The Latest Tool for Enhanced Militia & Hate Group Expansion
by Curt L. Muller
Technology during our most recent decade appears to have gained such momentum that it is now hard to even conceptualize where the world of technology will bring us during the next twenty or even ten years. With the advancements in computers and telecommunications technology, along with the advent of the Internet into our lives, we have been provided with an opportunity to broaden our intellect and create global ties with others that would otherwise have never been realized. It is now estimated that our global community of Internet patrons will increase to over 200 million information seeking consumers worldwide within the next couple of years (Smith 1).
With the completely staggering number of people gaining access to the Internet, it can be nothing but obvious that problems are certain to occur within this newly formed cyber community. Some of the most immediate problems, as in any rapidly formed community, exist in the theories of who or what should regulate the community and what, if anything, should be regulated within its borders.
In the 1997 decision of Janet Reno, United Stated Attorney General et al. v. American Civil Liberties Union et al. the United States Supreme Court aided the anti-regulation theorists by striking down many provisions of the Community Decency Act (CDA) of 1996. The CDA was passed by Congress and signed into law with the intent of regulating pornography on the Internet in order to limit its availability to children, but clear 1st Amendment concerns were shown to prevail. In their historic decision, the Supreme Court Justices stated that regulation of the Internet must not interfere with the 1st Amendment provision of the United States Constitution and that the CDA contained language that was clearly “overbroad” and “vague” concerning free speech (Reno v. ACLU). The Court stated that, “The CDA, casting a far darker shadow over free speech, threatens to torch a large segment of the Internet community” (Reno v. ACLU). This court ruling was hailed as a victory for the promoters of free speech and the 1st Amendment, but it signaled a clear defeat for those supporting a well-regulated Internet community.
With the opinion of the Supreme Court of the United States now clearly in focus concerning the issue of free speech and its relation to the Internet, let us explore the many ways in which militias and hate groups on the Internet broadcast their controversial messages to current and prospective patrons.
Militias and hate groups have gone to the Internet to promote one very important feature in which they both have in common; the distrust and outright contempt for nearly every form of government, with the federal government being the most mistrusted. They also have a strong, and often straightforward, contempt for all non-white people, Jews, homosexuals, and others that do not agree with their philosophies. The militias and hate groups, along with their respective members, often display a longing to eliminate the existence of such groups that they feel are inferior to their own. In the absence of these groups being eliminated, the extremist groups and their members seek to completely isolate the presence of any group in opposition to their positions and theories.
This motivation of hatred and anger appears to be directed primarily at the government, but an evil intent of white supremacy dwells at the surface of almost all of these groups. This motivation for an all-white Aryan-type nation purged of Jews and others appears to also be concealed behind a blanket of “Christian” faith that has been used to gather members and further the cause of many far-right organizations. The use of “Christian” faith is far from new in the battle against other races, but only as of late have these far-right groups been able to bring the members of other groups into their fold that would have previously been unattainable. These formerly unattainable members are now being sought out via an Internet connection. New members in the fold have come from groups protesting taxes, containing gun owners, Neo-Nazis, and people who fear that the federal government is too large and not serving the people correctly.
In a recently published book entitled Gathering Storm: America’s Militia Threat by Morris Dees and James Corcoran of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a list of shocking numbers concerning the militia movement and its growth was provided. Dees and Corcoran stated that between 1994 and 1996, “there were at least 441 militia units across the country” (Dees and Corcoran 202). In addition to these militia units, the book reported that 368 allied Patriot groups were in operation with a main purpose of promoting and supporting the formation of other militia cells. It was also noted that at least 137 of these listed groups had ties to racist organizations such as the Aryan Nations and the Ku Klux Klan (Dees and Corcoran 202).
Even more shocking are current statistics that show all 50 states presently have some type of organized anti-government groups operating within their borders at a variety of established levels (Tharp and Holstein 1). According to a 1997 report, members of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Klanwatch estimated that 858 militia and patriot organizations, including 380 armed ones, are active and currently recruiting new members (Tharp and Holstein 1).
With the rapid formation and expansion of anti-government groups, primarily focused on hate promotion, there emerges in all parts of the country a clear and obvious means of group promotion that appears to be under way. This facilitator of mass communication, and subsequently hate promotion, has become known as the Internet.
