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| Alt-right leader Richard Spencer worries getting punched will become 'meme to end all memes' | Alt-right leader Richard Spencer worries getting punched will become 'meme to end all memes' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Richard Spencer has said he is worried the video of him being punched in the face after the inauguration of Donald Trump will become “the meme to end all memes”. | Richard Spencer has said he is worried the video of him being punched in the face after the inauguration of Donald Trump will become “the meme to end all memes”. |
| Spencer, a white supremacist, was punched in the face in downtown Washington while being interviewed by a journalist at the anti-Trump protest. Prior to the punch, onlookers had started asking him questions such as: "Did he like black people and was he a member of the KKK?" | |
| The "alt-right" leader was explaining the meaning of his Pepe the Frog badge, a cartoon character who has become a symbol for white nationalism, when he was punched by a man dressed in black. | |
| The video of Spencer, who is credited with coining the term "alt-right", immediately prompted a torrent of jokes, memes and remixed videos on social media. | The video of Spencer, who is credited with coining the term "alt-right", immediately prompted a torrent of jokes, memes and remixed videos on social media. |
| “I’m afraid this is going to become the meme to end all memes,” Spencer said in a periscope video. “That I’m going to hate watching this.” | “I’m afraid this is going to become the meme to end all memes,” Spencer said in a periscope video. “That I’m going to hate watching this.” |
| In the video titled “The assault on me”, he said he left with a black eye on Saturday and was going to have to start considering “operational security”. He told viewers he was recording the video from what he called a “safe space”. | In the video titled “The assault on me”, he said he left with a black eye on Saturday and was going to have to start considering “operational security”. He told viewers he was recording the video from what he called a “safe space”. |
| “I was planning to go out tomorrow during the Women’s March to do some journalism but I can’t do that anymore,” Spencer told viewers. “I have reached a stage of being a public figure where I am going to be recognised and then be attacked." | “I was planning to go out tomorrow during the Women’s March to do some journalism but I can’t do that anymore,” Spencer told viewers. “I have reached a stage of being a public figure where I am going to be recognised and then be attacked." |
| The footage of Spencer being punched has been remixed to everything from Thin Lizzy’s “The boys are back in town” to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA”. | The footage of Spencer being punched has been remixed to everything from Thin Lizzy’s “The boys are back in town” to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA”. |
| Jon Fareau, a former speech-writer for Barack Obama, tweeted: “I don't care how many different songs you set Richard Spencer being punched to, I'll laugh at every one.” | |
| Spencer is a leader and spokesperson for the so-called “alt-right” movement – a political movement which has been accused of racism, antisemitism and misogyny and of sharing an ideology with far-right parties such as the French National Front. | Spencer is a leader and spokesperson for the so-called “alt-right” movement – a political movement which has been accused of racism, antisemitism and misogyny and of sharing an ideology with far-right parties such as the French National Front. |
| Spencer, who is president of the far-right National Policy Institute, has previously said he rejects the label of white supremacist and instead calls himself an “identitarian”. He supports a white homeland for a “dispossessed white race” and calls for “peaceful ethnic cleansing” to put a stop to the “deconstruction” of European culture. | Spencer, who is president of the far-right National Policy Institute, has previously said he rejects the label of white supremacist and instead calls himself an “identitarian”. He supports a white homeland for a “dispossessed white race” and calls for “peaceful ethnic cleansing” to put a stop to the “deconstruction” of European culture. |
| On Saturday, Spencer told the New York Times he was not a Nazi but was simply a member of the "alt-right" which he refers to as “identity politics for white Americans and for Europeans around the world". | On Saturday, Spencer told the New York Times he was not a Nazi but was simply a member of the "alt-right" which he refers to as “identity politics for white Americans and for Europeans around the world". |
| He said Nazism was a “historical term” which was not able to "resonate today”. | He said Nazism was a “historical term” which was not able to "resonate today”. |
| “German National Socialism is a historic movement of the past. It arose at a very particular time and had particular motives and ideas and policies and styles, and those aren’t mine,” he said. | “German National Socialism is a historic movement of the past. It arose at a very particular time and had particular motives and ideas and policies and styles, and those aren’t mine,” he said. |
| Spencer sparked outrage when he made a number of allusions to Nazi ideology during a speech at a conference in Washington in November. | Spencer sparked outrage when he made a number of allusions to Nazi ideology during a speech at a conference in Washington in November. |
| “Hail Trump! Hail our people! Hail victory!” he declared, prompting audience members to leap to their feet in applause, with several appearing to make drawn-out Hitler salutes. | “Hail Trump! Hail our people! Hail victory!” he declared, prompting audience members to leap to their feet in applause, with several appearing to make drawn-out Hitler salutes. |