Mumford & Sons band member Winston Marshall will be taking a break from the band after being criticised online for endorsing a book from right-wing agitator Andy Ngo.
Earlier this week, Marshall praised Ngo’s recently released book, Unmasked, calling it “important” and praising him as a “brave man”.
In the book, which promises to delve “inside ANTIFA’s radical plan to destroy democracy”, Ngo calls the Proud Boys a “pro-Trump fraternity” while referring to left-wing activists as a “marauding gang” whose mission is to “destroy the nation-state, America in particular”.
After receiving backlash, Marshall has apologised for endorsing Ngo’s book, acknowledging how it could be perceived as “approvals of hateful, divisive behaviour”.
“Over the past few days I have come to better understand the pain caused by the book I endorsed. I have offended not only a lot of people I don’t know, but also those closest to me, including my bandmates and for that I am truly sorry,” Winston said on social media.
“As a result of my actions I am taking time away from the band to examine my blindspots. For now, please know that I realise how my endorsements have the potential to be viewed as approvals of hateful, divisive behaviour. I apologise, as this was not at all my intention.”
— Winston Marshall (@MrWinMarshall) March 10, 2021
In the past, Ngo’s credibility has been brought into question, with the Columbia Journalism Review describing him as a “discredited provocateur” in 2019. Elsewhere, Buzzfeed News has described Ngo as “willing to make himself the story and to stream himself doing it. He proceeds from a worldview and seeks to confirm it, without asking to what degree his coverage becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy”.