Nearly 1,000 Chinese Americans donated a total of $86,000 to the Proud Boys last December, according to data reviewed by USA Today. Last winter, a fundraiser was created on the site GiveSendGo to help cover medical expenses for Proud Boys members who were stabbed during D.C. rallies. Of the $106,107 raised, Chinese Americans contributed almost 80 percent to the self-described “Western chauvinists” group. While many Chinese Americans voted for President Joe Biden in the 2020 election, some have expressed their support for conservative groups, including the Proud Boys. “The Proud Boys are for Trump and they are fighting Antifa, and can you see anything good that Antifa did except destroy department stores and small businesses?” one donator commented.

“For large parts of the world, there is a context and implication and history to communism and how it has affected several countries,” said extremism expert Jared Holt. “There are some communities of immigrants... for which the Proud Boys’ projection as a group combating communism in the United States resonates favorably.” Kaiser Kuo, host of Sinica podcast, said he is not “surprised” about the number of Chinese Americans that have donated to the Proud Boys. “Even this recent wave of anti-Asian hate crime, which you would think might have shaken them out of their admiration for these racists and crypto-fascists like the Proud Boys—it’s actually only reinforced their beliefs,” he said.

Editor’s note: A previous version of this report incorrectly identified Sinica podcast host Kaiser Kuo as female. We regret the error.