It is now reported that during the last three years the Internet and its use by extremist groups has literally exploded with over 163 web sites currently on-line specializing in the promotion of hate (“163 and Counting” 1). In a 1995 interview, Norman Olson, head of the Michigan Militia, stated the following, “Thank God for high tech, within five minutes, we can talk to 100,000 people across the country” (Holleman and Manor 8A). We know that technological advances since this 1995 interview have been substantial, but how truly substantial the advancements have been for extremists on the Internet may never be fully known. It is known that with as little as a $1,000 computer and an Internet server costing roughly $20 per month anyone can gain entry to the cyber community and promote the theories or philosophies they may hold true.
Now with some knowledge concerning extremist groups and the Internet in hand let us look at a small
sampling of the more popular web sites on the Internet, which support many of the extremists’ beliefs. In March of 1995, an ardent racist and anti-Semite named Don Black took to the Internet and created a web site in which he termed Stormfront (Hoffman 3). The Stormfront web site, still operated by this ex-leader of the Ku Klux Klan, is “the first and longest lasting extremist hate site on the Internet” (Hoffman 3).
Upon accessing Black’s Stormfront web site on the Internet, which can be found under www.stormfront.org, I found that a striking logo was present on the opening page stating “White Pride World Wide.” This racist logo was found on a cross, which was encompassed by a large circle. This highly powerful opening statement is clearly intended to gain the attention of the observer and set the stage for what will be found on this Internet hate site.
Black’s Stormfront web site goes on to state that it is the “White Nationalist Resource Page” on the Internet. This computerized hate site also contains several features such as an Internet E-mail list, a dial-in bulletin board system, chat areas, links to approximately 50 other Internet web sites, along with a large variety of articles and writings concerning the “White Power” movement in America. At the time I checked this web site, it reported that over 1.1 million people had visited the site since it began operation in the spring of 1995.
Ted Kopel of ABC Nightline interviewed Black in January 1998 concerning his long-lasting hate oriented web site and his dedication to the White Nationalist movement (Kopel and Smith). During this interview, Kopel and ABC’s technology correspondent, Gina Smith, asked Black a variety of questions pertaining to his web site and his beliefs. Black was quoted as stating, “that anyone with limited resources can promote their ideas and provide information to potentially 50 million people right now” (Kopel and Smith). Black’s statement concerning the potential ability of virtually anyone to provide any type of information and post this information on the Internet is not exaggerated. “Only ten years ago, the Ku Klux Klan had to dress up in sheets and march on a shopping mall to get an audience. Now they can reach millions of minds through the Internet with an outlay of a few hundred bucks” (Volland 8A).
Another interesting web site in the area of the extremist movement is that of David Duke’s Official Web Site which can be found at http://www.duke.org/default.htm. It has been reported that David Duke uses the Internet by “skillfully exploiting legitimate issues such as affirmative action, illegal immigration and court-ordered busing as a vehicle for white supremacist propaganda” (Hoffman 23). It has also been said that Duke has “probably become America’s best known and most politically active racist” (Hoffman 23).
Duke’s web site contains a biography of himself, links to his writing, links to other extremist groups, an area that allows a viewer to “shop online” for extremist materials, an area called “net radio” and a variety of other areas that promote Duke and his beliefs. I found the “net radio” area on Duke’s web site to be a potentially effective way in which to promote the hate filled racist messages Duke desires to spread. The fact is that literally anyone in the world can access Duke’s hate filled racist thought by just connecting to the Internet and downloading the desired audio material available.
During my search of David Duke’s home page, I located an area considered to be “Duke’s Writing.” Under this heading, I found a variety of online writings by Duke that proclaim his racist beliefs. In this list of hate related papers, I located a paper titled “The Coming White Revolution – Born on the Internet.” Upon closer examination of this paper and its contents, I found some very troubling words and thoughts. In this paper, Duke proclaims that the Internet and its constant use are the answer for the “white” people to spread their message concerning their proclaimed “dominant race.” Duke went on to state that access to the Internet “will mean that if you are impressed by an article on race or one of my radio programs, you can send [it] to hundreds of your friends and acquaintances.” Duke also stated that, “Our people will learn that our very survival is in jeopardy” as the truth of the races has never been fully told.
With no difficulty it can be seen that the above stated article and Duke’s entire web page is for the promotion of the white race. Duke does not try to hide his views or beliefs about what he feels is an ongoing race war.
A thought to consider as we leave the Duke web site is found in the fact that Duke is currently an At-Large Representative in Louisiana and he was elected to the Chairmanship of the Republican Parish Executive Committee, in the largest parish in Louisiana, during 1996. It certainly troubles me that a person in his position is so bent on further dividing the races.
