How Russian trolls are inherited in Brooklyn

American TV channels CNN and ABC produced stories about the manipulation of American black activists in the interests and with financial support of Russia. According to TV channels, at least two groups, Black Fist and BlackMattersUS, backed by Russian trolls, took advantage of the trust of political activists and famous personalities in the United States.

Russia used groups Black Fist and BlackMattersUSto "reach out to unsuspecting Americans and enlist them to help organize protests, conduct self-defense training, and create music videos," told ABC News unnamed members of Congress appointed to investigate this matter. They also found out that some activists received financial rewards for their work. Both groups have positioned themselves as part of the movement to protect the black population of the United States. Black Lives Matter (“Black Lives Matter”).

Как wrote ForumDaily, representatives of the group BlackMattersUS appealed to political activists in different states of America to take part or organize protests.

For example, Konrad James, an activist from the city of Raleigh in North Carolina, said that in September, a certain representative of the group had contacted him BlackMattersUS and asked him to speak at a demonstration in the city of Charlotte. At that time, mass protests were taking place after a policeman shot 43-year-old African-American Keith Lamont Scott.

Unlike BlackMattersUS, Group Black fistapparently concentrated on self-defense courses for African Americans in the United States.

Martial arts trainer from Brooklyn Omowale Adewale has been repeatedly noted by the press for victories in fights in the ring, but he unexpectedly became a star on American television channels - and for a reason far from sports. For several months, from January to May, the athlete conducted self-defense classes at clubs in Brooklyn and Queens, commissioned by a public organization Black fist — “Black Fist,” which, according to media in the United States, was behind the Russian “troll factory.”

Omowale recalls that it all started with a message on Instagram that did not arouse suspicion, reports “Voice of America". Then the bell rang.

“The caller introduced himself as Taylor. He invited me to conduct self-defense classes for everyone on the initiative of the Black Fist organization. And, according to him, they were going to organize similar classes in other cities of the country. He offered to pay for these classes. In general, this is exactly what I do. For example, I conduct self-defense classes for women. So the proposal seemed normal and mutually beneficial for both parties and did not raise suspicions,” Omowale Adewale said.

The man, who introduced himself as Taylor, paid Omowala an average of $320 a month for four hour-long sessions. According to Omowale, there were not very many people willing to study, but money was transferred regularly through the PayPal online service. As a gift, they sent him a T-shirt with the symbol of the organization and the inscription “Coach”.

The customer, according to Omovale, requested that the data of those who attend martial arts courses be passed to him, but the athlete did not. The request surprised him a little.

“What was a little strange, of course, was that I personally did not meet anyone from this organization. But I have seen videos of training in other cities on their website. And they regularly posted new videos on the site. Therefore, everything looked convincing. The results of their work were noticeable. In particular, there were videos from Atlanta. They also posted these videos on social media.”

Calls from representatives of the organization in April unexpectedly stopped, like remittances, and in September Facebook and Instagram blocked accounts Black fist due to suspicions of connections with the Russian “troll factory”. The organization's website is still active. Judging by this page, the formal task of the movement is to protect the rights of African Americans, in particular from police brutality. But the media in the United States agree that the real goal appears to have been to inflame racial tensions in the country. On the site, along with calls in the style of “Be prepared to defend yourself,” there are others like “Show them that black people have power.”

“What actually surprised me and even began to arouse suspicion was that during their communication they never really talked about important issues, about the essence of why all this was being done. The topic of police brutality was never brought up, even though there was a lot of news related to the topic at the time, starting in January. In April they simply stopped making contact and seemed to disappear. I just remember that it didn’t feel like you were talking to a movement activist. But then I thought, maybe he is still a new person in their organization, and is just getting started...”

As it became known, a total of five American coaches in various American cities received offers from the organization Black fist for money to conduct self defense classes for blacks.

They were also offered to collect the names and phone numbers of those who came to classes and make videos during training.

New York members of the movement against police brutality are known for their activity, which is probably why self-defense classes in Brooklyn attracted increased press attention when the story of suspicious activist groups on the Internet received wide publicity.

In addition to the Black Fist organization, another group has become noticeably active on the Internet - Blackmatters us. This name is consonant with the famous movement. Black Lives Matter - “Black Lives Matter.” And this group, formally engaged in human rights activities, was suspected of having Russian roots.

Omovale says he also heard about fake activist organizations on the Internet, and regrets that they can undermine the credibility of the fighters for black rights in the United States. He does not mind and in the future to conduct self-defense classes for those who wish, only now he will be especially careful when choosing clients in the global network.

Read also on ForumDaily:

How the "trolley factory" worked in the US elections

How does the Russian "trolley factory" in the US: an interview with an ex-employee

US intelligence: Russia's intervention in elections took place on Putin’s personal order

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