-government extremism and far-right militia activity pose a grave danger to our community," said Unitarian Universalist minister Emily Melcher. “Across the country and right here on Whidbey Island, we are witnessing the poisonous fruits of extremism: an uptick in violence; attempts to subvert free and fair elections and undermine our cherished democracy; and increasing threats to our community values of safety, equity, and inclusive democracy and the people who hold those values dear.” 

The upcoming event features leaders from the far-right militia group WAIII%, which is currently fundraising to free far-right extremist and “Proud Boy” Tiny Toese, currently facing multiple counts of riot, assault, unlawful use of a weapon and criminal mischief in both Oregon and Washington. 

III% militias were heavily involved in the January 6 insurrection, as well as at the Washington state anti-government rally in Olympia where the governor’s mansion property was attacked. The Southern Poverty Law Center describes III% groups as far-right, extremist anti-government militias intent on overthrowing democratically elected governments across the U.S.   

“We call on Deer Lagoon Grange to stop offering their space to groups and individuals whose values and actions run directly counter to South Whidbey’s commitment to equity, safety, and democracy,” said Rev. Melcher. “Until they do so, we encourage everyone in our community to not patronize Deer Lagoon Grange.” 

Solidarity Over Supremacy, a local group of parents, farmers, clergy and local elected officials, is leading the call to stop patronizing the Grange. 

“Our community stands for racial justice and for an environment free from misinformation, hatred, and division,” said Craig Cyr, a City of Langley Councilmember. “When extremists come here to spread their message of hatred, we will push back, and we encourage everyone in our community to do the same.”

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October 2021

Solidarity Over Supremacy is honored to share the Pledge for Inclusive Education with our Island community! This pledge took shape as a way to articulate our community’s shared values around inclusive education at a time when far-right forces have disrupted our school board meetings, staged anti-education protests, and stolen our high school’s beautiful Black Lives Matter banner. 

We’re pleased to share that three wonderful South Whidbey School District board members, Marnie Jackson, Ann M. Johnson, and Andrea Downs have signed on to the pledge, demonstrating their strong commitment to the fundamentals of inclusive, relevant, truthful education.  Marnie, Ann, and Andrea’s opponents did not respond to a request to sign on to the pledge. Their rhetoric continues to align them with the far-right efforts locally and nationwide to undermine public education, and we urge our community to learn more about these critical school board races and get involved in a way that works for you!

The Pledge

We the undersigned, being Washington State elected school board members and local elected officials and/or candidates, take this opportunity to reaffirm the basic principles of social equity in public education. We recommit to our communities and the students and families our school districts serve, knowing that this commitment creates healthier, more connected communities for everyone. When equity is a focus of education, students and families of all backgrounds grow and learn, contributing to what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. called “the beloved community.” Therefore, at a time when public education is under increasing pressure, we commit to honoring three basic foundational principles in our school districts and communities: 

1. We recognize that moving toward true equity is a journey that requires collaborative commitments. Our commitment to equity must be lived throughout our district and community, among teachers, administrators, parents and students, and operationalized in all that we do. We recognize this journey can be challenging, and we commit to working collaboratively for our values as we journey together. 

2. We value and prioritize inclusive communication, listening to the voices of students whose experiences in our schools provide deep lessons we may not have been able to access. We commit to honor student voices, particularly the voices of those who have not been heard before, including students of color and students of various gender identities and sexual orientations. 

3. We foster a culture that encourages self-reflection and new perspectives. We commit to understanding equity through a multi-faceted lens, examining the various factors of a student’s identity and experiences that may contribute to their relationship with school, and the way these facets of their identity may impact the obstacles they face and their needs.

   Andrea Downs

   Marnie Jackson

   Ann M. Johnson

October 2020

Whidbey Island: Community Stands Against Far-Right Militia Groups

Major Newspaper Exposé as Island Community Launches Effort to ensure safety and inclusion at the Deer Lagoon Grange

December 13, 2020—The Seattle Times today reported on a move by far-right militia groups to take over a historical community institution on Whidbey Island, Washington.

The story details how a group of far-right militia members have worked closely with the Deer Lagoon Grange’s current manager to hold paramilitary trainings, dominate membership, and violate public health protections, as well as The Grange’s own rules of membership and transparency.

Community members and groups, including faith leaders, healthcare workers, community organizers and local elected officials are now standing together as Solidarity Over Supremacy. Their goal: ensure that the fear, exclusion and frequent violence of the militias are unable to gain a deeper foothold on the island.

“South Whidbey residents work hard to care for each other, it’s in our values, especially in a devastating pandemic. With our food banks, local businesses, committed healthcare workers and many generous nonprofits and churches, we have kept COVID cases low and community members safe and supported,” said Christy Korrow of Langley. “When far-right militia groups flout our public health protections, it hurts everyone. We won’t stand by as anti-government extremists try to use our beloved Grange as a base for their hateful and irresponsible efforts. Our community is bigger, better, and more caring than this.”

“Local food is so important, and as farmers we need a space like the Grange right now,” said one young Clinton farmer. “The mission of the Grange, to strengthen individuals, families and communities through grassroots action, service, education, advocacy and agriculture awareness, pairs perfectly with South Whidbey’s very real need for an inclusive conversation space about growing the resilience of our local food system, and an inclusive, apolitical Grange can serve us all.”

“Paramilitary groups seek to undermine local democratic institutions and sow division and fear, but communities shouldn’t be intimidated,” said ​Western States Center program director Lindsay Schubiner​. “When communities unite around their shared values and protect the rights of every person, democracy wins—and paramilitaries lose.”

“As a Unitarian Universalist minister, I am committed to a vision of beloved community that affirms the inherent worth and dignity of every person, within the interdependent web of existence, where the actions of each of us have an impact on the whole,” said Minister Emily Melcher. “Where groups seek to sow division among us, our faith calls us to affirm and reaffirm our unity as a diverse inclusive and democratic community, and we must act to make it so.”

We are asking members of South Whidbey ​to sign on to a petition to take back the Grange​. This is an opportunity to not only take back the Grange but to also reject division and extremism, and re-envision the future of this beloved space.

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