‘You better run’: Neo-Nazis target violent threats at journalists covering Tennessee mayoral race

Neo-Nazis attended a mayoral candidate forum Monday in Franklin, Tenn. – and what quickly followed was a spray of online threats against journalists from a racist gas-station owner linked to one of the candidates.

The neo-Nazis milled outside the forum in the wealthy, small city outside of Nashville, as supporters of their favored candidate — Gabrielle Hanson — reportedly attempted to prevent a TV journalist from entering the room.

Then, the threats against journalists began.

Phil Williams, chief investigative reporter for News Channel 5 WTVF, tweeted a photo of the neo-Nazis flanking the entrance of city hall on Monday evening, writing that “members of the white supremacist group Tennessee Active Club are here, saying they are providing security for Gabrielle Hanson.” An at-large member of the Franklin Board of Mayor & Aldermen, Hanson is a candidate in the mayoral race along with incumbent Ken Moore.

Hours after Williams’ Twitter post about the neo-Nazis posted outside the candidate forum in Franklin, a Telegram channel operated by the owners of the Lewis Country Store, a kitschy Second Amendment-themed restaurant where neo-Nazis conduct mixed-martial arts training, posted an antisemitic diatribe attacking Williams and accusing him of lying. The Telegram message ended by saying that journalists “have no idea the ‘Day of the Rope’ is real… and it’s approaching quicker than they can prepare for.

“You better run…run…run,” the message concluded.

“Day of the Rope” is a reference to a 1978 novel by white supremacist William Pierce that outlines a violent fantasy about a neo-Nazi insurgency overthrowing the U.S. government. The book has been credited with inspiring numerous violent acts of far-right violence, from the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, which killed 168 people, to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

“Day of the rope” specifically refers to an assassination campaign targeting journalists, politicians, women involved in interracial relationships and others considered to be enemies of white supremacists following a revolutionary attack.

"The Franklin police take any threats seriously," Milissa Reierson, a spokesperson for the city, told Raw Story. "We continue to monitor the events from the candidate forum, and any possible threats against attendees or media."

Williams could not be reached for this story, but hinted on Twitter that he plans to address the online threats through his journalism.

Doxxing followed by an active threat

Monday’s events in Franklin are the latest reverberation in a continuing pattern of violence built around attacks against the LGBTQ community and drag shows in the state.

Raw Story has previously reported that Tennessee Active Club leader Sean Kauffmann is at the center of a growing network of neo-Nazis that have been harassing LGBTQ people and their supporters at drag shows across Tennessee, while attempting to instigate violence. In January, police pulled over a car driven by Kauffmann as he was leaving a protest outside a drag show in Cookeville, Tenn. Despite an admission from the front-seat passenger — a neo-Nazi named Robert Bray — that he threw a projectile at LGBTQ supporters while traveling with a pistol strapped to his hip, officers declined to charge anyone in the vehicle.

Bray is a member of the Vinland Rebels, a neo-Nazi group with a significant presence in Tennessee and the Pacific Northwest whose members frequently demonstrate alongside the Tennessee Active Club. Following the candidate forum in Franklin on Monday night, the group’s Telegram channel advertised that the neo-Nazis were still in town, while challenging leftist opponents to fight.

The message was posted by a channel administrator named “‘The Real’ Paulie Walnuts” associated with Brad Lewis, who owns the Lewis Country Store. Lewis responded to a recent report by the Southern Poverty Law Center about his restaurant being used for fight training by posting on Telegram: “I’m an actual literal Nazi.” Lewis has worn a Vinland Rebels shirt in the past, representing the group that includes Bray, Kauffmann’s passenger when they were pulled over by the police in Cookeville.

The other administrator on the Lewis Country Store Telegram channel is his wife, Renee Lewis.

The same administrator account associated with Brad Lewis also reacted to a tweet by Holly McCall, editor-in-chief at the Tennessee Lookout, referencing Tennessee Active Club members seated in the overflow area of the forum. Lewis described the neo-Nazis in his Telegram message as “our cyber division” while addressing McCall personally. A minute later, Lewis posted a photo purportedly showing McCall’s house, writing, “See what I mean?” accompanied by a winking emoji.

McCall declined to comment for this story.

Lewis could not be reached for comment for this story.

The Tennessee Active Club Telegram account run by Kauffmann forwarded Lewis’ initial message addressed to McCall. An anonymous Telegram user in the Tennessee Active Club chat replied, “Who is this person? Where can I find them so I can beat the s--- out of them? So they know, I am in fact active and lurking.”

The menacing posts by Lewis represent a heightened threat environment for journalists, who have only become more at risk since the 2016 election of Donald Trump. In April, the founder of the Tennessee Holler reported that shots were fired into his house in Williamson County, whose seat of government is in Franklin. And on Monday, journalist Josh Kruger was shot and killed in his home in Philadelphia - though it is as yet unknown who the shooter is.

Shortly after posting the screed against Williams, the Lewis Country Store account forwarded a message from the Proud Boys-friendly “Murder the Media” account with commentary on Kruger’s killing. The Lewis Country Store account followed the Kruger post with a photo of Dilbert creator Scott Adams holding up his hands in a gesture suggesting, “What can you do?”

Gabrielle Hanson, the candidate for mayor and currently an alderman at-large on the Franklin Board of Mayor & Aldermen who relishes her MAGA Republican ties, holds a distinct link to the Lewis Country Store and its owners: Hanson, a real estate broker, is the listed agent for the establishment, which is currently under contract for sale.

Hanson could not be reached for comment, despite voicemail messages left on her cell phone and home phone, and an email to her city government account went unreturned.

Hanson has courted controversy during her campaign for mayor of Franklin. In July, the city’s ethics commission ruled that she abused her position as an elected official by pressuring the president of Nashville International Airport to withdraw funding from a local Juneteenth festival, according to a report from WPLN. The station also reported that she spread misinformation about a mass shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville.

Williams, the News Channel 5 reporter, recently reported that Hanson celebrated her husband’s scantily clad participation in Chicago Pride while decrying Pride in her own community, and previously promoted prostitution.

This story has been updated to include a statement from the city of Franklin.