Andy Ngô trying to show his face in public again was stellar enough. Bringing along a guy who may be grifting as a “former antifa activist” when be probably never was would have been the pièce de résistance – were it not for everything else that happened!

HANOVER, N.H. – When a planned event at Dartmouth University featuring neo-fascist propagandist Andy Ngô and the Leadership Institute’s Gabriel Nadales, who claims being a part of the antifa movement a decade ago, was canceled and had to be held virtually, the immediate reason given by the duo and the organizers of the event was threats by antifa. In truth, it was the ineptitude of the organizers that prompted the shutdown, according to school officials.

The Extremism in America event Thursday was organized by the Dartmouth College Republicans and Turning Point USA and was part of a regular conservative campaign to paint antifa as domestic terrorists. Ironically, Ngô has been associated with violent neo-fascist groups like Patriot Prayer, the Proud Boys and the neo-Nazi terrorist group Atomwaffen but has made a name for himself as a self-styled victim of antifa when he was chased out of an antifascist crowd by unknown persons throwing milkshakes at him during a Portland rally in 2019. When the event was announced, there was concern about Ngô because of his associations and a flyer was posted on Twitter about a protest against their appearance and initially it was made so that only those with a Dartmouth ID were able to attend. Later the in-person event was canceled and moved to a virtual platform.

On Twitter and later in his presentation, Ngô cited security concerns and threats by antifa that prompted the shutdown of the event, noting that even bomb sniffing dogs were used at Moore Hall where the event was to take place. In a statement however, university administrators noted the lack of planning for such a controversial event that led to the in-person event being canceled. “In light of concerning information from Hanover police regarding safety issues, similar concerns expressed by the College Republican leadership, and challenges with the student organization’s ability to staff a large public event and communicate effectively (including dissemination of the visitor policy and a prohibition on bags in the building), the college has requested that the ‘Extremism in America’ panel be moved online,” Dartmouth College’s Associate Vice President for Communications Diana Lawrence said.

This is not the first time Dartmouth College Republicans saw an event canceled and often they would involve an event promoting hate politics. In 2020, an anti-immigration event was scheduled featuring as a speaker Bryant “Corky” Messner, a Trump-backed attorney from Denver, Colorado who moved to New Hampshire and was the Republican candidate running against Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who ultimately defeated him in November of that year. Messner was there to promote Again citing threats from leftist activists from campus, particularly pointing to the Dartmouth College Democrats who while vocal against the event denied knowing of any threats, the event was shut down but the story of threats became less and less credible and that lead to the resignations and public apology of two club leaders, Daniel Bring, who reportedly now works as a writing assistant to Robert Doar, president of the right wing American Enterprise Institute, and Alexander Rauda now a public policy fellow at Cavarocchi Ruscio Dennis Associates, a health lobbying firm.

Although the event was canceled some opposing the event still managed to show and troll it outside Moore Hall. The producers of 2020: The Dumpster Fire produced a video of their troll, which included a 6-foot drawing of a milkshake, a reference to Ngô’s infamous Portland incident. There were no arrests made and Ngô and Nadales were able to give their presentations. There were only three questions answered in the Q&A portion but several were asked of Ngô regarding past associations and his silence on right wing violence, even the violence committed by individuals who have been inspired by him.

Nadales, the lesser known of the two, is a right-wing activist whose activism can be traced back to his days in Citrus College in California back in 2012 when he founded a libertarian club on campus. In recent years however he has touted himself in right wing media circles, notably Fox News as a former antifa activist and in the Q&A said he was a onetime member of the Orange County/Inland Empire of the Anarchist Black Cross, a prison support group with roots going back to the Russian Empire in the early 20^th century. Some contention has been raised however regarding how there is nothing showing that Nadales has been involved in any leftist or antifascist activism and even his own book on his life has been vague on the matter. It is not known if he really was in fact a member of the Anarchist Black Cross.

Founded in 1958, Dartmouth College Republicans state on their website, “In espousing uncompromisingly conservative positions, we strive to uphold Senator Barry Goldwater’s declaration at the 1964 Republican National Conference: ‘I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!” The statement, made during the Civil Rights Movement and seen as a conservative and threatening response to it, was so controversial in its day even Richard M. Nixon contacted Goldwater to clarify his meaning. Goldwater eventually lost his presidential run to Lyndon B. Johnson.