NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The neo-Nazis who invaded Nashville in 2024 just got sued by a man they attacked. One member of the hate group allegedly said they wanted to start World War III in Nashville.

In July 2024, members of the Goyim Defense League — described by the Department of Justice as "a network of antisemitic provocateurs" — marched through Downtown Nashville, waving flags bearing swastikas and yelling antisemitic slurs. A new lawsuit claims they did more than just shout; they attacked and violated the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871.

Deago Buck filed a 34-page lawsuit after he said he threw a punch after being called a racial slur by group members and then walked away, but GDL members allegedly followed him and attacked.

"When I got struck with the flag pole twice, it was just immediate. I didn't think anymore I was fighting," the plaintiff in the lawsuit, Buck, told News 2 in an interview from July 2024. "I went into fight mode."

"The other members of Goyim Defense League were beating on him and kicking him," Deputy Legal Director at Southern Poverty Law Center, Scott McCoy, explained. "In the complaint, we have a very telling picture where Jon Minadeo, who was the founder and leader of Goyim Defense League, is actually behind Deago and is attempting to gouge his eye."

In the complaint, Buck alleges that the GDL and several of its reported members committed assault, battery, malicious harassment and conspiracy. The suit claimed the GDL also harassed a group of Black children and disrupted a Metro Council meeting. It also cites the Klan Act, which protects against conspiracies to violate civil rights.

"GDL members knew what they were going to do when they came to Nashville. They came to Nashville for the purpose of harassing and intimidating, denying the rights to or engaging in racial violence," McCoy said.

One reported member, Ryan Scott McCann, was already charged with aggravated assault and disorderly conduct for hitting Buck with a flagpole.

During those court proceedings, the GDL encouraged others to "jump" Buck after his work shifts and "repeatedly" shoot him. There were also death threats against the Davidson County District Attorney.

"You may be able to think and say whatever you want, but the minute you act on those views and you put them into action, you deny other people's rights, you harm them, that's when we will step in," McCoy said. "We will do what we can to stop you from harming people like the people of Nashville."

"We have seen hate groups grow both in size and to the degree that they feel emboldened in recent years, and Tennessee and Nashville specifically have certainly felt that increase," Co-founder of the Institute for Countering Digital Extremism, Amy Cooter, said.

"I think part of it, too, is potentially some of the attention that the city has received as we have seen certain conservative influencers move here and maybe painting it as a bit of a battleground," Cooter added.

The lawsuit is seeking damages, meaning GDL members could be held financially accountable. The SPLC told News 2 they are fully prepared for this case to be heard by a jury.

"This wasn't just a one-off. This was a part of a broader campaign that they knew they were going to engage in when they came to Nashville," McCoy said.

News Source : https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/nashville/neo-nazi-group-lawsuit-accuses-assault-hate-crimes/