As any resident will tell you, New Yorkers love nothing more than complaining about the millions of non-English speaking citizens who make up the bulk of the city’s working class and service economy sector.

That is why a several pro-Trump groups are set to descend on Trump Tower in Manhattan for a “Speak English Please!” rally.

“This rally is a celebration of freedom of speech and the beautiful and complex English language,” the event’s Facebook description reads. “Attacks on our language are one way that America is being stripped of its greatness. Therefore, promoting proficiency in English is one way to Make America Great Again!”

The demonstration, which is scheduled for noon on Saturday, bills itself as a peaceful celebration. A Facebook graphic publicizing the event, however, shows a MAGA-hat wearing Trump supporter with the barrel of gun forced into his mouth.


“Our goal is not to agitate or inflame but rather to unite,” the Facebook caption reads. “We believe our message is universal and beneficial to people of all ethnic/national backgrounds.”

But as is often the case, the peaceful veneer of the rally obscures some more extreme ties of the organizers, who have a history of brawling and agitation at public events.

The event has been organized by three groups; The Modern Patriots by Jovi Val, Boston Free Speech and Resist Marxism (also Boston-based).

The Modern Patriots Facebook page largely consists of Val posting videos and photos of himself “triggering” liberals by wearing his MAGA hat and waving his Trump flag around New York. But he also has connections to the far-right Proud Boys as well as conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer.

Laura Loomer and Jovi Val disrupting a performance of Julius Caesar last June.

The pair, along with right-wing activist Jovi Val, appeared together on Gavin McInnes’ (who founded the Proud Boys) show on Rebel Media last June to talk about why they disrupted a performance of Julius Caesar in Manhattan. Both Val and Cippola were self-described as “Proud Boys.” Val has also appeared on Infowars where he claimed he was viciously assaulted at a New York bar for wearing a MAGA hat.


Proud Boys bills itself as a “pro-Western fraternal organization” whose tenets include “venerating the housewife” and “reinstating a spirit of Western Chauvinism.”

Several Proud Boys have had links with the far-right. Jason Kessler, for instance, who organized the deadly Unite the Right rally last year, was a Proud Boy. Members of the group were also present last Saturday at the far right “Patriot Prayer” march in Portland, Oregon that quickly devolved into a riot — which group’s members gloated about on Twitter.

Another group which “sent a representative” to Portland last weekend was Resist Marxism. The Boston-based group, which is affiliated with Boston Free Speech, said that the organizers of the march were completely innocent.

“Patriots need to realize that we are up against hundreds to thousands of Antifa to prevent us from exercising our rights,” Resist Marxism said. “We are also opposed by hostile city governments led by corrupt mayors who are more concerned with pleasing their far left donors than protecting citizens.”

As ThinkProgress has previously documented, while Resist Marxism markets itself as a conservative/libertarian group which aims to “defend the Constitution against violent extremists and the left”, that facade hides a much more far-right leaning. This includes affiliation with the white supremacist group The American Guard, and at least one of Resist Marxism’s members has ties to the fascist, white supremacist group Patriot Front. Resist Marxism’s founder, Kyle Chapman A.K.A Based Stickman, also has an extensive criminal history including felony robbery, and felony possession of a firearm. In 2017, Chapman also founded FOAK (Fraternal Order of the Alt Knights), which bills itself as the “fighting arm” of the Proud Boys.

Resist Marxism categorically deny the claims made in ThinkProgress’ article.

“We are not responsible for doing a background check on everyone showing up to a public event. Resist Marxism is a small group of people who host public events where most of the attendees are not members,” the group said in response to the previous article.


“Of the hundreds of people that have attended our events, apparently the author could find only two that he finds unsavory. Since neither of them is part of our organization, we aren’t accountable for anything they may have said.”