Tag: antifascism

[Content Warning: this post depicts and discusses symbols that are widely used by racist people and organizations. At Freyja’s Kiss, we do not condone these usages or these people. Rather, we condemn them in the strongest terms. May they find no frið or succor wherever they may go.]

Heathenry, Ásatrú, Forn Siðr. Whatever you want to call it, our faith has a problem with far-right extremism. Of course, it is far from the only religion with such a problem, but ours is substantial. For someone who is interested in learning more about heathenry, who feels newly called by our gods, it can be difficult at times to sort out which groups are hiding hate under a veneer of “heritage”. Many of them have learned to couch their language very carefully, to expose a “community-friendly” exterior that masks bigotry.

As a result, a newcomer to heathenry runs the risk of ending up quite steeped in bigoted ideology, either becoming indoctrinated themselves or (quite understandably, at that point) abandoning the religion entirely.

[This post is from new guest contributor Elizabeth Sandifer, who writes over at Eruditorum Press. She is the author of the bestselling Neoreaction a Basilisk, a book on contemporary neo-nazi movements and philosophy.]

Those who have followed the news recently may have seen a few stories about an asshole named Richard Holzer who was planning on blowing up a synagogue in Colorado. You may also have seen some of the photos in which Holzer was pictured wearing a Mjolnir pendant, or the detail of the FBI report that described this pendant as a white supremacist symbol. This set off a round of recriminations that were as predictable as they were tedious as numerous heathens began complaining that it’s wrong to treat Mjolnir as a hate symbol. The biggest statement came from The Troth via Heathens Against Hate, its group that nominally combats extremism, but that in practice mostly seems to issue statements like this:

The Troth strongly condemns anyone who would want to prohibit the free exercise of religion by use of terrorism. While Mr. Holzer might wear the emblem of Heathenry, he does not hold the values of inclusive Heathenry or organizations such as the Troth, and its programs such as Heathens Against Hate. Everyone deserves to worship in the way they choose without fear of harm coming to them. We offer our support and thoughts to Temple Emanuel and are grateful for the FBI agents who worked to prevent what could have been a tragedy.  

The Troth also strongly opposes the statement made in the FBI affidavit stating Mr. Holzer had received “various white supremacy paraphernalia as gifts for the UCs, including a flag, several patches, a metal Thor’s hammer and a mask.” The Thor’s Hammer, also known as a Mjolnir, is a sacred symbol in our religion, and worn by Heathens across the world. It is not a symbol of hate, but symbol of those of us who are of the Heathen faith.