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  1. #1
    Senior Member Judy's Avatar
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    Ex-neo Nazi says Trump revoked federal grant Obama gave his organization to fight hat

    Ex-neo Nazi says Trump revoked federal grant Obama gave his organization to fight hate

    JAN. 9, 2017, PHOTO
    Christian Picciolini, who is of Italian descent, joined the white supremacist movement at 14 years old in 1987. He was then recruited into America’s first neo-Nazi skinhead group. (Teresa Crawford/AP)

    BY
    Elizabeth Elizalde
    NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
    Sunday, August 20, 2017, 9:38 PM

    An ex-skinhead who co-founded an organization that focuses on battling “far-right extremism” says President Trump revoked a federal grant issued by the Obama administration supporting the group’s mission.

    “Under President Obama, my organization, Life After Hate, was awarded a $400,000 grant to help combat far-right extremism,” co-founder Christian Picciolini told CBS News’ John Dickerson Sunday. “And when President Trump took office, immediately that grant was rescinded."

    “We were the only organization of the pool of grantees that was focused on white supremacist, extremists and disengaging people from that movement," Picciolini said.

    He told the New York Times that he believes Trump took away his organization’s grant because he’s critical of the President on social media.

    “Every day that passes w/ @realDonaldTrump in office will take America 100 yrs to repair,” Picciolini tweeted in May.

    Homeland Security spokesman David Lapan told the Daily News that Picciolini’s claim that Life After Hate’s grant was “immediately" revoked was “inaccurate.”

    “The grants initially announced in January were reviewed upon direction — and with new guidance — from then-Secretary (John) Kelly and awardees were announced in late June,” Lapan said.

    The department had issued grants to 26 law enforcement and community organizations worth $10 million.

    Life After Hate was founded in 2011 by former members of the “American violent far-right extremist movement,” the nonprofit’s website says. Organizers work with people who want to leave their hate groups and to educate others about racism.

    Picciolini, who is of Italian descent, joined the white supremacist movement at 14 years old in 1987. He was then recruited into America’s first neo-Nazi skinhead group.

    “Everybody at Life After Hate is a former extremist, so we understand the (motivations) of why people join," Picciolini said. “But, more importantly, we understand what it takes to get out of these groups.”

    http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nati...icle-1.3428192
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  2. #2
    Senior Member Judy's Avatar
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    $400,000 to former skinheads to fight "hate"? From federal taxpayers? From DHS funds??? Oh no, we need that $400,000 in DHS paying for immigration judges, Border Patrol, ICE Agents, the Wall. DOJ and the FBI work on the skin-heads, not DHS.

    I'm sure the man is well-intentioned and so glad he got out and knows how to help others get out of these organizations, but he shouldn't be upset that he lost his federal grant for this, but federal taxpayers shouldn't be paying for this. The communities where these organizations are functioning might want to devote from law enforcement attention to these organizations if they have criminal intent or purpose.
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    Administrator ALIPAC's Avatar
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    Sounds like Christian Picciolini lost his grant money gravy train from the feds for being an Obama supporter and a political combatant more than someone focused on his stated mission. Taxpayers should not be funding any groups like this because taxpayers should not be supporting anyone that goes online attacking Trump or attacking Obama. Whether you are left, right, or square in the middle... taxpayer resources should not be used by political groups like SPLC, ADL, La Raza, Christian Picciolini, etc... !

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    Senior Member Judy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ALIPAC View Post
    Sounds like Christian Picciolini lost his grant money gravy train from the feds for being an Obama supporter and a political combatant more than someone focused on his stated mission. Taxpayers should not be funding any groups like this because taxpayers should not be supporting anyone that goes online attacking Trump or attacking Obama. Whether you are left, right, or square in the middle... taxpayer resources should not be used by political groups like SPLC, ADL, La Raza, Christian Picciolini, etc... !

    W
    Agree 100%.
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    Super Moderator Newmexican's Avatar
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    None of the organizations should receive federal grants of tax payer money because whatever side they come down on, it does not represent all of people that pay their agenda. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

    From CNN - so the bias is built in.

    DHS shifts focus of funding to counter violent extremism

    By Jennifer Hansler, CNN
    Updated 3:49 PM ET, Tue July 4, 2017


    WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 18: U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly delivers his first public remarks since being appointed by President Donald Trump at the Jack Morton Auditorium on the campus of The George Washington University April 18, 2017 in Washington, DC.



