Proud Boys Attend Fair Lawn Pro-Trump Rally: Mayor

FAIR LAWN, NJ — "Unfortunately, hate was seen in Fair Lawn today."

That's how Fair Lawn Mayor Kurt Peluso began his Sunday Facebook post following a pro-President Donald Trump, pro-police rally in the borough Sunday.

He was responding to a photograph circulated on social media of a group of men walking down a rainy Fair Lawn street holding a Proud Boys flag.

Watch video of the rally below:

Labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Proud Boys have long been affiliated with white nationalism, dating back at least to their substantial presence at 2017's Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

According to TapInto, roughly 20 people who identify as Proud Boys attended the Nov. 1 rally on River Road.

"The Proud Boys should never feel welcomed in our community. Fair Lawn must stand up to hate groups that do not belong. We have work ahead of us and we must all come together to discourage those who want to divide us," wrote Peluso.

This isn't the first time the Proud Boys flag has been present in Fair Lawn.

At an Aug. 3 rally in the borough, pro-police demonstrators were met with anti-racist organizers in what became a tense standoff of dueling protests, separated by a heavy police presence.

READ MORE: Fair Lawn Council Will Address Recent Events As Activists Protest

At that rally, demonstrators carrying the same Proud Boys flag were present, as well as others sporting gear from the Three Percenters, an anti-government group which is part of the "militia movement," according to the Anti Defamation League.

The Sunday rally was part of a larger network of Pro-Trump events across the state, including a rally in Wayne Township, and a planned traffic slowdown, which shut down a portion of the Garden State Parkway.