The group is based in the U.S. and has a presence in Canada. It has been described as the "most dangerous" extremist group in Canada.[6]
On February 21, 2021, their leadership dissolved the American national group in response to the January 6 United States Capitol attack, condemning the violence.[11] Multiple factions of the group and others adhering to the Three Percenter movement participated in the attack.[12] In June 2021, six men associated with the group were indicted in the U.S. for conspiracy, and Canada declared the group a terrorist entity.[13]
Foundation and membership
The movement has been characterized as part of the broader patriot movement.[6] Founded in 2008, it was given impetus by the election of Barack Obama as president of the United States.[6][14] Members believed that Obama's presidency would lead to increased government interference in the lives of individuals, and particularly stricter gun-control laws.[1] Many members are former or current members of the military, police and other law-enforcement agencies, as well as anti-government groups such as the Oath Keepers.[1]
The movement was co-founded by Michael "Mike" Brian Vanderboegh[15] from Alabama, a member of the Oath Keepers, a group with whom the Three Percenters remain loosely allied and are often compared.[2][16] Vanderboegh claimed to have formerly been a member of Students for a Democratic Society and the Socialist Workers Party, but abandoned left-wing politics and politics in general in 1977 after being introduced to libertarianism.[17] Vanderboegh said the book The Road to Serfdom pushed him to the right. He became a Second Amendment activist and by the 1990s was involved with the militia movement.[18]
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reports that in the mid-1990s, Vanderboegh claimed to be commander of an Alabama militia group, the First Alabama Cavalry Regiment, though he appeared to be its sole member. After the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, Vanderboegh became better known for popularizing anti-government conspiracy theories.[5]
The group's website states that it does not discriminate against anyone; however, in response to Black Lives Matter protests following the 2014 shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, the Three Percenters' Facebook page featured numerous racist comments made by its supporters.[19] In response to events at the 2017 Unite the Right rally, the group issued a statement that they "strongly reject and denounce anyone who calls themselves a patriot or a Three Percenter that has attended or is planning on attending any type of protest or counter protest related to these white supremacist and Nazi groups".[20][21]
Ideology
The group's website states it is "not a militia" and "not anti-government".[19][22] According to the ADL, Three Percenters constitute a significant part of the broader anti-government militia movement, whose ideology they share.[23] Three Percenters believe that ordinary citizens must take a stand against perceived abuses by the U.S. federal government, which they characterize as overstepping its Constitutional limits.[1] Its stated goals include protecting the right to keep and bear arms, and to "push back against tyranny".[6] The group opposes federal involvement in what they consider local affairs and states in its bylaws that county sheriffs are "the supreme law of the land".[19]
Like other American militia movements, Three Percenters believe in the ability of citizen volunteers with ordinary weapons to successfully resist the United States military. They support this belief by claiming that only around 3% of American colonists fought the British during the American Revolution, a claim which underestimates the number of people who resisted British rule,[7] and which does not take into account the concentration of British forces in coastal cities, the similarity of weapons used by American and British forces, and French support for the colonists.[7]
The group's members have a record of involvement in criminal activity,[5] and some have been associated with acts of violence as well as violent threats.[2]
The group's local chapters are structured hierarchically according to its National Bylaws. In addition to political activism, chapters also engage in paramilitary activities such as marksmanship training. Membership requires voting and opposing laws the group sees as unconstitutional. Members take an oath similar to that of the US armed forces. Three Percenters who are also active military members are asked to swear an additional oath promising to disobey certain official orders, such as orders to disarm US citizens.[19] The group's Facebook page mostly features posts supporting gun rights.[22]
Vanderboegh self-published a serial novel online, Absolved, in 2008, which he called "a cautionary tale for the out-of-control gun cops of the ATF". On the movement's website, it claims that it is not a militia group, but rather a "national organization made up of patriotic citizens who love their country, their freedoms, and their liberty."[24][25]
Vanderboegh and his novel Absolved first received wider media attention in 2011, when four suspected militia members in Georgia were arrested for a plan for a biological attack that the novel had supposedly inspired.[26][27] Vanderboegh distanced himself from the alleged plot.[28]
