Writer Andy Ngo Splits from Conservative Blog Quillette After Damning Video Surfaces
Writer Andy Ngo rose to prominence last month after he was attacked by Antifa protestors in Portland, leaving him bloodied and with an alleged brain injury.
But footage provided to the Portland Mercury from a subsequent protest reveals Ngo witnessed right-wing group Patriot Prayer making plans for a violent confrontation at a bar — and he didn’t report it. The same day as that report, it was revealed he had left his employer, the conservative website Quillette.
The writer/photographer has built an online following by filming fights between right-wing activists and Antifa. In June, he was punched and kicked in the head and had milkshakes thrown at him while filming a counter-protest to a Proud Boys rally.
A liberal activist disguised as a member of Patriot Prayer released footage from a May riot and claimed it plainly showed that Ngo didn’t turn his camera on as the group discussed their plans for an attack, just smiled along as they cracked jokes.
Hours after the Portland Mercury ran the story, Ngo removed “Intellectual Dark Web” op-ed site Quillette from his bio. The same day the “platform for free thought” removed Ngo’s name as an editor.
Quillette’s editor-in-chief Claire Lehmann insisted that Ngo’s employment termination had nothing to do with the Portland Mercury story or the undercover footage which had been circulating Twitter beforehand.
This clip, shot right before Patriot Prayer arrived at Cider Riot on May Day, is the clearest evidence I’ve seen supporting the claim that PP & leader Joey Gibson were intent on instigating a fight that afternoon. https://t.co/G1iM9XUDi2
— Alex Zielinski (@alex_zee) August 22, 2019
I want to address unfounded speculation about @MrAndyNgo‘s departure from @Quillette: Andy has been off work for @Quillette since July, after sustaining a traumatic brain injury. He is now moving onto bigger & better projects, & we wish him all the best in his future endeavours.
— Claire Lehmann (@clairlemon) August 27, 2019
When asked about the coincidental timing of the departure, Lehmann told the Daily Beast that Ngo hadn’t done work for Quillette since his June injuries, but had only just announced his departure publicly that day.
[Photo by Moriah Ratner/Getty Images]
