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In addition to Rhodes, ten other Oath Keepers nine of whom were already facing conspiracy charges relating to the attack were charged with seditious conspiracy, and these individuals are the first to face seditious conspiracy charges for conduct arising from the January 6 insurrection. Despite this clear evidence of involvement, themilitia movementhas by and large not reckoned with the role their conspiratorial beliefs and violent rhetoric played in the leadup to the insurrection. A Washington, DC, jury on Tuesday convicted Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes and associate Kelly Meggs of seditious conspiracy for their role around the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. The Oath Keepers are a large but loosely organized collection of right-wing anti-government extremists who are part of the. in 2014, Oath Keepers garnered attention from the media for their involvement in the unrest that erupted in Ferguson, Missouri after a St. Louis County grand jury decided not to indict police . While criticizing the occupation, the Oath Keepers did take part in a coalition of militias in the Pacific Northwest called the Pacific Patriots Network, which served as a buffer between the occupiers and government forces. The center. And Im worried about the safety of the people up there. It focuses on a concern with moral and social values which proponents of the ideology see as degraded in modern society by liberalism. Previously, Ritzheimer participated in the2014 Bundy standoff in Bunkerville. Oath Keepers is an essential contribution to our understanding of the growing appeal and violent potential of ever-evolving forms of domestic extremism. On June 21, 2020, Stewart Rhodes wrote in a now-deleted tweet that Black Lives Matter is a communist front organization with the central goal of the destruction of the United States and repeatedly refers to the movement as a communist insurrection. Mack is a founding member on the Oath Keepers board of directors. Oath Keepers, along with many of thesame right-wing personalitiesat these events, took part in the Capitol insurrection weeks later. Extremists Engage in Political Violence During Pro-Trump Rallies, Extremists Face Arrests, Uncertain Future Following January 6 Insurrection, reference militiarelated conspiracy theories. Bay County, Florida, October 2018: A group identifying themselves as Oath Keepers were arrested after violating curfew and for openly carrying a firearm. The Oath Keepers have become indelibly tied to the events of Jan. 6, 2021, and their leader, Stewart Rhodes, was convicted of seditious conspiracy related to that day. Before 2019, the Oath Keepers Twitter platform used the term deep state only once, but since then the term has been used at least 79 times on the platform, which suggests that the organization finds this rhetoric to be a useful tactic to appeal to the large pool of right-wing actors who believe in the conspiracy. The Second Amendment Under Assault: Oath Keepers call for the nullification of all gun laws and view any gun control measures as schemes designed to dismantle the Second Amendment. The Oath Keepers did not have 25,000 soldiers at the ready. What differentiates the Oath Keepers from other antigovernment extremist groups is that the Oath Keepers explicitly focus on recruiting current and former military members, police officers and first responders (although they accept anyone as members). The BLM was stunned by this response, as they had made it known they had no plans of taking action until the appeal had been decided. . He subsequently pleaded guilty in August 2016 to a felony charge of federal conspiracy to impede federal workers for his prominent role in the 2016 armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. Rhodes has said that the purpose of the Second Amendment is to preserve the ability of the people, who are the militia, to provide for their own security and to preserve the military capacity of the American people to resist tyranny and violations of their rights by oath breakers within government. Another Oath Keeper theory claims the Veterans Administration is busily deeming veterans mentally unfit in order to legally disarm Americans trained to fight, thereby paving the way for a foreign (New World Order) takeover. This includes attendance at racially charged events, with NBC News reporting a number of armed Oath Keepers turned up at the 2015 protests in Ferguson, Missouri. Countering Black Lives Matter: Some of the Oath Keepers most notable mobilizations have occurred in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. The group advocates for Americans to prepare for inevitable conflict with the government by stockpiling goods and supplies, engaging in paramilitary training and working to create small, self-reliant community networks. The miners received anNotice of Noncomplianceand were ordered to stop their mining activities, submit the appropriate paperwork and fees for their operations, or file an appeal. Most relate to their recruitment and promotional efforts. Stewart Rhodes, founder of Oath Keepers, and 10 alleged accomplices charged with seditious conspiracy stemming from January 6 Capitol riot . WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia has returned an indictment, which was unsealed today, charging a member of the Oath Keepers with conspiracy and other charges for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. We will NOT obey orders to disarm the American people. The Southern Poverty Law Center further describes the Oath Keepers as "often confrontational," noting that they have been involved in a number of armed standoffs involving the government. In many ways, Jan. 6, 2021, was the day that Stewart Rhodes had been waiting for his whole life. The trial of Oath Keepers leader Stewart . Massachusetts, in 2009. In January 2019, Fairfield had an additional four years added to his sentence after officials determined that he interfered with another investigation. At the same time, Oath Keepers have also organized or participated in armed confrontations with law enforcement in different parts of the country, such as the Bundy Ranch standoff in Nevada in 2014. Examples of these orders include the government imposing martial