CU Boulder TPUSA via Facebook/Boulder Police Department
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A local college student allegedly struck by a hockey stick-wielding rollerblader is decrying the assault as “politically motivated.” Meanwhile, photos and videos of the victim apparently show him openly identifying as a racist and embracing neo-Nazi organizations.
According to Boulder police, a male victim reported that he was riding his bike near the University of Colorado Boulder campus when a man wearing rollerblades approached him from behind and hit him with a hockey stick on the evening of Thursday, October 23. The victim was not seriously injured and declined medical treatment.
Nathaniel Ellis has come forward as the victim in the reported attack. Ellis, a CU Boulder sophomore and the secretary of the university’s Turning Point USA chapter, told the Daily Camera that the incident occurred after he left a TPUSA meeting. He claims the assailant yelled “fuck you, fascist,” before striking Ellis on the head.
Days prior to the incident, Front Range Anti-Fascists accused Ellis of being a “Nazi activist” with ties to multiple white supremacist organizations, posting flyers detailing the accusation online and around the city.
A local antifa group points to photographs of Ellis participating in a boxing tournament hosted by a white supremacist active club. In one of the photos allegedly posted to Ellis’s now-private Instagram account, the referee is seen wearing a “Western Hammerskins” shirt, which is a skinhead group.
Front Range Anti-Fascists claims to have identified Ellis as a masked individual photographed at multiple demonstrations by the white nationalist group, Patriot Front, noting the shared clothing and glasses.
Perhaps most damningly, the group released a video on October 26, appearing to show Ellis proudly identifying himself as a racist and saying he supports deporting “the American negro” out of the United States. A representative for Front Range Anti-Fascist tells Westword that the video was sent to them anonymously and they do not know when it was filmed. It seems to take place inside a CU dorm.
In the video, a voice behind the camera asks a person who appears to be Ellis about his opinion on racism. He replies: “I’m actually racist. I’m just straight-up racist. There’s no inconsistencies. I support remigration, that’s my thought.”
A third person asks, “What is that and do you really support it?” Ellis replies, “I really do. That was a big thing. We were gonna send — we colonized Liberia specifically to send the African Americans back. …I do feel bad for the American negro. I think they did have somewhat of a plight after slavery. And so I do support reparations, but I also support remigration, sending them back.”
Ellis did not respond to a request for comment from Westword, nor did the president or vice president of CU Boulder’s chapter of TPUSA. The nonprofit advocacy group was founded by the late Charlie Kirk to promote conservative politics on school campuses.
In a statement to Westword, CU Boulder says that student privacy laws prohibits school officials from speaking about specific cases, and that the university “respects the campus community’s right to freedom of speech” under the First Amendment.
“Unless it rises to the level of discrimination or harassment, speech that is hurtful, biased or offensive in nature is generally protected by the First Amendment,” part of the statement reads. “When we receive a report of concerning student behavior, [Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance] and Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution work to address those concerns, which in some cases may also involve reporting to the CU Boulder Police Department. CU Boulder condemns racism, violence and any acts that fail to live up to our core values.”
In a statement to the Daily Camera, Ellis reportedly argued that he was attacked by “antifa” “for my America-first values and actions.”
“Like Mr. Kirk, I will not let threats dissuade me from my TPUSA involvement or beliefs,” Ellis said.
Boulder police have not officially released the identity of the victim in the reported assault due to “privacy practices,” but confirm that the victim was the subject of circulating social media posts and flyers ahead of the attack.
“Whether these played a role in the reported assault is part of the investigation, and police are not commenting further on this finding,” says BPD spokesperson Sarah Huntley. “The investigative focus right now is on speaking with any witnesses and on identifying and locating the individual in the photos so that we can better understand what occurred and why.”
No arrests have been made as of today, October 28, but detectives are following up on “several leads,” says BPD spokesperson Dionne Waugh.
The suspect in the incident is described as a white male of medium-tall height and slender build. Police say he was wearing rollerblades, all-black clothing, a black ski mask, and had a green Gatorade bottle with an orange top in his back right pants pocket.
Anyone with information about the suspect is asked to contact Detective E. Starks at starkse@bouldercolorado.gov or 303-441-3067.
