The Art of Propaganda

White Revolution, led by Billy Roper, is unusual among white power groups in that it tries to act as an umbrella organization within the movement, attempting to unite its sometimes antagonistic factions behind a common cause. Thus far, Roper (a former big shot with the National Alliance) seems to have had little luck, and his rallies usually only draw 15-20 people. This lack of success may explain Roper’s rather desperate-looking decision to hold a protest outside of a memorial being held for victims of the Holocaust. Of course Roper claims that this is just his way of bringing attention to the “fact” that there was no organized effort by Nazi Germany to exterminate Jews. More likely, he’s fallen into a mindset that is depressingly common among extremists, that being “there is no such thing as bad publicity.” You hear the same thing from anarchists, who claim that sensationalist news images of then vandalizing Starbucks are useful in that it gets people to “think about the issues involved”. What both sides here fail to understand is that Americans as a whole are pretty politically apathetic, and view TV news as a source of entertainment rather than political insight. And even those who might be receptive to your message are likely to be turned off by the thuggish behavior of the anarchists and the sheer offensiveness of White Revolution’s protest. To appeal to Americans, you’ve got to explain what’s in it for them. Currently, White Revolution seems to have little to offer.