Controversial Official Leaves FAIR
In late December, the听听(FAIR) reportedly let go Joseph Turner, its western region representative, who had been hired just 13 months earlier, in November 2006.
Calls to Turner and FAIR听officials seeking an explanation for Turner鈥檚 unannounced departure were not returned, but a Hatewatch call to the FAIR switchboard asking for Turner met with this hard-to-misunderstand response: 鈥淗e鈥檚 no longer with the company.鈥� This comes in the wake of an听Intelligence Report听听that detailed FAIR鈥檚 ties to white supremacy and designated FAIR a hate group, a move that garnered some national publicity. The听Intelligence Report听story pointed out that Turner was the founder and long-time leader of a group the Southern Poverty Law Center lists as a hate group 鈥擲ave Our State, which developed a听听to participate in its rallies.听
Although Turner has denied being a racist, he has defended white separatism. 鈥淚 can make the argument that just because one believes in white separatism that that does not make them a racist,鈥� Turner听听in Save Our State鈥檚 Web forum in 2005. 鈥淚 can make the argument that someone who proclaims to be a white nationalist isn鈥檛 necessarily a white supremacist. I don鈥檛 think that standing up for your 鈥榢ind鈥� or 鈥榶our race鈥� makes you a bad person.鈥�
Some in the most radical sectors of the anti-immigrant movement have claimed publicly that FAIR fired Turner. A person identifying himself as 鈥淎l Lewis鈥� of the Americans for Mass Deportation Yahoo group wrote: 鈥淛oe Turner has been fired from FAIR by [President] Dan Stein, apparently because of that pro-illegal outfit the southern poverty law center [sic] called [sic] FAIR a 鈥榟ate group鈥� or some nonsense about Joe being a racist.鈥�
Turner鈥檚 exit did not go down well in at least some anti-immigrant circles. 鈥淚鈥檓 very worried that we may have been sold down the river again by those damn groups in DC,鈥� Lewis wrote in another post. Americans for Mass Deportation founder听lamented that she 鈥渄id not even warn [Joe] about [FAIR] because I knew he needed the money for himself and his family.鈥� Laine Lawless, who in 2006听听neo-Nazis to attack undocumented immigrants, slammed FAIR as well: 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the problem with FAIR 鈥� no one knows what they actually DO, except make speeches occasionally, once a year put on a 鈥榳orkshop鈥� with guest speakers, and of course highly-over-paid Dan Stein goes on FOX News periodically.鈥�
听
