‘This town is not for them.’ Residents react to white Christian nationalists moving to Tennessee

By Phil Williams

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    GAINESBORO, Tennessee (WTVF) — As word spread across Jackson County, a gathering of friends quickly grew into an impromptu town hall.

One woman, with her freshly coiffed hair, rushed over after hearing about the gathering at the local beauty salon, as did the owners of two restaurants and the coffee shop that all sit on the east side of the Gainesboro town square.

One by one, local townspeople — about 50 in all — seemingly appeared out of nowhere from the quiet streets of Gainesboro and quickly ducked into the events center that sits just across the street from the historic Jackson County Courthouse.

Some just came with questions — others, with deep concerns.

“We don’t want one news story to portray something of Jackson County that we’re not,” said Kara Smith, whose husband Beau had spread the word that we were coming to town.

It followed NewsChannel 5’s revelations about the white Christian nationalists — led by podcasters Andrew Isker and C.Jay Engel — now setting their sights on Jackson County, hoping to turn this quaint community of just over 12,000 people into a political haven for others just like themselves.

Jackson County is located about 90 minutes northeast of Nashville.

“We’re building a town, right? We’re building a community there,” Isker said during a July podcast when he and Engel announced their move to Tennessee.

Yet, for the people who already have a community here, the news took them by surprise.

“Did anyone have any sense about these people prior to this story?” I asked.

A loud chorus of local residents responded in unison, “No, no.”

Among those we met, some had deep roots.

“My family has been here for seven generations,” said Mark Dudney, a public historian with an agency that serves the Upper Cumberland region of Tennessee.

Others were drawn here by the openness of the people they now call neighbors.

“I’m a ‘mover-inner.’ I think that’s what you all call people who move in from other areas,” said Diane Murphy, glancing around the room with a smile.

“This town is such a loving group of people. I’ve been accepted, even though I came in from outside.”

And we were there to listen.

“What has this story done to this community’s sense of well-being?” I asked.

“I think mainly people are scared,” answered Murphy, who is vice chair of the local Republican Party.

I had explained to the crowd that I had used the online story to provide documentation for every remark attributed to Isker and Engel, Murphy added:

“I listened to the podcasts. I did research on what you mentioned,” Murphy added. “It scares me that they are very clear about taking over.”

Developers with right-wing ties have purchased hundreds of acres of land in the area, trying to recruit other like-minded people to join Isker and Engel in relocating to Gainesboro.

In a video posted online by one of the developers, Isker talked about the ability of those people to get their way in a small community.

“You could exercise far, far more political power – even with a few hundred or a few thousand people – than you can on your own, widely dispersed across the entire country,” the right-wing Minnesota pastor said.

I asked the Jackson County residents, “When you hear them talking about coming here to build a town, to build a community, what’s your reaction?”

Diana Mandli quickly chimed in.

“I would love to speak to that. That makes me mad,” she said.

Mandli co-owns a local restaurant, the Bull and Thistle, and she sees a community remaking itself without the help of strangers from out of state who don’t understand what Jackson County already has.

“People from all different walks of life, genealogies, nationalities, race — you name it — we have got a melting pot right here in this small town, all working together to make this town come back to life,” she explained.

So, I wanted to know, “What is it you’re afraid of losing?”

“I don’t want to lose what we already have — the sense of community.”

Mark Dudney, the public historian, agreed.

“It is a very welcoming community, but I think they kinda came in under the radar and want to recreate it in their own image,” he said.

On election night, the podcasters monitored the results of the 2024 presidential election during a nearly nine-hour show from Gainesboro. The real estate developer behind the project, Josh Abbotoy, provided live reports from a watch party he had hosted for local Republicans at the same events center.

One of their podcast buddies also set up an account on X, formerly Twitter, that claimed to represent the views of the local Republican Party.

Jackson County Republican Party chair Beau Smith was surprised when NewsChannel 5 Investigates first told him about the X account.

“It said it was the official account of the Jackson County GOP.”

“But it was not,” said Smith, who immediately insisted that the podcaster remove the claim that the account was endorsed by the local party.

We also showed him where Engel had tweeted that “the best way forward” for Christian nationalists “is to take over local level outlets of the Republican Party.”

“So that’s not going to happen especially now due to your reporting,” Smith said. “We’re thankful for that, and knowing these people are in our community is a big deal.”

Still, not everyone is so concerned.

The administrator of a local Facebook group lashed out at those who were also upset that a white supremacist group, the Asatru Folk Assembly, had bought property in Jackson County in December 2022.

“I think you guys just don’t like outsiders,” Mickie Davis posted. “Just live and let live.”

Late Friday, Engel appeared on a YouTube program run by a local ministerto try to quell some of the public backlash following NewsChannel 5’s report. As the host took calls from local residents, Engel was asked about the podcasters’ claims that they are coming to Jackson County to “start a town.”

Engel described it as being an “analogous” statement.

“Our plan is to assimilate into the culture of the area and to participate in making Gainesboro a better place to live, to the extent that we are welcomed to,” he said.

Back inside the events center, I asked the group, “Have these Christian nationalist podcasters, these developers tried to have a meeting like this, to sit down and answer your questions?”

“No,” they again responded in unison.

One woman called out from across the room, “They’re a wolf in sheep’s clothing.”

But what really concerned these Jackson County residents — some who were reluctant for their faces to be on camera — are the podcasters’ views that the Civil Rights movement was a mistake, that foreigners who have become U.S. citizens still don’t belong in America.

I asked, “What is it that you would like for these people coming in from out of state to know? What message would you have for these people?”

“This town is not for them,” said local business owner Barry Naff.

Another woman called out, “Bigotry is not going to work.”

“No, it’s not going to work,” Naff agreed.

Yet another woman chimed in from off camera, “We are not that community, and we don’t want to be a part of a racial hate community.”

Then, Isker and Engel’s views on women are discussed. On social media, Engel had posted that he “detest(s) the specific impact of college-educated White women on the culture of the world” he sees around him.

That comment had brought a spirited response on Facebook.

“The White women on Facebook that you are referring to, they are probably the scariest thing these guys are going to have to deal with now,” Mark Dudney said, drawing laughter from the crowd.

Over and over, the townspeople made clear that, if the Christian nationalists think Gainesboro and Jackson County is a place where people all think like them, they don’t know Jackson County.

“These people’s views do not represent our community,” said lifelong resident Nan Coons. “And if they think they are going to come in here and take over and force their views on everybody else, they are going to have a fight on their hands.”

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