Protest Planned Over 'Heroes Of Jan. 6' Gathering In Auburn

AUBURN, MA — A fundraiser and right-wing gathering Saturday in Auburn is being met with resistance from local social justice groups whose members say the organizer — the alt-right group Super Happy Fun America (SHFA) — promotes hatred and insurrection.

Saturday's event at the Century Sportsman's Club will have a dual purpose, according to SHFA president John Hugo: to gather Massachusetts right-wing groups in one place, and to raise money for two SHFA members arrested and charged in connection to the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

In recent days, the Worcester chapter of Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) and the group Defund WPD have been petitioning the Century Sportsman's Club to cancel the event. The group MassEquality, meanwhile, will host a protest near the club at the intersection of Southbridge and West streets in Auburn.

SURJ Worcester member Margot Barnet said SHFA went "beyond the pale" by hosting an event that celebrates the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. She said the group also has associated with extremists like the Proud Boys, which has white nationalist sympathies, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

"They're not directly espousing racist ideology, but they're coming right up to the edge in a way that condones it and promotes it," Barnet said. "And that stuff is dangerous. We need to proactively seek a path forward that brings working people together across racial lines."

Barnet said she personally contacted the Century Sportsman's Club to cancel the event, but never heard back.

Hugo said Saturday's event could have up to 300 people from some 20 right-wing organizations from all parts of the state. The group hopes to collect thousands of dollars to help defend Natick Town Meeting member Sue Ianni and SHFA vice president Mark Sahady. Both are facing charges related to illegally entering the Capitol.

"It's a bunch of patriotic men and women getting together," Hugo told Patch on Wednesday, adding that he supports the events on Jan. 6 because he believes the election was "stolen."

Barnet called it "beyond the pale" that anyone would celebrate the Jan. 6 insurrection. The U.S. Department of Justice has estimated the riot caused $1.5 million in damage, and 535 people had been arrested and charged — at least five from Massachusetts, including Ianni and Sahady — as of July 6. Several people died during the incident, including a California woman who was shot by police as rioters pushed toward the U.S. House of Representatives chambers.

"Clearly it was a violent event that caused grievous harm," Barnet said.