Outing the Bay Area campaign contributors to KKK fascist David Duke

Update: This story and the boycotts it started have resulted in the closure of two popular establishments after patrons and staff learned the owners had contributed to David Duke’s campaign. O’mei Restaurant, which had thrived in Santa Cruz, Calif., for 38 years, was forced to close within days of the publication of this story, as it spread to social media and eventually to mainstream media. And as of Sept. 1, according to the Star Tribune, Club Jager in Minneapolis closed after both patrons and entertainers scheduled to perform there denounced the owner’s contribution to David Duke. Lynda Carson’s investigative reporting proves that the power is in the people when they target their dollars to conform with their convictions.

by Lynda Carson

O’mei-Restaurant-menu-Santa-Cruz-300x200, Outing the Bay Area campaign contributors to KKK fascist David Duke, News & Views
Roger Grigsby of Santa Cruz, owner and founding chef of O’mei Restaurant, gave $500 to David Duke’s U.S. Senate campaign in 2016. This photo, when posted with the original story on Indymedia on Aug. 17, inspired O’mei customers to boycott the restaurant, which was soon closed after decades of successful operation.

According to Newsweek, David Duke of the Ku Klux Klan praised President Donald J. Trump for supporting the fascists, neo-Nazis, KKK and hate mongering white supremacists who brought blood and violence to the streets of Charlottesville. In 1927, Trump’s father was arrested after a KKK rally in Queens, which may help to shed light on why Trump is a supporter of hate groups and the KKK that helped to bring him into office.

The recent violent white supremacist rally that David Duke attended resulted in the death of Heather Heyer when she was run down by a Nazi sympathizer, who plowed into a crowd of peaceful demonstrators protesting the KKK, neo-Nazis and white supremacists. Nineteen others were injured.

According to Wikipedia, David Ernest Duke, born July 1, 1950, is an American white nationalist, politician, anti-Semitic conspiracy theorist, Holocaust denier, convicted felon and former imperial wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.

Some have suggested that the best way to fight back against all the hate being spread around by the Trump regime, the KKK, neo-Nazis and white supremacists is by exposing the supporters of hate and violence in the good old USA.

Omei-Restaurant-forced-to-close-for-owners-David-Duke-donation-Santa-Cruz-0817-300x225, Outing the Bay Area campaign contributors to KKK fascist David Duke, News & Views
Judging from its Facebook page, O’mei Restaurant, founded in 1979, served great food and was very popular in Santa Cruz – but not now that patrons know about its ties to David Duke. One long time customer wrote: “The owner is a confirmed contributor, $500, to David Duke – anti-Semite, racist and former grand wizard of the KKK. I’ve eaten there for 35 years and, of course, never will again. I hope you won’t either.”

One place to start exposing them would be to expose some of the local supporters of David Duke who reside in the Bay Area.

David Duke, from Mandeville, Louisiana, ran for the U.S. Senate in 2016 and lost. However, according to public records, that campaign brought Duke a number of campaign contributions from supporters located here in the Bay Area.

William Hubbel, of 1138 Skycrest Dr., in Walnut Creek is one of the proud supporters of David Duke in 2016. According to records, he gave $500 to Duke’s campaign. When I asked him about his support for David Duke, Hubbel was very surprised, but said: “In this era of Communism, as the noose is tightening around our necks, we may be rounded up and shot in the back of the head. I decline to comment about my contribution to David Duke. I am not a member of the KKK, but I sure as hell am not a member of the Black Lives Matter movement either.”

Karen Ardith Woodbury, of 2720 35th Ave. in San Francisco, is another proud supporter of David Duke. She gave $250 to Duke’s campaign in 2016. Once an attorney who no longer practices law, Karen Woodbury has a chiropractor’s license that expires in November of 2017. Karen Woodbury did not respond to my request for an interview regarding her support of David Duke.

Other proud supporters of David Duke’s 2016 campaign include:

As the fascist Trump regime spreads its message of hate by supporting the KKK, neo-Nazis and white supremacists who brought bloodshed to the streets of Charlottesville recently, the Trump regime has targeted DreamHost, a web server, and has served a warrant in an effort to get the names and addresses of people who may have protested against Trump’s inauguration last January, in Washington D.C.

The attorneys of DreamHost have refused to turn over the information the fascist Trump regime wants, and DreamHost has responded with a blog claiming that “we fight for our users.”

