Tour by Michael Flynn, Roger Stone raises outcry in Rochester

A scheduled appearance in Rochester by a caravan of far-right and conspiracist speakers, including Gen. Michael Flynn and Roger Stone, has drawn cries of protest and calls for cancellation from community leaders.

The ReAwaken America tour has a scheduled stop at the Main Street Armory on Aug. 12 and 13. According to a video on its website, the lengthy speakers list is drawn from "people that are actually at the tip of the spear, working directly with President Trump on a day-to-day basis to save this nation."

Among them: Flynn and Stone, who both received pardons from Trump related to Russian election interference; Stella Immanuel and Simone Gold, vaccine-disputing doctors who previously have warned of disease-causing alien DNA (Immanuel) and entered the U.S. Capitol building during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection (Gold); and Scott McKay and Gene Ho, men with clear links to the nebulous QAnon conspiracy theory, which falsely posits a global child molestation and sacrifice ring led by prominent Democratic politicians.

A growing list of local politicians and community leaders have called on the Armory to cancel the event.

"This tour features a who’s who of far-right religious extremists, Trump aides, QAnon conspiracy theorists, and other reckless figures," Monroe County Legislature President Sabrina Lamar said in a statement. "At every stop along the way, this nationalist tour has left in its wake a trail of dangerous disinformation that can lead to increased bigotry, hate, and, at its most extreme, violence.”

A separate letter signed by dozens of faith, community and business leaders noted that Aug. 12 marks the five-year anniversary of the white supremacist Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Both letters, as well as a separate letter from the Legislature's Democratic caucus, also cited the recent mass killing in Buffalo, which authorities described as racially motivated, as further reason not to hold such an event in Rochester this summer.

Scott Donaldson, the venue's owner and operator, did not respond to phone calls and an email for comment. The woman who answered the phone said that Donaldson, who is blind, could not receive a message unless someone was there to convey it to him personally. He also has not responded to messages from other people protesting the event.

The ReAwaken America tour has already made 12 stops across the country, mostly in the South, according to its website. The New York show will be the first in the Northeast.

Media reports from those shows have described rampant conspiracy theories and threats of violence.

In South Carolina earlier this month, Stone described a literal "Satanic portal" that has been visible above the White House since Joe Biden took office, while another speaker suggested a war crimes tribunal at Guantanamo Bay for those who supposedly stole the 2020 election from Trump (no such theft took place).

In Oregon, organizers cancelled an LGBTQ pride event this month, saying a ReAwaken America tour stop in April had led to an increase in harassment and made it impossible to find a safe venue.

Tickets to the event are $250 for general admission or $500 for a VIP package, according to the website, with "scholarship" tickets also available with a suggested price of $135.

In 2015, after a shooting outside the Armory after a hip-hop concert, Donaldson said he would no longer host "late night urban shows" in the venue's basement area, but continues to hold hip-hop shows in the main concert hall, including members of the Wu-Tang Clan in November 2021.

Contact staff writer Justin Murphy at jmurphy7@gannett.com. 

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Tour by Michael Flynn, Roger Stone raises outcry in Rochester