Proud Boys Inspire Sunglasses Company's Donation to Pro-LGBTQ+ Causes
In reaction to seeing their sunglasses on the faces of members of the Proud Boys who were disrupting a drag fundraising event in North Carolina, the manufacturer has said it will donate money to LGBTQ-friendly causes.Clad in their yellow and black colors, members of the far-right radical white supremacist group donned distinctive sunglasses outside an event in Sanford in images shared on Twitter last Sunday.Protest photographer and astrophysics professor at Elon University Anthony Crider posted a series of photos showing the scene where these men stood to menace patrons and LGBTQ+ supporters.
On Monday afternoon, sunglasses manufacturer Pit Viper tweeted that the company had seen its products modeled by members of the hate group and indicated that the company stood firmly against extremism.“Reminder: if you spread hate while wearing Pit Vipers, we will use your money to combat your efforts. #pitvipergivesafuck,” the company tweeted alongside some of Crider’s photos.Included in Pit Viper’s tweet was a receipt for a $200 donation to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks extremism and monitors hate groups like the far-right Proud Boy extremists.The tweet was retweeted and liked thousands of times.
According to Raleigh NBC affiliate WRAL, the group had assembled to protest a Halloween drag event held to raise money for a local LGBTQ+ resource center.
The event organizer said she began receiving backlash after Chaya Raichik’s Libs of TikTok account falsely claimed that there was a Satanist at the Halloween drag brunch.The station reports that a group of about 16 Proud Boys, some of whom were wearing bulletproof vests, attended the event, along with pro-confederate protestors holding Bible verse signs.Followers of Pit.