law, confiscating citizens guns and forcing Americans into concentration camps. "Back in 2014, they appeared to be a pretty solid conservative group, I can't speak to them now," he said. In December 2018, the Oath Keepers website advertised acall to actionfor a Border Operation, encouraging engagement in paramilitary activity to prevent the invasion of illegals into the country and to provide security for border ranches and families, presumably against immigrants, another exaggerated and unsupported claim propagated by the group. The group openly and intentionally recruits these individuals to their ranks, mostly in an effort to capitalize on the skills and knowledge these individuals acquired during their time of service. Oath Keepers responded and were stationed in Granbury, Texas, outside Lift the Bar gym, supposedly to protect the owner from arrest for violating COVID-19 orders. Washington CNN Prosecutors on Monday presented opening arguments in a second trial against members of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group accused of joining a monthslong plot to keep Joe. But we will spot, document, and reportanyapparent attempt at vote fraud or voter intimidation as is our duty.. All told, at least 25 Oath Keepers are facing various charges in connection with their actions on January 6, 2021. In 2015, Rhodes said they would protect notorious Kentucky clerk Kim Davis from arrest. He would go on to start the Oath Keepers group in 2009 in Lexington, Massachusetts the site of the first battle of the American Revolutionary War. We will NOT obey orders to conduct warrantless searches of the American people. SPLC is a nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization (EIN: 63-0598743), Local Policing and Immigration Enforcement, Request for Legal Assistance Economic Justice, Stewart Rhodes, during an interview on Infowars The Alex Jones Show, Jan. 20, 2021, Stewart Rhodes, posted on the Oath Keepers website, Jan. 4, 2021, Stewart Rhodes, Open Letter to President Trump: You Must Use Insurrection Act to Stop the Steal and Defeat the Coup, on the Oath Keepers website, Dec. 14, 2020, Stewart Rhodes, during an interview on Infowars The Alex Jones Show, Oct. 27, 2020, Stewart Rhodes, Oath Keepers Call to Action: Border Operation, on the Oath Keepers website, Dec. 4, 2018, Stewart Rhodes, in an Oath Keepers press release following the mass murder of 49 people at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 13, 2016, Stewart Rhodes, at an event in Tempe, Arizona, May 5, 2015, Stewart Rhodes, My Personal Pledge of Resistance Against Any Attempt to Disarm Us by Means of an Assault Weapons Ban, on the Oath Keepers website, Dec. 19, 2012, providing security without first obtaining a license., David Smith, regional spokesman for the Forest Service. The Oath Keepers is a far-right citizen militia and anti-government group that sprang into existence as the Tea Party Movement powered up its reform-blocking machine and the racist birther. FILE - Stewart Rhodes, founder of the citizen militia group known as the Oath Keepers speaks during a rally outside the White House in Washington, on June 25, 2017. The Oath Keepers say that their mission is to defend the . Rhodes was a 2004 graduate of Yale Law School, and former classmates later recalled that he had demonstrated a particular interest in the Second Amendment. Huff was given a four-year prison sentence. In 2015, armed Oath Keepers along with various individuals from the broader Patriot movement traveled to mines in Montana and Oregon during regulation compliance disputes related to mining rights versus surface rights in the hopes that their presence would intimidate federal officials from taking action. Rhodes wasdisbarredafter practicing law in Arizona without a license by writing letters threatening a lawsuit on behalf of the ejected residents. Antifa is a loose collection of groups, networks and individuals who believe in active, sometimes aggressive opposition to far right-wing movements. At the White Hope mine in Lincoln, Montana, the U.S. Forest Service took issue with an unauthorized shed and surface disturbances related to the cutting of firewood. As Rhodes tweeted in early March 2020, Its critical that towns and counties do all they can with their own resources now to prepare. Its not the people who are there Im worried about its the ones from the fringe who want to join in. Stewart Rhodes has spoken at anti-lockdown protests in Texas, New York and California. The Oath Keepers are a large but loosely organized collection of right-wing anti-government extremists who are part of the militia movement, which believes that the federal government has been coopted by a shadowy conspiracy that is trying to strip American citizens of their rights. The number of active duty police and military personnel who have publicly admitted to being Oath Keepers is very small; the number of closeted members may be larger. The Oath Keepers are part of the militia movement, a subsection of the broader antigovernment Patriot movement which consists of sovereign citizens and tax protesters, among others that believes the federal government has been coopted by a shadowy conspiracy that is trying to strip Americans of their rights. In 2015, an Oregon chapter of the Oath Keepers acted in support of Rick Barclay and George Backes, two Oregon gold miners whose operations the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) alleged were in violation of government regulations. Later in 2014, members of the Oath Keepers showed up in Ferguson, Missouri, during the unrest that followed the death of Michael Brown, a Black man, by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson. The Oath Keepers was officially launched with a rally in Lexington, Massachusetts, on Apr. While the most notable of these remains the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, they reportedly have a long history of involving themselves in vigilante justice. He formally launched the Oath Keepers in Lexington, Massachusetts, on April 19, 2009, where the first shot in the American Revolution was fired. The groups fears around government overreach are most clearly exemplified in its list of 10 Orders We Will Not Obey a compendium of perceived but unrealized threats from the government. He was charged with