Barricada has recently been accused through many public forums of having working ties to the Jewish Defense League (JDL). Specifically, an article written by an anonymous accuser states that Barricada "has been funneling information to the JDL." This article is written in a direct response to these accusations, to clear up any misconceptions and dispel lies and rumors.

Barricada has never had any ties, unofficial or official, to the Jewish Defense League. All our members agree that the JDL is a dangerous and fascist organization. The article which accuses us of having funneled information to them cites as evidence a posting on the JDL webpage, referencing the protest against the World Church of the Creator in Connecticut last March, which states that "A group called the Barricada Collective will be joining JDL in the protest against Hale, and they have provided specific details on the counter event." The information which follows is a verbatim copy of a call to action which was issued by the Barricada Collective and which was made very public via the internet (posted on every Indymedia site, mailed to a-infos, etc.) This is the extent of the alleged "collaboration" between us and the JDL - apparently we are to blame for the JDL's ability to read!

As with most groups who are insignificant and tiny in numbers, the JDL enjoys making itself out to be the most prominent group at any event it attends. However, Barricada has no knowledge of the JDL organizing any kind of protest against the WCOTC in either Wallingford, Connecticut or in York, Pennsylvania, and even their own website makes no mention of any kind of involvement in York. To the best of our knowledge, there were no JDL members present at either of the anti-WCOTC protests last year in Connecticut, and only two members present in York on Saturday, January 12th. These two were identified by the fliers they were handing out, and it was suggested by one Barricada member that they "should go over to the other side" of the police line, where the neo-nazis were located, though we all felt that now was neither the time nor place to deal with them, and agreed our energies should be focused on the white supremacists waving huge swastikas and chanting "seig heil."

To be absolutely clear, the Barricada Collective does not support the ideology, goals, or politics of the JDL in any way. There was no collaboration between us and them in any way, shape, or form. We did not funnel information to them, we simply made information available publicly, which they re-posted to their own website. We certainly did not collaborate tactically with them on the ground in York, and the two identified JDL members were nowhere to be seen as anti-racists and York residents quite literally chased the WCOTC, National Alliance, Eastern Hammerskins, National Socialist Movement, and other neo-nazis out of town.

In direct contrast to the JDL, we support the struggle of the Palestinian people against oppression by the Israeli state. As revolutionary anarchists, however, we do not support the creation of a Palestinian state, as we feel it would nullify all the gains the people could win from their struggle. We are as opposed to Zionism as we are to all forms of racism and oppression.

By far the most inspiring and productive of all the events that transpired in York on the 12th, was the militant and multiracial anti-racist violence/near-rioting wrought by the local youth (mostly black and latino) and long-time anti-racist and anarchist activists. York has the potential to be a major turning point in the anti-racist struggle as it represents the first time in many years, if not decades, that locals joined in violent confrontations with neo-nazis. It was only through their participation that the neo-nazis were so decisively crushed, and forced to flee with their tail between their legs (not to mention a lot less car windows, several broken bones, and countless bruises). This is what our post-York dialogue should be focusing on. We absolutely cannot allow a few individuals with a vested interest in disrupting anti-racist organizing to cheapen our victory or redirect our attention from these issues. We should be discussing how to build on the bonds that were made that day, how they can be replicated, and how to continue the cooperation that was happening on the street, not engaging in ridiculous rumor-mongering against our own.

With all this said, we feel it is important to bring to light our strongly-held belief as to who is behind the articles denouncing us, and that is the infamous Bill White. For those of you who are not familiar with this unsavory character, he is a well-known 'third-positionist' neo-fascist and a racist. That he felt compelled to post these articles anonymously is proof that we have effectively combated his schemes in the past; such as the recent removal of his name from the anti-WEF endorsement list. We urge all of you to refute, as we have, these ungrounded and untrue rumors being spread about the Barricada Collective. Furthermore, we suggest that Bill White should, in the future, be treated by revolutionary anarchists as the racist trash that he is.

Anti-fascists always,
Barricada Collective