In 2013, Christian Allen Kerodin and associates were working on the construction of a walled compound in Benewah County, Idaho, "for Three Percenters", designed to house 7,000 people following a major disaster, an initiative which local law enforcement has described as a "scam".[29]
In April 2013, a group of Jersey City, New Jersey, police officers were disciplined for wearing patches reading "One of the 3%".[30][31]
Following the 2015 Chattanooga shootings at a strip mall, a military recruitment center and a United States Navy Operational Support Center in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Three Percenters, Oath Keepers, and other militia groups began organizing armed gatherings outside of recruiting centers in several states, with the stated objective of protecting service members, who were barred from carrying weapons while on duty in civilian recruitment centers.[32] In response, the Army Command Operations Center Security Division issued a letter ordering soldiers not to interact with or acknowledge armed civilians outside of recruitment centers, and that "If questioned by these alleged concerned citizens, be polite, professional and terminate the conversation immediately and report the incident to local law enforcement", noting that the issuing officer is "sure the citizens mean well, but we cannot assume this in every case and we do not want to advocate this behavior".[32]
An Idaho Three Percenter group protested refugee resettlement in that state in 2015.[22] In 2016, the "3 Percenters of Idaho" group announced it was sending some of its members in support of the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, allegedly in order to "secure the perimeter" and to prevent a "Waco-style situation".[33] They left several hours later after being told their assistance was not needed.[34] Two days previously, Vanderboegh had described the occupiers as "a collection of fruits and nuts".[35] "What Bundy and this collection of fruits and nuts has done is give the feds the perfect opportunity to advance their agenda to discredit us", he said.[35] Michael "Mike" Brian Vanderboegh died August 10, 2016.[36]
The group provided security for a 2017 event held by Patriot Prayer called "Rally for Trump and Freedom".[37][38] Several Three Percenters were also present and providing security for the Unite the Right rally held in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017; along with members of the Redneck Revolt, a left-leaning militia group.[39][40] After the events at Charlottesville, the group's "National Council" issued a "stand down order", stating, "we will not align ourselves with any type of racist group".[22][39]
In 2017, a 23-year-old Oklahoma man, Jerry Drake Varnell, was arrested on federal charges of plotting a vehicle bomb attack on a bank in downtown Oklahoma City, modeled after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.[41] During a meeting in 2017 with undercover FBI agents, Varnell identified with the Three Percenters movement, saying that he subscribed to "III% ideology" and intended "to start the next revolution."[14] In March 2020, Varnell was found guilty of conspiracy to use an explosive device to damage a building used in interstate commerce and planning to use a weapon of mass destruction against property used in interstate commerce. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison.[42][43]
In 2018, three men were arrested in connection with the bombing of the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minnesota. The bombing was non-lethal. One of the men involved, former sheriff's deputy Michael B. Hari, had connections to the III%s.[44]
In May 2020, during a Second Amendment rally on Memorial Day weekend in Frankfort, Kentucky, Three Percenters and other protesters breached several off-limit barriers to access the front porch of the Governor's Mansion, Governor Andy Beshear's primary residence, and began heckling the Mansion's occupants in response to the Governor's restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Soon afterward, members of the group moved several hundred yards away. They hung an effigy bearing the Governor's face and a sign reading sic semper tyrannis ("thus always to tyrants") from a tree.[49][50] The event drew condemnation from Beshear and from across the political spectrum.[51][52][53] Some state officials had joined the Three Percenters at earlier events, including Kentucky State Representatives Savannah Maddox and Stan Lee, and Kentucky State SenatorJohn Schickel.[54][55] Beshear labeled the group as "radical", that their actions were "aimed at creating fear and terror", and declared that officials who appeared at previous Three Percenter events "cannot fan the flames and then condemn the fire."[56]
Three Percenters Barry Croft and Adam Fox took part in a plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer,[57] one being the second-in-command of the Wisconsin branch.[58][59]
Chris Wisnovski of the Washington State Three Percenters said in 2019 that his organisation "is not affiliated with the national movement and focuses more on charitable works and community preparedness."[61]
Participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack
Supporters of the Three Percenters were present and wore emblematic gear or symbols during the protests and storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Other groups attending included the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.[62] After breaking through police lines or being let through multiple police perimeters, these groups occupied, vandalized,[63][64] breached the Capitol Building and ransacked it for several hours.[65]