conspiracy to impede officers of the U.S. from discharging their duties via force, intimidation or threat. Though the Oath Keepers will accept anyone as members, what differentiates them from other anti-government extremist groups is their explicit focus on recruiting current and former military, law enforcement and first responder personnel. This estimated size would still make the Oath Keepers larger than any single traditional militia group. The extremist group is accused of playing a key role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Fish and Wildlife celebrates reintroduction of rare West Virginia fish that 'looks like a candy cane'. The Oath Keepers wereparticularly active in 2020, participating in various anti-lockdown protests, providing vigilante-style security for local communities and businesses during the Black Lives Matter protests that spread in the wake of the killing of George Floyd, and warning about a potential takeover by the Marxist left during the 2020 election. The Oath Keepers have become indelibly tied to the events of Jan. 6, 2021, and their leader, . They even ventured into QAnon territory, adopting and circulating QAnon-related conspiracies on their website. The Anti-Defamation League Center on Extremism pored over more than 38,000 names on leaked Oath Keepers membership lists and identified more than 370 people it believes currently work in law. Despite this, the Bundys and a number of other heavily armed militants decided to break away from a pro-Hammond rally in Oregon and occupy the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, a famous birding location. Do NOT concede, and do NOT wait until January 20, 2021. 19, 2009, in the wake of the country electing Barack Obama as its first Black president. This includes conspiracy theories involving the confiscation of Americans' guns and rounding people up into concentration camps. We will NOT obey orders to detain American citizens as unlawful enemy combatants or to subject them to military tribunal. This is a matter of national security and also a matter of national survival. Rhodes formally launched the Oath. The group is rooted in conspiracy theories, including the belief that the federal. The Anti-Defamation League Center on Extremism received more than. In December 2015, Schuyler Barbeau, a member of the Oath Keepers and participant in the 2014 Bunkerville standoff aspart of the security teamassigned to protect Cliven Bundy, was arrested on charges of possessing an unregistered firearm related to allegedly altering an AR-15s barrel, allowing the weapon to operate as a fullyautomatic machine gun. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. The Oath Keepers have had more success in recruiting former military personnel, which is a much larger pool to draw from; many Oath Keepers speak of past military service. This stance is not a new one for the Oath Keepers. Similarly, the owners of Sugar Pine Mine in Josephine County, Oregon, were in a dispute with the Bureau of Land Management over unauthorized surface structures. UPDATE: OnJanuary 13, 2022,federal authorities arrestedOath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes oncharges ofseditious conspiracyfor his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Heavily armed members of the Oath Keepers were seen on rooftops in what they said was an effort to protect businesses from rioters. The charges followed a March 2011 vehicle stop by the Worcester Police Department due to an invalid license plate and driving with excessive speed. Maybe you better read that Oath again it said protect the constitution from all enemies foreign and or heres the part you better read slowly. We call on you to form up incognito intelligence gathering and crime spotting teams, Rhodes said. On July 4, 2013,Adam Kokesh, an Oath Keeper who had promoted the group on his Internet talk show, loaded a shotgun in D.C.s Freedom Plaza in protest of the citys gun laws. In his book Oath Keepers: Patriotism and the Edge of Violence in a Right-Wing Antigovernment Group, Sam Jackson says this creates in an inherent contradiction for the group the police and military organizations from which their members come are some of the same organizations the group likely would have to attack in order to carry out its self-proclaimed mission against the government. The pro-gun group was named after the oath of service that police, military. Ultimately, there was no standoff. With help from Infowars host Alex Jones, the group increasingly promoted far-right conspiracies as the 2020 election approached. The FBI arrested the leader of the hard-right Oath Keepers group in Texas after prosecutors charged him and 10 . Amplifying Fears of the Deep State: Though the Oath Keepers espouse an anti-government ideology, the Oath Keepers largely support President Trump and his administration. The group has also recruited from among people already involved in the anti-government extremist movement. We will NOT obey any order to force American citizens into any form of detention camps under any pretext. Most of this is derived from the Oath Keepers' list of 10 laws or mandates titled, "Declaration Of Orders We Will Not Obey." Republican voters are flocking to Ron DeSantis but why? organization adopted anti-lockdown rhetoric. The groups response to the 2020 outbreak of the coronavirus is discussed in more detail below; however, it is worth noting that the national organization initially shared material on its website and Twitter account calling for increased state government involvement in stemming the viruss spread before shifting its messaging and labelling the virus as a weapon used by leftists to attack President Trump and by the government to strip away Americans rights. According to the local Oath Keepers chapter,at least 700 individuals responded, setting up perimeter security teams, providing armed escorts for outside members of the press and blocking off the entrance road to the mine. In return, prosecutors agreed not to reimpose the other three charges, which had been recently dropped, against Irish. WASHINGTON The founder of a right-wing group whose members have been charged with seditious conspiracy in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol spent about six . 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