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5th April 2024
02:46pm BST
The former white supremacist who was the main inspiration behind Ed Norton's character in American History X has discovered that he has Jewish heritage following a DNA test.
Frank Meeink was the leader of a violent neo-Nazi gang during the 1990s who fully believed in inciting a race war.
Now aged 48, Meeink is an observant Jew who prays three times daily while wearing a tefillin, goes to Torah study classes, attends the Synagogue, and keeps kosher.
Meeink made the discovery that he was Jewish after a friend commented that he "looked Jewish", reports the Jewish Chronicle.
Speaking to the New York Post he said: “I just wanted to see if it was true, I wanted to see if it was real.”
He added that finding out he was Jewish was a "gift from God".
More specifically Meeink found out that he was 2.4 per cent Ashkenazi Jewish from his mother's maternal great, great-grandmother.
Meeink claims that finding out he was Jewish helped him through his darkest days following the death of his son Josh when he was just 19, the breakdown of his marriage, and the death of his mother from a fentanyl overdose.
He added: "The thing I loved about Judaism is that it says 'Love the Lord your God' and that you don't need to force your God on nobody else. I want to try and build this relationship with God."
Meeink grew up in an Irish-Catholic suburn of South Philadelphia.
His family, who were heavy alcohol and drug users, could be abusive.
Growing up he was surrounded by black families and claims he felt like an outcast and when he was introduced to neo-Nazism he signed right up claiming that it 'justified all of my fears'.
When he was 17, Meeink was arrested following the kidnapping of a man and the near murder of another.
In prison serving a three year sentence, Meeink befriended black inmates and began to turn his life around seeing the error of his ways.
He hopes in the future to continue speaking out about hate and injustice and is hopeful that there will be a sequel to American History X showcasing his full turnaround.
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