    STORY HIGHLIGHTS


    • DHS's announcement left out 11 organizations that the Obama administration said would receive funding
    • Almost all of the new grant recipients are law enforcement entities


    (CNN)The Department of Homeland Security is cutting some organizations out of grant money to counter violent extremism -- including nearly a dozen that the Obama administration considered worthy of receiving the funds.

    The department announced the revised list of 26 recipients for the $10 million in total grant money last week, excluding 11 organizations that the Obama administration had designated to receive funding, which aims to foster community-based solutions to countering terrorist recruitment and radicalization.

    One such organization is Life After Hate, which the Obama administration told just before leaving office in January would receive $400,000 to expand its outreach and intervention services for former white supremacists and others in the "criminal underground."

    Then-DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson highlighted the group's mission, rehabilitating former neo-nazis and other domestic extremists, in the announcement on the first round of funding, calling such efforts a "homeland security imperative."

    But last week, the group got a generic letter from the administration saying its funding had been rescinded, its executive director and co-founder, Sammy Rangel, said.

    "We felt like the rug had been pulled out from underneath us," he told CNN. "As an organization, it's crippling" to lose that much anticipated funding.

    "We're dealing with life-and-death issues," Rangel said. "We saw what happened in Portland, the Sikh temple, Dylann Roof," referring to the killings of minorities by white perpetrators over the last several years. The loss of funding sends the wrong message and "might embolden the people we're trying to help," he said.

    Rangel said his group wasn't informed of the reasons the Trump administration revoked the grant, and an inquiry to DHS has gone unanswered.

    The Muslim Public Affairs Council, which describes itself as an organization that works to promote "Islamic values of civic engagement, public safety and healthy identity formation," is another group that lost funding. It said in a statement that it was told it "did not meet the criteria of working with law enforcement to counter violent extremism." MPAC also said it is "considering all legal options in light of these changes."

    In July 2016, nonprofits, higher education institutions and state and local governments were invited to submit ideas for two-year projects focusing on key areas targeted by the grants, including "developing resilience," "training and engaging with community members," "managing intervention activities," "challenging the narrative," and "building capacity of community-level nonprofit organizations."

    The desired programs would provide "resources to support programs, projects, and activities that prevent recruitment or radicalization to violence by interrupting those efforts, building community-level resilience, identifying the early signs of radicalization to violence, and providing appropriate interventions through civic organizations, law enforcement or other entities," the grant opportunity statement read.

    DHS spokesperson David Lapan told CNN that the changes in grant recipients were due to a review of applicants based on "other factors and information" that differed from the initial evaluation.

    "The Department considered whether applicants for CVE awards would partner with law enforcement, had a strong basis of prior experience in countering violent extremism, had a history of prior efforts to implement prevention programs targeting violent extremism, and were viable to continue after the end of the award period," Lapan said. "These additional priorities were applied to the existing pool of applicants. Top scoring applications that were consistent with these priorities remained as awardees, while others did not.

    Almost all of the new grant recipients are law enforcement entities, including the Seattle Police Department, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security and two county sheriff's offices in Minnesota and California.

    The changes follow reports that President Donald Trump was considering doing away with the CVE program entirely. In February, the administration sought to build a new approach centered on Muslim extremism, seeing the refusal to focus the program on radical Islamic extremism as needlessly "politically correct," a source told CNN at the time.

    http://www.cnn.com/2017/07/01/politics/cve-funding-changes/index.html





    Last edited by Newmexican; 08-21-2017 at 09:38 AM.
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  6. #6
    Senior Member Judy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Newmexican View Post
    None of the organizations should receive federal grants of tax payer money because whatever side they come down on, it does not represent all of people that pay their agenda. Wrong, wrong, wrong.
    Agree 100%.
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  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by ALIPAC View Post
    Sounds like Christian Picciolini lost his grant money gravy train from the feds for being an Obama supporter and a political combatant more than someone focused on his stated mission. Taxpayers should not be funding any groups like this because taxpayers should not be supporting anyone that goes online attacking Trump or attacking Obama. Whether you are left, right, or square in the middle... taxpayer resources should not be used by political groups like SPLC, ADL, La Raza, Christian Picciolini, etc... !

    W
    So true!!

    Taxpayer monies should not go to any group, organization, churches, NGO's - well, you know.

  8. #8
    Senior Member Judy's Avatar
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    Exactly!!!
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