After a good bit of searching using several search engines and finally looking in the links section of David Duke’s Official Web Site, I was able to locate the home page for the neo-Nazi National Alliance (NA) at www.natvan.com. Some background on the neo-Nazi National Alliance is certainly in order prior to investigating this site.
A recent Anti-Defamation League (ADL) report stated that the neo-Nazi National Alliance is currently “the single most dangerous organized hate group in the United States” (Thriving 1). It is further reported by ADL staff members that during the last few years “dozens of violent crimes, including murders, bombings, and robberies, have been traced to NA members or appear to have been inspired by the group’s propaganda” (Thriving 1).
Anti-Semite William L. Pierce, who in 1978 authored The Turner Diaries, currently leads the NA (Thriving 1). Pierce who is a former physics professor with the University of Oregon is a veteran anti-Semite and created the concept of the National Alliance along with Willis Carto (Thriving 2).
The Turner Diaries, a highly controversial pro-hate handbook, tells the story of an upcoming race war that leads to the downfall of the federal government and has been promoted as a “Blueprint,” for white supremacy and a “Handbook for White Victory” (Dees and Corcoran 139-140). This book also describes how a group of white supremacists plant a truck bomb near a federal building somewhere in the United States. The bomb then reportedly leaves more than seven hundred people dead and starts an eight-year race war.
On April 19, 1995, a truck bomb similar to the one described in The Turner Diaries was placed in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. This bomb eventually killed 169 people and injured over 500 (Dees and Corcoran 7).
On the front page of the neo-Nazi National Alliance web site the words “National Vanguard Books” appears just above a statement advertising over 600 books and audio recordings. Upon researching National Vanguard Books, I found that it publishes and distributes the national magazine for the National Alliance. The theme of this on-line bookstore is that of an Aryan, white only, world. An issue of National Vanguard Books once even promoted that Adolf Hitler was the “greatest man of our era” (Hoffman 27). It was no surprise that National Vanguard Books also heavily advertised The Turner Diaries on this web site.
Upon further review of this racially biased web site, I found that the National Alliance has an “Internet radio” site which allows people to access racially motivated material much like that of David Duke’s Official Web Site. It appears, based on the review of these web sites, that the extremists have wasted no time in implementing technological advancements in order to promote their ideas and theories based on race.
It has been reported that the National Alliance “relies on the Internet as a tool for recruitment and for broad, inexpensive dissemination of its hate filled ideas (Thriving 5). With the leadership of Pierce, the “NA maintains one of the most technically sophisticated hate sites on the World Wide Web” (Thrives 5). Sadly enough, it appears that these reports are true.
Another very interesting site is that of the American Patriot Network which can be found on the Internet by accessing www.civil-liberties.com. Upon checking this web address, I found a modified American flag at the top of the opening page along with the following statement, “Dedicated to the U.S. Constitution and the new American Revolution that is sweeping the Union” (APN). These two items of interest are clearly not out of the realm of possibility for this group of anti-government reformists.
Upon closer examination of the American Patriot Network web site, I found with ease a variety of links to the U.S. Common Law Court, National Organization for Non-Enumeration, a message board for patriot minded people to voice their opinions, articles concerning the patriot movement, and a number of links to other anti-government organizations. I was also able to locate a “National Debt Clock” on this web site that provided the viewers with an estimation of the current federal debt. Next to this clock was a web page counter that indicted approximately 115,325 people had visited the site in an unknown time frame.
One of the interesting things I found on this site, the National Alliance site, and the Stormfront web site was that of retail book sales. The promotion of extremist ideas is obviously not limited to the Internet, book sales appear to be alive and well at these web sites and will certainly continue to promote the anti-government movement as they have in the past.
Based on the overall appearance of the American Patriot Network web site and the content found immediately on the home page of this site, it would not be hard for some adult or child traveling the Internet to come across the site and see that it was anti-government in nature. The site is certainly not as overly abrasive as the Stormfront site, but there is little doubt that the potential for such abrasive content exists within.
During my travels into cyberspace, I was also able to locate the home page for the Michigan Militia Corps at http://militia.gen.mi.us. The Michigan Militia Corps, considered by some to be the nations largest unorganized militia, had a web page that appeared to be somewhat watered down compared to Black’s Stormfront and the American Patriot Network’s home page. By this terminology, I mean that the page opened to a calming blue color with the words of the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence clearly present. The page went on to display an area of links to other state’s militias, a chat room, government documents, a feedback area, an area for frequently asked questions, and an area in which a potential militia member could sign up for membership. The counter on this page indicated that it had served some 146,176 people in an undetermined amount of time.
