On social media, Navid Beglarpour encourages his followers to “vanquish their enemies” and publishes videos of himself working out in public wearing clothes that feature hateful slogans and symbols.
Sébastien Roback
Canadian Anti-Hate Network
While some neo-Nazis hide behind pseudonyms and avatars, 32-year-old “freelance graphic designer” and aspiring bodybuilder Navid Beglarpour isn’t shy about flexing his politics or showing his face.
Often dressed in a replica medieval helmet and wielding a toy sword like he is on his way to a Renaissance Faire, Beglarpour argues online about the need for an “Indo-European” (a dog whistle term for Aryan) racial world order, the importance to secure “the existence of his people,” and urges Europeans to “reconquer Constantinople.”
When the “alt-right” first rose to prominence around the 2016 Presidential election, he took to Twitter to encourage his followers to support the nascent white nationalist movement.
“Black-pilling yourself only helps the enemy even more,” he wrote. “Support the alt-right in any capacity.”
In recent years, Beglarpour has developed his own novel approach to wearing his ideology on his non-existent sleeve.
In hundreds of different Instagram posts between 2018 and 2020, Beglarpour is seen lifting weights at GoodLife’s York Mills location, often in clothing that lays bare his worldview.
This includes shirts that prominently display neo-Nazi symbols like the Totenkopf and the Sonnenrad, both of which were used by the Nazis during World War II. The Totenkopf, specifically, was used by SS troops tasked with guarding concentration camps.
Another shirt features a two-headed eagle lifting weights, along with the word “Liftwaffe,” in reference to the Luftwaffe, Nazi Germany’s air force.
Beglarpour’s Sonnenrad and “Liftwaffe” wardrobe. Source: Instagram.
Beglarpour appears to have designed many of these items himself through his company, which CAHN has chosen not to name. Per its website, the small business primarily focuses on creating images of flag and coat of arms designs though it is unclear to whom these designs are marketed.
Beglarpour also offers advice to his over 3,000 Instagram followers through what he calls his “edicts of might” - short quotes which often carry violent undertones.
“The path to victory is paved through the skulls of your enemies,” one reads.
One of Beglarpour’s Edicts of Might. Source: Instagram.
In a series of Youtube videos published in 2017, Beglarpour rants about demographic replacement, friends betraying him, and male feminists, who he believes are “the most cuckolded men I’ve ever seen.”
"Netherlands, I've been there a couple of times and people over there, they know they're being replaced demographically,” he said in one video. “They know the Dutch people are being replaced over there by the invaders."
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, he had little problem finding a mask. He had already been posting videos and images of himself working out in a half skull mask on a previous Halloween. The item is associated with neo-Nazi accelerationism and popularized by extremists like the recently designated terrorist group Atomwaffen Division.
The half-skull mask has been described by the Southern Poverty Law Centre as “the face of 21st century fascism.”
GoodLife York Mills has been closed due to ongoing restrictions since November 2020, though Beglarpour has repeatedly stated his desire to train at the same location once it reopens.
When reached for comments, a representative for GoodLife told CAHN that “clothing items that promote racism, racist ideals or hate speech are not allowed” in their clubs, and that a “full investigation” would be launched once the York Mills location reopens.
Several of Beglarpour’s Instagram publications include hashtags such as #OperationWerewolf, #WolfBrigadeGym and #MilitantStrengthCulture.
Operation Werewolf is a transnational far-right self-help movement, founded by white supremacist guru Paul Waggener. It seeks to instill the ideology of “militant strength culture” in its members through the imposition of a strict workout regimen, and the written teachings of its founder.
Operation Werewolf and Waggener were banned from Facebook in October 2020.
Wolf Brigade, on the other hand, refers to a gym located in Rochester, New York, along with its affiliates. One such affiliated gym, Atlantic Avenue Athletic Club, is located in Toronto. Greg Walsh, the owner of Wolf Brigade, has collaborated with Waggener and Operation Werewolf in the past.
Paul Waggener (left) with Greg Walsh, owner of Wolf Brigade Gym. Source: Telegram.
It is unclear whether Beglarpour holds any affiliation with Operation Werewolf or Wolf Brigade.
The co-opting of fitness cultures by far-right elements is not uncommon. In the United States, the white supremacist Rise Above Movement (RAM) bills itself as “the premier MMA fight club of the alt-right,” and trains its members for street combat.
In Canada, the fascist skinhead group Atalante Québec owns La Phalange, an “identitarian boxing gym,” which also promotes the group’s anti-immigration and racist beliefs.
Navid Beglarpour did not respond to requests for comment by time of publication.
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