David Irving's Holocaust-Denial Speaking Tour: The Show that Must Not Go On

This July, David Irving, a British neo-fascist and fraudulent historian, goes on the road in the United States, planning to hold approximately one and a half dozen speaking engagements over the course of a month. As militant anti-racists and anti-fascists, we are making a public call for resistance at each stop along the way of this tour.  Here's a bit of contact info:Contact: J. Antas
Tel: 305-923-9400 Email: J.R.Antas@gmail.com

People wishing to hear Mr. Irving speak in Kansas City should register online at irvingbooks.com/functions. He will be available after the talk for book signing.
For reproducible copyright-free photos of David Irving go to: www.fpp.co.uk/Irving/photos

It should be noted that the people running this event state that "to ensure that private functions such as these run smoothly ... We reserve the right to refuse admission and make an instant refund. Unauthorized photography and recording are not permitted. Journalists attend only by special invitation." Perhaps they want to avoid embarrassing questions, or maybe they're like cockroaches, scurrying back into the shadows and cracks when the light of truth is shined upon them. Or maybe they've got the old Hakenkreuz armbands and banners out, and it wouldn't look good in the papers next morning or on facebook sites or whatever. No reputable historian would shy away from public controversy and debate like Mr. Irving now does, relying on skinheads and neonazi thugs to shut opponents up and stating such despicable rubbish as "journalists attend only by special invitation". It's a totalitarian tactic, to try to generate only favorable press, but it won't work, as Mr Irving's ideas and reportage are so thoroughly discredited, that no serious historian will give his most recent works in the area of "revisionist history" a second glance.

Unfortunately, the local correspondent offices for Voelkischer Beobachter and Signal seem to have been closed some time ago, and the Deutsch-Amerikanisches Bund seems to be in a similar situation, so it's doubtful that there'll be much of an interview of Mr Irving either before or after his Kansas City appearance. Schade. Es tut mir leid. The place most likely in the past to have hosted such a function, The Berliner Bear, formerly at 7815 Wornall Road, appears to have been obliterated and replaced with a shiny new building and asphalt.

From KansasCity.com, the Kansas City Star website, an article states that "David Irving, noted author of thirty World War 2 histories published by mainstream US publishers (including Simon & Schuster, William Morrow, Doubleday, Little Brown), many of them best sellers, is visiting Kansas City, MO to speak to an audience on July 3rd. He has spoken several times before in Kansas City and his topic will be "Re-writing history using the decoded Nazi messages.""

 

Who is David Irving? 

David Irving is a British writer of histories who has been involved with the fascist political scene since the 1960s. Always known for the pro-Hitler bias of his books, approximately two decades ago Irving made the transition to being a fully-fledged Holocaust-denier, when he testified at the trial of neo-Nazi Ernst Zündel in Canada, and also arranged the publication of Fred Leuchter's widely-refuted report on gas chambers at Auschwitz. In addition to spreading blatant historical lies, Irving has publicly stated that "The Jews are the architects of their own misfortune". Unsurprisingly, Irving has been an extremely popular speaker at neo-Nazi rallies in Germany.     

In the British libel case Irving v. Penguin Books and Lipstadt, the final ruling in favor of the defendants confirmed that Irving "is an active Holocaust denier" and that "he is anti-Semitic and racist and that he associates with right-wing extremists who promote neo-Nazism." In 2006, Irving was jailed in Austria after pleading guilty to a charge of "trivializing the Holocaust", which is a crime in that county. Since his release, Irving has been marketing himself as a former "political prisoner".

Why Oppose These Events?

Irving's current tour focuses on ""Re-writing history, using the decoded Nazi messages" (see: http://www. focal. org/speaks/index.html). The re-writing of Third Reich history-especially in relation to the Nazi "Final Solution" for Europe's Jewish population-is a major preoccupation for modern neo-Nazis and neo-fascists, who correctly believe that memory of the Holocaust is a significant barrier to the mainstreaming of their beliefs. The Holocaust is denied so that, paradoxically, it can be repeated. Wherever Irving appears, he is backed and promoted by virulent anti-Semites and fascist organizers.

Irving's bogus history is both blatantly offensive and incorrect. However, we oppose Irving not for what he thinks, but rather for what he does. As the name of his own publishing project suggests, Irving serves as a "focal point" to bring Jew-haters and goose-steppers together. He is part of a political tendency that is actively organizing for ethnic and racial hostilities, and in particular to persecute Jewish people. (James von Brunn's murder of a security guard at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is one recent example of where this anti-Semitic and neo-Nazi tendency can lead. Von Brunn moved within many of the same circles that promote Irving's work.)

We believe that fascist activism and movement-building should meet with organized resistance. As the Anti-Racist Action Network states in its Points of Unity:

"Whenever fascists are organizing or active in public, we're there. We don't believe in ignoring them or staying away from them. Never let the nazis have the street!"

We invite you to help this effort along, by organizing in your own community.

When and Where?

At present, the dates for Irving's speaking tour are as follows:

July 3 Friday: Kansas City, 19:00

July 6 Monday: Oklahoma City, 19:00           

July 8 Wednesday: Albuquerque, 19:00            

July 10 Friday: Phoenix, 19:00           

July 12 Sunday: Las Vegas, buffet, 19:00            

July 13 Monday: Salt Lake City, buffet, 19:00            

July 15 Wednesday: Boise, buffet, 19:00         

July 16 Thursday: Spokane, buffet, 19:00     

July 18 Saturday: Seattle 15:00       

July 19 Sunday: Portland, OR, buffet, 15:00          

July 22 Wednesday: Sacramento, buffet,18:30           

July 23 Thursday: San Francisco, buffet 18:30            

July 25 Saturday: Costa Mesa, 18:30          

July 26 Sunday: Sherman Oaks, 15:00            

July 29 Wednesday: Denver, 19:00           

July 30 Thursday: Omaha, 19:00           

July 31 Friday: Chicago incl. de luxe dinner, 19:00         

The exact location of Irving's talk in each city has not been made public, due to Irving's fear of encountering the opposition he so richly deserves. Any determined group of individuals ought to be able to pinpoint the event location in their city, however. Many of these events are probably booked under false pretexts, and venue owners may not necessarily know who they are hosting.

Further dates may be added (or subtracted!) as the tour progresses. Irving also plans to speak on the East Coast later this year, although dates have not been announced for this yet. Let's set the tone for the East Coast wing of Irving's tour right now!

No platform for fascists, no compromise!

- Rose City Antifa / Portland ARA

fight_them_back [at] riseup [dot] net

971.533.7832 (voicemail)

Contact email: fight_them_back@riseup.net