The area of the Michigan Militia Corps’ Web Site that most interested me was the area containing the most frequently asked questions about the militia. Upon reviewing this section of the web page, I learned that the Michigan Militia Corps consists of nine separate regions within Michigan, its members are pro-government, non-racist, against terrorism, had no stance on religion, and seemed to be all around great citizens. If I were an uneducated and uninformed observer of this site and the militia movement, I may have thought that the people in this organization were truly genuine and looking out for everyone’s best interest. As I examined the answers to many of the questions on this site I found deception and concern. The author of the answers concerning a variety of these questions would continually state that the “anti-militia people” attempted to sway the public view of their organization and its members as being radical and military oriented. The author of these answers continued his/her defense of the militia during most of these answers. It appeared that the writer was clearly on the defense, not the offense, concerning the facts and history of the Michigan Militia Corps.
Any review of the Internet hate sites currently available online surely would not be complete without examining the large variety of sites connected to the Ku Klux Klan. Upon searching the web, I found so many sites connected or affiliated with the KKK that I was completely astonished. In order to narrow the focus of this search and try to determine what the Ku Klux Klan was doing on a national level, I visited the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan Corporate Headquarters web site at www.kukluxklan.org.
Upon opening the national KKK web site, I was confronted with a large picture of the KKK’s National Director, Thomas Robb, who is purported to be an ordained Baptist minister. Based on my observations of the opening picture, it appears that Robb was speaking from what appears to be a church pulpit with KKK flags at his side and behind the pulpit when the picture was taken.
A closer look at this web site revealed that the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan on the national level are trying to promote their “White Rights Movement” in the political arena. In an area of this web page that states “What is our goal,” the author of the article proclaims that “the Last Hope for America” is to support the KKK as a political party under the “Knights Party.” This article also states that the national KKK is striving to gain “POLITICAL POWER” by placing “Klansmen and Klanswomen in office all the way from the local school board to the White House!”
One of the many online articles available at this web site was titled “Does the Klan Hate Negroes?” In reading this article, I was informed that the national KKK is based on “LOVE and not hate.” The article goes on to state that many “anti-White extremists” paint the KKK out to be a group that promotes hate. Upon reading further into this article, I found what I feel was the underlying theme of the entire work. The article states that the Negroes “should get down on their knees every morning and thank the White people for everything we have given them.” It also states, “Why is White majority rule in America bad. White people should not be continually forced to bow and scrape before the demands of Negroes, Jews, Asians, Mexicans and other so called minorities.” Any fairly objective viewer could see that this article was clearly racially biased and not based on the concept of “love” that was promoted on much of this web site.
The national KKK web page is not at all uncommon with many of the other hate sites mentioned above when we consider the area of retail sales. This site was found to have a “Gift Shop” marketing T-shirts, hats, flags, videos, books, and other pro-White Power materials. Found on one of the many T-shirts in this “Gift Shop” area was that of a man on a horse with both the man and the horse cloaked in white sheets and white hoods. This T-shirt also held the words, “Knights of the Ku Klux Klan” along with “yesterday today tomorrow forever.” The message on this T-shirt appears to clearly support the theory that the KKK of today will continue to promote the concepts and ideas of the KKK of the past.
This web page also offers the viewer an area in which they can view and print an application form to join the national Ku Klux Klan. On this page of the KKK web site, the prospective member is told that the KKK’s main purpose is to “promote the return of Christian principles to government.” The application fee to become an active member of the Klan was listed at $25 per year, unless the potential applicant was between twelve and seventeen years of age. The application fee for these young and very impressionable members was set at $20.
As anyone can clearly see from the sampling of information found on the above web sites the promotion of extremism appears to be alive and well on the Internet. It should come as no surprise to those now familiar with militias and other extremist groups that their anti-government, pro-white, racist views were not simply formulated over night.
To aid in providing a richer understanding for the rapid growth of extremism on the Internet, I will start by giving detailed background information on three key incidents that have increased the interest in the militia movement and in hate groups. These key incidents consist of the capture of Randy Weaver on Ruby Ridge, the Branch Davidian conflict near Waco, and the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.
