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A Eugene, Ore. community theater actor who allegedly cyber-harassed a black student leader has agreed to a remarkable settlement with his victim.
Evan James McCarty, 22, allegedly moonlighted on neo-Nazi websites as "Byron De La Vandal" and participated in a campaign of harassment against Taylor Dumpson, the first black woman to serve as student body president at American University in Washington, D.C.
In April, Rose City Antifa revealed McCarty's identity. Dumpson then sued him and two other men in federal court. In a settlement reached last week and reported by The New York Times, McCarty "agreed to apologize, renounce white supremacy, undergo counseling and help civil rights groups fight hate and bigotry."
Dumpson's lawsuit, filed with the assistance of the Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, could provide a national model for holding extremists responsible for hate speech and bullying online.
Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyer's Committee, told the Washington Post that the settlement shows a way to legally confront white supremacists.
"I firmly believe that this settlement that we secured is one that is unique and provides a way to address the looming crisis that we see across the country," Clarke said. "We can't just stand back and wait for prosecutors to develop the political will to go after these folks."
McCarty has agreed to anti-hate training, and will apologize to Dumpson in writing and on video. She can use the video for "civil rights advocacy, outreach and educational activities," the Times reported.
McCarty was a well-known actor in Eugene's community-theater scene, until Rose City Antifa, the Portland-based antifascist group, alleged his double identity in April.
Eugene Weekly reported that he had appeared in musicals including Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Mary Poppins and Annie Get Your Gun. (Asked for comment in April by the weekly, McCarty replied: "You can fuck off, for one. I don't talk to journos.")
McCarty's alleged behavior is one of several high-profile cases of white supremacist and neo-Nazi activity in Oregon over the past several years. Many of those cases have centered on Eugene—including that of a cannabis lab owner who allegedly celebrated white supremacy online. The neo-Nazi Jimmy Marr, who plays bagpipes and displays anti-semitic slurs on his truck, lives in nearby Springfield. Marr was hospitalized last week after a fight with four antifascist activists in Corvallis.