Kevin Alfred Strom

Kevin Alfred Strom (born August 17, 1956) is an American white nationalist, neo-Nazi, Holocaust denier,[1] white separatist, and associate editor of National Vanguard. Strom resigned from National Vanguard in July 2006,[2] but rejoined in 2012.

Kevin Strom
Born
Kevin Alfred Strom

(1956-08-17) August 17, 1956
Known forWhite separatism, neo-Nazi activism, Antisemitism, racism, Holocaust denial
Spouse(s)Kirsten Kaiser (divorced), Elisha Strom (since 2000)
Websitewww.kevinalfredstrom.com

In 2008, Strom pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography and was sentenced to 23 months in prison, of which he served four months.[3]

Early life and activism

Kevin Alfred Strom was born in Anchorage, Alaska in 1956.

After encouraging his hatred of communism, a high school teacher informed him about the John Birch Society where Strom reputedly first met members of the National Alliance led by the neo-nazi William Luther Pierce and abandoned the JBS because, he said, members of the society were forbidden to discuss race.[4] Via Pierce, Strom learned of such notions as ZOG (the conspiracy theory alleging a Zionist Occupied Government in the United States), White supremacy and the Civil rights movement was degenerate. He began to work for Pierce after graduating from high school[4]

In 1982, Strom became a member of the NA, a group described as antisemitic,[4][5] racist,[6] and neo-Nazi.[7][8][9][10]

Activism until 2007

In 1991, he founded and frequently delivered the American Dissident Voices radio broadcasts which were produced and broadcast by the NA.

In 1995, he founded and edited Free Speech magazine, which was published by the Alliance as an adjunct to its radio program. In early 2002, shortly before his death from cancer on July 23, the Alliance's founder, William Luther Pierce, named Strom editor of National Vanguard magazine and media director for the Alliance. Pierce also named Strom editor of the Alliance's monthly Bulletin.

During the weekend of April 16–17, 2005, Strom and several others were expelled from the National Alliance because of a dispute with the new Alliance leader Erich Gliebe.[5] The expelled former Alliance members, led by Strom, formed their own organization which they called National Vanguard. As he had previously done for the National Alliance, Strom now delivered weekly Internet radio broadcasts for National Vanguard and titled them American Dissident Voices but they were often delivered 1–3 weeks late. These broadcasts effectively ceased with his departure from National Vanguard.

Strom was briefly the managing editor of The Truth at Last newspaper during 2005. Several sources have described this tabloid as being highly antisemitic and racist, because it often referred to Africans as an inferior race.[9][11] Strom's boss at The Truth at Last, Edward Fields, is a former Grand Dragon of the New Order Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.[12]

Strom was a close associate of University of Illinois Classics professor and nationalist writer Revilo P. Oliver, who has been described as "one of America's most notorious fascists" and, according to B'nai Brith Canada, was "a long time proponent of antisemitism".[13] Strom was chosen by the Oliver estate to be the archivist and publisher of Oliver's papers after Oliver committed suicide in 1994. In 2002, Strom published Oliver's book, The Jewish Strategy.

Strom is a former broadcast engineer and holds amateur radio license WB4AIO. Between 1983 and 1991, a pirate radio station named Voice of Tomorrow operated on shortwave and mediumwave frequencies,[14] and broadcast openly racist and neo-Nazi material.[15] According to Strom's ex-wife, Kirsten Kaiser, Voice of Tomorrow was operated by Strom.[16]

Arrest, conviction, prison and release

On January 4, 2007, Strom was arrested in Greene County, Virginia, on charges of possession of child pornography and witness tampering.[17] The Grand Jury later added the charges of receiving child pornography and of seeking to coerce a 10-year-old into a sexual relationship. At the October 2007 federal trial on charges of "attempting to coerce a 10-year-old girl into a sexual relationship by sending her anonymous gifts, driving past her house and writing lyrics to love songs declaring his desire to marry her", and of witness intimidation, Judge Norman K. Moon threw out both charges due to lack of evidence of witness tampering or solicitation of sex, but added that Strom, then in his early 50s, had engaged in questionable conduct.[18]

At the plea hearing on January 14, 2008, Strom pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child pornography in exchange for the other charges to be dropped, and was held at Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail while awaiting sentencing.[19][20][3][21] He was sentenced to 23 months in prison in April 2008.[3][22][21] Strom told the court before being sentenced that he was "not a pedophile" and was "in fact the precise opposite of what has been characterized in this case,"[3] saying he had been "unwillingly" possessing 10 images of child pornography and that those came from an online forum he had visited which had been "flooded with spam," which included "sleazy, tragic" pictures of children that he deleted. The judge of the case responded: "Mr. Strom, you pled guilty to charges that now you're saying you're innocent. I prefer people plead not guilty than put it on me."[22] Strom was released from prison on September 3, 2008, at which point he resided in Earlysville, Virginia.[23]

