Missouri State Rep. Chris Lonsdale, who represents the state’s 38th District, has posted and reposted photos of himself with far-right activists associated with Nick Fuentes and his racist “America First” or “groyper” movement. In each of the photos, Rep. Lonsdale can be seen making a hand gesture associated with the movement.
On Jan. 16, 2024, Rep. Lonsdale posted a photo of himself to X (formerly Twitter) which depicts him pointing his index finger in the air:
This gesture is closely associated with Holocaust-denying white nationalist Nick Fuentes and his “America First” movement. Supporters of this movement are referred to as “groypers.”
Lonsdale has used his X account to promote posts by white nationalists, particularly people involved in the groyper movement. This includes Wade Searle — a former staffer for Rep. Paul Gosar who supported Fuentes under the pseudonym “TheChickenRight” — and Scott Greer, a white nationalist who spoke at a conference organized by Fuentes.
In addition, Lonsdale has been photographed at Republican events alongside three far-right activists associated with the groypers: Justin Cyrenne, Aidan Thompson, and Philippe. In each of these photos the men can be seen enthusiastically posing with their index fingers raised in the air.
These three activists have made posts on social media expressing racist, antisemitic, misogynistic, and xenophobic beliefs. Rep. Lonsdale has described one of these men as his “buddy.” Another one of them described Lonsdale as his “friend.” Lonsdale has interacted with each of them several times on X.
Justin Cyrenne
On X, Justin Cyrenne once posted that an “America with the social customs of the past and technology of the future would be unstoppable.” But Cyrenne looks back fondly on other aspects of America’s past as well, such as restrictive immigration laws and manifest destiny.
The Illinois native, whose LinkedIn profile lists him as a “Grassroots Associate” with Americans for Prosperity, promotes racist conspiracies, “likes” white supremacist content, and interacts with white supremacists and antisemites on X. This includes people associated with the groyper movement.
On Dec. 28, 2023, he shared a post by the AF Post — an X account which posts clips of Fuentes’ America First show, alongside video clips from white nationalists Brandt Wiggins and Josiah David Moody. The AF Post warned that a “Massive caravan of over 100,000 migrants is en route to the southern border.”
Cyrenne quote-posted this anti-immigrant message and wrote, “Your country is being intentionally transformed into something unrecognizable.”
Posts on X show that Cyrenne does not believe just anyone should be considered an American — even if they’re born here. When live-streamer “Destiny” wrote that Rep. Rashida Tlaib was born in Detroit, MI, and is, therefore, American, Cyrenne responded with a quote attributed to the Duke of Wellington: “Being born in a stable does not make one a horse.”
Cyrenne has defended legacy admissions programs at universities, calling them “noble and deeply conservative” while decrying attacks on them as “deeply degenerate.” He’s stated that America was “settled and conquered, not stolen,” and “wasn’t ‘built’ by slaves.”
On Oct. 10, 2022, he posted a variation of “American Progress” — an 1872 painting by John Gast which expresses support for manifest destiny, a belief that white Americans had a God-given right to expand westward and settle the continent. The altered image, with blue, pink, and purple hues characteristic of the fashwave aesthetic, says “We Are Not Sorry.”
Cyrenne wrote above the image, “Not stolen – finessed”:
In response to a Sept. 1, 2023 post by Jon Miller, a Nazi-sympathizer and acolyte of Nick Fuentes, Cyrenne wrote, “Wake me up when Jon misses.”
On another occasion, he replied to a post by a white supremacist X account with over 240k followers. The post featured a screenshot from an article about Desirée Mariottini, an Italian girl murdered in 2018 by African migrants. “Our greatest strength. This is a disgrace,” the account’s owner wrote.
Cyrenne stated that politicians who “pushed for open borders” should be “held accountable.”
Cyrenne has also “liked” explicitly white supremacist content on X, such as a pair of posts criticizing advertisements featuring mixed-race couples:
He has also liked content from the AF Post, Brandt Wiggins, Jon Miller, white nationalist and former Fuentes ally Patrick Casey, Holocaust denier Stew Peters, and anonymous groyper accounts like this:
On Jan. 16, 2024, Rep. Lonsdale posted a photo of himself making the “America First” hand gesture with Justin Cyrenne. “Me and my buddy @CyrenneJustin,” he wrote affectionately. In turn, Cyrenne called Lonsdale “America’s #1 state rep!”
Aidan Thompson
Aidan Thompson, who just goes by “Aidan” on X, is a Kansas-based groyper who’s spent the past few years immersed in far-right politics. Thompson is listed as a contributor to The College Dissident. Created by antisemitic “Students for Ye” organizer Daniel Schmidt, the (now defunct) website published articles like “Time To Fight Anti-White Hatred On Campus” and “The Ghey Old Party.”
Thompson’s bio, which includes a photo of him with darker hair, describes him as a “student studying financial management at Emporia State University” as well as a “classical liberal.” The website also provides a link to Thompson’s X account: @aidan_on_twitr. Thompson later changed this handle to @aidanonx.