Omei-Restaurant-chefs-Santa-Cruz-091813-web-300x168, Outing the Bay Area campaign contributors to KKK fascist David Duke, News & Views
O’mei is known as a Chinese restaurant, but the chefs in this 2013 photo taken by a customer are white. The photographer, a fan of the restaurant, writes: “Roger Grigsby, owner and founding chef, studied Chinese at UC Santa Cruz and has lived and traveled extensively in Taiwan … Many of the dishes and spice blends originated from the knowledge he gained during his Far East travels.” He rates O’mei “better than any other Chinese restaurant in Santa Cruz … and I will say one of the best of the Chinese restaurants I have dined at anywhere.” How Grigsby – in progressive Santa Cruz – became a David Duke supporter and whether this loyal customer would knowingly support a David Duke supporter is yet to be revealed.

In addition to the Trump regime supporting the violence in Charlottesville, last February in response to protesters running Milo Yiannopoulous out of Berkeley when they objected to his racist campaign attacking sanctuary campuses, a GOP leader threatened Berkeley protesters and promoted the idea of a Kent State massacre against the students and protesters in Berkeley.

Groups spreading hate and violence across the nation are on the rise. Trump supporters, white supremacists, fascists, anti-Semites, homophobes, bigots and other hate mongers announced a demonstration on Saturday, Aug. 26, called “Freedom Rally” at Crissy Field in San Francisco and another the following day, called “No To Marxism In America” at Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park in downtown Berkeley.

Instead, thousands marched in San Francisco and Berkeley against the forces of hate, and people celebrated their victory when the hate mongers were outnumbered by the thousands.

Some say that they have seen the ghost of Hitler recently on Pennsylvania Avenue whispering into President Donald Trump’s ear.

Exposing KKK fascist David Duke supporters in Minneapolis, Massachusetts, Maryland and beyond

Exposing the supporters of KKK fascist David Duke may help to slow down the rise of fascism in the U.S. At the least, it will allow the public to decide if they want to give their money to those involved in supporting anti-Semitism, the Ku Klux Klan, bigots, racists and the hate mongers of the world. Here are snapshots of a few of them outside the Bay Area.

One of David Duke’s proud supporters is a wealthy landlord and developer in Minneapolis named Julius Jaeger De Roma, who gave $500 to David Duke’s Senate campaign in 2016. In 2012, a brouhaha with allegations of anti-Semitism arose over a fight involving a local musician in a club called Clubhouse Jager, which is owned by DeRoma.

According to the Star Tribune, “Allegations of anti-Semitism were made toward owner Julius Jaeger De Roma and his staff, with the situation flaring up to become one of those things everyone talks about but very few have any hard facts on.”

Public records show that Clubhouse Jager has been operating at 923 Washington Ave. N., Minneapolis, since December of 2004, and De Roma is familiar with the courts. He also owns the property where the Huge Improv Theater, at 3037 Lyndale Ave. S., is located.

Another supporter of David Duke is James Murray of Winthrop, Massachusetts, who gave $600 to Duke’s failed Senate campaign in 2016. According to the Winthrop Transcript, in 2009, James Murray was arrested and charged in the stabbing of two brothers.

Alphonse Petrus Kelz of Bel Air, Maryland, gave $1,250 to David Duke in 2016. Accused of a violent history and Nazi connections, the Baltimore Sun reported that Kelz was back in court in 2012 on forgery and theft charges.

Michael Mazzone, a driver for UPS, is a neo-Nazi in Palatine, Illinois, who gave $2,700 to the failed David Duke Senate campaign in 2016. Mazzone also proudly displays Nazi swastikas on his Twitter account just to make sure that people have no doubt about his beliefs.

Veita Minshall, the owner of Harbor Plaza Mini Storage in Aurora, Colorado, gave $500 to David Duke in 2016. Dr. Stephen C. Graves of Rudy, Arkansas, gave $250 to Duke in 2016.

Another Duke supporter is Steven R. Jeppson, who contributed $500 in 2016. Jeppson is a CPA with his own accounting firm in Reno, Nevada.

Robert W. Milos gave $2,700 to Duke’s Senate campaign in 2016. Milos is the incorporator of the Milos Family Foundation Inc., a nonprofit in Ogden Dunes, Indiana.

David B. Kinion of Lansdale, Penn., is an HVAC contractor and the owner of Comfort Air. In 2016, he gave $500 to David Duke’s failed Senate campaign. Shawn D. Fowler of Sapulpa, Oklahoma, gave $1,000 to Duke that year.

The supporters of hate and David Duke appear to reside all over the country. It will be up to U.S. citizens whether they will support these people with their hard earned money, or if they will find another place to do business that does not support hate or the likes of David Duke.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule@yahoo.com. These stories originally appeared on Indybay, at https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2017/08/17/18801676.php and https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2017/08/26/18802258.php.