In attempt to sow fear, Russian trolls paid for self-defense classes for African Americans

A group linked to the Russian troll farm behind thousands of fake Facebook ads paid personal trainers in New York, Florida, and other parts of the United States to run self-defense classes for African Americans in an apparent attempt to stoke fear and gather contact details of Americans potentially susceptible to their propaganda.

The group appears to have been set up in January 2017, and it ran events before stopping at some point this year, evidence that Russia's attempts to use social media to meddle in American affairs have extended far beyond the 2016 presidential election.
The events, which appear to have been designed to suggest a connection to the Black Lives Matter movement, were -- unbeknownst to the trainers who led them -- likely conceived by the Russian government-linked Internet Research Agency.


Black Fist reached out to Omowale Adewale, a martial arts instructor Brooklyn, in January 2017.
Adewale said he ran more than a dozen events for Black Fist between January and May, never suspecting that the Russian group was behind them.

The group first contacted him on Instagram, he said, and he eventually spoke by phone to a man who introduced himself as "Taylor."
Over the course of five months, Adewale would speak to "Taylor" numerous times by phone. Adewale said the man asked him to collect the names and contact details of people attending the events. Adewale said he doesn't believe he handed over anyone's contact details.Adewale said "Taylor" asked for photos and videos from the events, he assumed to prove they were taking place. Adewale provided the material and the group used it on its Facebook and Instagram pages for further promotion, he said.

http://money.cnn.com/2017/10/18/media/black-fist-russia-self-defense-classes/index.html?sr=twCNN101817black-fist-russia-self-defense-classes0540PMStory


This is just insane. Who would have even suspected Russians would go to this length back then?