MEAWW.COM / NEWS / HUMAN INTEREST

Who is Joe Biggs? #LindseyMustGo trends after SC senator Graham's photo with Proud Boys organizer goes viral

Graham had previously tweeted against the group but the photo showed him smiling with Biggs

South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham recently called out Proud Boys for being a ‘racist organization’ on Twitter. However, now, a photo is doing rounds on the Internet where Graham can be seen with a known leader of the white nationalist group. On Wednesday, September 30, Graham tweeted, "I agree with @SenatorTimScott statement about President Trump needing to make it clear Proud Boys is a racist organization antithetical to American ideals."

Within a few days of the tweet, the said picture is going viral that shows him with the leader of the same group. In the picture, Graham can be seen smiling for a photo-op with Joe Biggs, a known member and organizer of Proud Boys, which has been classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

As soon as the picture started doing rounds, Internet started reacting to it, as one person slammed Graham and wrote, "Hey look, it's Lindsey Graham having dinner with a Proud Boy. I know the FBI has a file on the Proud Boys, hmm I wonder if Lindsey is in it? #LindseyMustGo" Some made speculations and said, "The photo, which has made its rounds on Twitter, shows Graham smiling for a photo-op with Joe Biggs, a known member and organizer of Proud Boys, which has been classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. He looks like a fan that’s about to get an autograph."

One user sarcastically wrote, "Lady G with one of the Proud Boys. But let’s face it. Lady G probably thought the Proud Boys were a special group for something else. He was probably disappointed when he found out they weren’t actually boys." Some called him a racist and said, "only a racist would hang around the Proud Boys leader. Why is Lindsey Graham aka Lady G posing for pictures with the Proud Boys leader? #SendLindseyHome #SCSen Jamie Harrison #LindseyMustGO #ProudBoyLindsey South Carolina GO Jamie."

Who is Joe Biggs?

Joe Biggs is an organizer for Proud Boys and resides in Florida. Previously, he used to work with conspiracy theory website InfoWars. He organized the End Domestic Terrorism rally in Portland, Oregon, in 2019. The 36-year-old has a LinkedIn page that lists him as a US Army staff sergeant for 10 years. Banned along with his organization from Twitter and Facebook, he works for Censored.TV, a subscription channel. Benjamin Wallace-Wells of The New Yorker has described him as a "conspiracist".

Founded in 2016, Proud Boys is widely condemned as a hate group. Members, normally decorated in logos and donning weapons, have been known to become violent at rallies or protests. The group has organized rallies in Portland and other cities, calling on police to be more aggressive against left-wing activists. Members of the group participated in a pro-Trump truck caravan that turned violent in downtown Portland on August 29, when a follower of another right-wing group, Patriot Prayer, was fatally shot.