In December of 1990 Randy Weaver was indicated by a federal grand jury for selling two illegal sawed-off shotguns to a government informant. Government agents reportedly gave Weaver the option of being prosecuted or working for the government with the intent of infiltrating the white supremacist movement in Idaho. Weaver reportedly declined the government’s offer and subsequently failed to show for his trial. An arrest warrant was then issued for Weaver’s arrest and the US Marshal’s Service was given the responsibility of locating and arresting Weaver. After seventeen months of actively surveying Weaver and his family hoping to catch him off guard and serve this warrant, a deadly confrontation took place between Weaver and government agents on top of Ruby Ridge near Naples, Idaho. Marshals came across the Weaver family dog and killed it in order to remain concealed. Hearing a commotion, Weaver’s son Sam and a friend went to investigate and when all was said and done Sam Weaver and a Marshal were dead. A deadly standoff ensued and eventually Weaver’s unarmed wife was also killed while she held their infant child (Dees and Corcoran 11-29).
With Weaver and his other children still held up on top of their Ruby Ridge hideout, members of the Christian Identity, Aryan Nations, Neo-Nazis, and other local radical groups flocked to his aid. Eventually Weaver gave himself up after government agents promised not to harm him or his remaining family members. Many of the country’s radical right groups had then found an additional reason to resist the government and begin to propagandize their movement with more vigor. In later years, Weaver would be promoted as a martyr for the extremist cause in books and on the Internet (Dees and Corcoran 11-29).
A blaze of emotion and controversy erupted from the incident on Ruby Ridge. The long-term events included a driving force for the militia groups to promote their position that the government was against the people and that government agents would kill unarmed women and children if necessary.
With the spark of Ruby Ridge and the fuel being the underlying tension and build up of militia presence in the United Stated it was only a matter of time before the storm rolled in and the militias had more proclaimed martyrs to praise.
Some six months after the incident at Ruby Ridge the storm could be seen more clearly on the horizon as the Branch Davidian conflict began to heat up near Waco, Texas. A failed attempt to take the Branch Davidian compound left four federal agents and six Branch Davidians dead. On April 19, 1993, after fifty-one days of negotiating, a second attempt to take the compound was made by federal agents. This failed attempt to take the compound prompted a huge fire, which eventually cost seventy-five Branch Davidians their lives (Dees and Corcoran 72-74).
Members of a variety of white supremacist groups and militias were present during most of the siege on the Branch Davidian compound and eventually claimed that government agents set fire to the compound in an effort to murder those present. Interestingly enough, a young man by the name of Timothy McVeigh was also present in the crowd of spectators near Waco during this event (Dees and Corcoran 70-74).
As pointed out earlier in this report, a truck bomb similar to the one described in The Turner Diaries was placed in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on April 19, 1995. This bomb eventually killed 169 people and injured over 500 (Dees and Corcoran 7). Timothy McVeigh was later convicted for manufacturing and placing this bomb in its deadly location.
In considering the information uncovered during my research on the Internet in relation to the online extremist information currently available to the public, I also began to consider the law enforcement aspects of the Internet in relation to the extremist movement.
In a July 1997 issue of a popular law enforcement online magazine, law enforcement officers were informed that, “A storehouse of information on extremist groups and their philosophy, their tactics and their allies is available through hundreds of sophisticated, easily accessible Web sites and Internet News groups” (Calibre Press 184). This online issue went on to state that law enforcement officers on all levels could become more educated concerning the activities of extremist groups if they performed some research on the Internet. This online newsletter also informed the viewers that “free-of-charge” Internet Newsgroups were also offered online to promote the ideas and concepts of the extremist movement. A great deal of militia and extremist group information could be obtained by observing what the extremist movement members posted during newsgroup discussions.
The newsgroups that were listed in this issue are as follows:
Misc.activism.militia
Alt.conspiracy
Alt.sovereignty
Talk.politics.guns
Alt.survivalism
Law enforcement officers must also be aware that members of the extremist movement “try to infiltrate law enforcement through reserve forces, search and rescue forces and so on, to gather intelligence. They are putting a lot of information about law enforcement on the Internet” (Calibre Press 230). It was also reported that in “some cases, law enforcement documents issued just to officers only have shown up on their (extremist’s) Web sites within 3 days” (Calibre Press 230).
It appears very lucid from my search of the Internet that the information age is truly taking shape. The part of this age that concerns me the most is its potential to spread ideas in promotion of hate and extremism. The youth of the world along with those not educated in the area of extremists may fall prey to the words and thoughts of those hell-bent on using the Internet to promote their controversial ideas. Only time will tell if this new tool being used by militias and other hate groups will be the connection they so desire with the masses.
Works Cited
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Volland, Victor. “Group Warns of Hate on the Internet.” St. Louis Post-Dispatch
22 Oct. 1997: 8A.