Return to activism

Kevin Strom announced the opening of the new National Alliance on December 28, 2013 and is continuing broadcasts of American Dissident Voices in the original format, from a compound under construction in Tennessee with a group of original followers of William Pierce.[24]

"True Rulers" quotation

The statement "To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize" is often falsely attributed to Voltaire, the French Enlightenment philosopher.[25] However, the phrase is believed to originate from an essay by Strom first published in 1993: "All America Must Know the Terror that is Upon Us". He wrote: "To determine the true rulers of any society, all you must do is ask yourself this question: Who is it that I am not permitted to criticize?".[25]

Personal life

Strom had three children with his first wife, Kirsten Kaiser.[26] Since their marriage ended, Kaiser has spoken about her life with Strom in several interviews.[26][16] She has also written a book, The Bondage of Self, on her experiences with Strom and the National Alliance.[26]

References

  1. Cronk, Nicholas (2017). Voltaire: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. p. 122. ISBN 9780191512759.
  2. "National Vanguard Statement on Kevin Alfred Strom". Archived from the original on February 10, 2007. Retrieved January 24, 2008.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. Tasha, Kates (April 21, 2008). "White nationalist sentenced in child porn case". The Daily Progress. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved April 23, 2008.
  4. "Extremist Info: Kevin Strom". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  5. "Leadership Shakeup at Neo-Nazi National Alliance Leads to Formation Of New Group". Anti-Defamation League. May 3, 2005. Archived from the original on June 18, 2007.
  6. Eskenazi, Joe (April 18, 2003). "Free speech clashes with anti-Semitism in Santa Rosa". Jewish News Weekly.
  7. Sutherland, John (March 19, 2006). "Into the lists". The Daily Telegraph. London.
  8. "Factsheet on The National Alliance". The Prejudice Institute. July 13, 2005. Archived from the original on June 29, 2012. Retrieved June 23, 2007.
  9. "Marketing Extremism". Intelligence Report. Southern Poverty Law Center. Winter 2005. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007.
  10. "2000 annual report: United States of America". Stephen Roth Institute. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved June 23, 2007.
  11. Will, Michael (November 18, 2000). "Racist newspaper condemns Kahn for Judaism, compares Barr to Jesus". Creative Loafing. Archived from the original on May 7, 2006. Retrieved June 23, 2007.
  12. "Anti-Defamation League: Edward Fields" (PDF). Anti-Defamation League. 2013.
  13. ADL: PEEL TEACHER FLAUNTS BOARD RULING Archived June 23, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  14. Amazon Online Reader : Pirate Radio Stations: Tuning in to Underground Broadcasts in the Air and Online
  15. Hougan, Jim (Fall 1990). "The covert spectrum - pirate and secret broadcasting". Whole Earth Review. Archived from the original on March 25, 2007. Retrieved June 24, 2007.
  16. "Inside the Alliance". Intelligence Report. Southern Poverty Law Center. Winter 1999. Archived from the original on July 13, 2007. Retrieved June 23, 2007.
  17. Graff, Henry (January 5, 2007). "Man Facing Pornography Charges". NBC 29.
  18. Steinback, Robert (January 26, 2011). "Racist Author Supports School Board Member Who Broadcast King Attack". Southern Poverty Law Center.
  19. Seal, Rob (January 15, 2008). "Greene man guilty of child porn". The Daily Progress.
  20. Whitehead, Jayson (January 15, 2008). "Strom pleads guilty to child porn". C-Ville Weekly.
  21. "Strom Sentenced". nbc29. April 21, 2008.
  22. Provence, Lisa (April 21, 2008). ""I am not a pedophile": Strom gets 23 months". The Hook.
  23. "Neighborhood watch: Kiddie porn possessor to be released". The Hook. September 2, 2008.
  24. Kevinalfredstrom.com
  25. Hunt, Elle (November 27, 2015). "Cory Bernardi mistakenly 'quotes' Voltaire on Twitter with neo-Nazi's line". The Guardian. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  26. Finn, Scott (May 7, 2003). "'I feel these people raped my soul': After 6 years away, reformed white supremacist remains angry". The Charleston Gazette.. Unauthorized reprint by CultCducation.com — interview with Strom's ex-wife, Kirsten Helene Kaiser, about life with Strom
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