On X, Thompson frequently interacts with like-minded groyper accounts, such as Dalton Clodfelter, Brandt Wiggins, Jon Miller, and even Nick Fuentes himself.
When “Chief Trumpster,” a pseudonymous groyper, boasted about reaching 33.3k followers on X, and posted a cartoon of a frog holding a gun, Thompson replied “I can confirm this is literally Chief.” In response to Dalton Clodfelter posting an image from the game Hearts of Iron IV that said “Greater German Reich” in large letters, Thompson wrote “bro was GRINDING.”
When an X account belonging to Nick Fuentes was suspended last September, Thompson eulogized the account, writing “RIP @grimaceshake01, you will be missed, F”:
Thompson likewise interacted on multiple occasions with Fuentes’ next account, @autumngroyper. This includes one instance where he wrote “Autumn is the season” — in reference to the account’s name — and one where he inexplicably stated “those nazis [sic] are really forward thinking.”
Thompson is also a fan of AF Post, whose content he shares and recommends to others:
Archived: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8
Thompson also spends a fair amount of time spewing bigotry of his own. On X, he makes clear his racist, xenophobic, antisemitic, and misogynistic worldview.
He’s voiced support for the white supremacist “Great Replacement” conspiracy and called migrants “dirty invaders from the global south.” In a Sept. 26, 2023 post he complained that white people spent “the entire 20th century decolonizing” and that, in the 21st century, “people start[ed] trying to colonize us.”
Thompson has claimed that welfare is a form of “reparations.” In one post, Thompson asked “Who has the better life right now, the descendent of a slave in America, or a native African?” After another person replied that the former had it better, Thompson wrote, “They should thank us then. We rescued them.”
But when the racist account “End Wokeness” posted footage of “a BLM organizer in Chicago,” Thompson replied that “Slavery was bad because it left us stuck with these people.”
Thompson has expressed crude antisemitism, posting jokes about the Holocaust and a variation of the “Happy Merchant” — a caricature of a hook-nosed, scheming Jew:
His view of women is similarly dim. Thompson has decried feminism for “destroying so many women” and claimed that “birth control is driving women insane.” He’s expressed a desire for a wife who didn’t “make herself a laughing stock of the internet for being busted and degenerate.” At the same time, he’s exhibited creepy behavior toward women online.
On Jan. 27, 2024, Thompson posted a photo of himself and Rep. Lonsdale standing side-by-side, making the “America First” hand gesture. “Very excited for this Kansas [Young Republican] slate, got to make many great connections and see my friend @ChrisLonsdaleKC,” he wrote. Lonsdale reposted this photo:
And on Jan. 14, 2024, Lonsdale reposted a photo from the X account of the Wisconsin College Republicans. The photo showed Lonsdale wearing a red, white, and blue cap, talking to a group of people whose backs are to the camera. Behind them are numerous red, white, and blue Trump signs.
“Lucky to have so many friends in Wisconsin and it’s a huge honor to be someone who a lot of conservative College Republicans look up to!” Lonsdale wrote. “Great fellas that are serious about saving our Country!” When Thompson replied “my posterior profile is so cute,” Lonsdale reacted with a tears of joy emoji:
Lonsdale also took a photo with Thompson at Turning Point USA’s AmFest 2023.
Philippe
Another groyper-affiliated activist Rep. Lonsdale has been photographed with is a man who goes by Philippe on X. Philippe, whose X bio states “Christ is King” and “America First,” was featured in a group photo on the website for the College Republicans of America. The photo’s caption reads “CRA Members From Wisconsin at Iowa Caucus”:
Philippe has called Martin Luther King Jr. the “catalyst for much of the racial tensions we experience today,” posted the racist slogan “It’s okay to be White,” referred to presidential candidate Nikki Haley as a “wh*re,” and called TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk “based” for assuming Black pilots aren’t qualified.
In a Jan. 19, 2024 post, Philippe wrote “13% of the population, 52% of the MAGA base” — a reference to a white supremacist meme about the percentage of violent crimes supposedly committed by Black people:
He also posted a photo of himself standing next to James O’Keefe, the founder of the right-wing group Project Veritas.
Philippe wrote “who’s got the @ for shawty in the back, asking for a friend,” referring to an unidentified woman in the background. When someone joked that the woman is his 15-year-old sister, Philippe replied, “Tell me she’s past her prime without telling me.”
Justin Cyrenne also weighed in, posting, “We stand on biz but sometimes we gotta get those snaps too.” “Gotta save the white race,” Philippe responded.
Philippe has been photographed with Justin Cyrenne, as well as Fuentes allies Bryson Gray and Laura Loomer, whom he jokingly proposed to. He also follows a number of groyper accounts on X:
When Philippe posted a photo of himself posing with Rep. Lonsdale, Lonsdale reposted it:
Lonsdale also reposted a photo of Philippe and Justin Cyrenne labeled “MAGA SZN”:
Rep. Chris Lonsdale isn’t the only state lawmaker in recent weeks to use his X account to promote far-right politics. Rep. Matt Heilman, Rep. Brandon Prichard, and Rep. Nico Rios of North Dakota have all expressed an affinity for white, Christian nationalist figures.
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