The article informs on the one hand what this „Ásatrú“-thing is at all about. On the other hand it shows what makes Germanic Paganism today – in Iceland, in the United States and in Germany – and how isolated racist, homophobic and nationalist heathens are in reality.

„[…]In reaction to statements from the “crazies and trolls of the internet,” Hilmar Örn told Iceland Magazine that the Ásatrúarfélagið “will not tolerate some foreign reactionaries coming here to tell us how to practice our faith.” Andreas Zautner says the same of German Heathens: “No one is expecting that some kind of clerical authority from a foreign country should give religious guidance for German Heathens.”

The reactionaries have misunderstood “the American myth,” according Steven T. Abel, Steersman of the Troth, a national Heathen group in the United States. “Think for yourself, make your own path, and find your own friends,” he says. „Freedom is important to us. The hard lesson is that some view freedom as being good for themselves; anyone else’s freedom they’re not too sure about. Some people learn and grow into wider views; others don’t.”

In opposition to the “troll” insistence that outsiders determine Icelandic practice, most American and German Heathens emphasize the religion’s locality – a stance in keeping with Ásatrú’s emphasis on community and respect for one’s natural environment.In opposition to the “troll” insistence that outsiders determine Icelandic practice, most American and German Heathens emphasize the religion’s locality – a stance in keeping with Ásatrú’s emphasis on community and respect for one’s natural environment.[…]

Heathenry in Iceland, America and Germany: The mainstream and the fringe by By Karl E. H. Seigfried on Iceland Magazine.

He even mentioned us: 😉

German Heathens are particularly sensitive to appropriation of pre-Christian religious symbols by reactionary groups, given the Third Reich’s use of Heathen imagery. The Rabenclan organization’s “Ariosophie Projekt” has long detailed its research exposing right-wing elements attempting to co-opt Heathenry. Another group, Nornirs Ætt, has become so uncompromisingly dedicated to the idea of “Antifa” (anti-fascism) that they are left of even liberal Heathens.

Okay, we are not THE „pagan Antifa“, and our „anti-fascims“ is part of our democratic and decidedly pro-human rights position. 🙂
By the way: The „Ariosophieprojekt“ was our project back in the years when the Nornirs Ætt still belonged to the „Rabenclan“. Today it is continued by us under the name „Odins Auge“.
(After the split there is, however, an „Ariosophieprojekt“ of the „Rabenclan“.)