At least one man tied to the Three Percenter movement was arrested and charged with involvement of the attack; the man was also reportedly tied to two other extremist groups, the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.[66][67] At the time of the January 6 protests, a truck owned by Illinois State Rep. Chris Miller (the husband of U.S. Representative Mary Miller) was in a restricted area next to the Capitol and bore a Three Percenters decal logo.[68][69] On March 18, 2021, the Illinois House voted to censure Miller for attending the January 6 “Save America” rally that preceded the insurrection at the Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump.[70]
Multiple factions of the Three Percenters were also involved in the attack, including 'DC Brigade', 'Patriot Boys of North Texas',[71] and 'B Squad'. The B Squad and DC Brigade conspired with the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.[72]
Indictments and sentences
Guy Reffitt, a member of the Three Percenters from Wylie, Texas, was present at the January 6 United States Capitol attack wearing body armor and carrying a handgun and plastic handcuffs on the Capitol grounds with the intent to remove House speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell from the premises.[73] He was referred to as the guy that "lit the match" and helped to ignite the crowd into an “unstoppable force”. He was found guilty of five charges and was sentenced to more than seven years in prison.[74][75]
In June 2021, six men who identified as members of the Three Percenters were indicted by a grand jury for "conspiring to obstruct congressional proceedings." The indictment alleges that they coordinated travel to Washington, D.C., with intent for disruption; some were wearing body armor and tactical gear, and at least one carried a knife. They alleged they were acting as security for principals such as Trump friend and advisor Roger Stone.[76][77][78] All have pled not guilty.[79][78] They are:
Alan Hostetter of San Clemente, California, former police Chief of La Habra and yoga instructor, was accused of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding. Hostetter was sentenced to 135 months in prison.[80]
Erik Scott Warner of Menifee, California, is charged with federal offenses that include conspiracy, obstructing an official proceeding, and unlawful entry on restricted buildings or grounds.
Felipe Antonio “Tony” Martinez of Lake Elsinore, California, is charged with federal offenses, including conspiracy, obstructing an official proceeding, and unlawful entry on restricted buildings or grounds.
Derek Kinnison of Lake Elsinore, California, is charged with federal offenses, including conspiracy, obstructing an official proceeding, unlawful entry on restricted buildings or grounds, and tampering with documents or proceedings.
Ronald Mele of Temecula, California, is charged with federal offenses, including conspiracy, obstructing an official proceeding, and unlawful entry on restricted buildings or grounds.
Russell Taylor of Ladera Ranch is charged with federal offenses, including conspiracy, obstructing an official proceeding, and unlawful entry on restricted buildings or grounds. He is also charged with obstructing law enforcement during a civil disorder and unlawful possession of a dangerous weapon on Capitol grounds.[78]
Canada
On June 25, 2021, the group was added to the Canadian Criminal Code's list of terrorist entities to prevent them from accessing financial support.[81][82] One Canadian expert, Maxime Fiset, a former neo-Nazi who works with the Centre for the Prevention of Radicalization Leading to Violence, considers the group the "most dangerous" extremist group in the country. Hate crime expert Barbara Perry said that Islamophobia was the main focus of the Canadian chapters, urged that police investigate the group, and called the group "scary".[6]
American militia movement is a term used by law enforcement and security analysts to refer to a number of private organizations that include paramilitary or similar elements. These groups may refer to themselves as militia, unorganized militia, and constitutional militia. While groups such as the Posse Comitatus existed as early as the 1980s, the movement gained momentum after standoffs with government agents in the early 1990s. By the mid-1990s, such groups were active in all 50 US states, with membership estimated at between 20,000 and 60,000. The movement is most closely associated with the American right-wing.
Oath Keepers is an American far-right anti-government militia whose leaders have been convicted of violently opposing the government of the United States, including the transfer of presidential power as prescribed by the United States constitution. It was incorporated in 2009 by founder Elmer Stewart Rhodes, a lawyer and former paratrooper. In 2023, Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years for seditious conspiracy for his role in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, and another Oath Keepers leader, Kelly Meggs, was sentenced to 12 years for the same crime. Three other members have pleaded guilty to this crime, and four other members have been convicted of it.
The Proud Boys is an exclusively male North American far-right, neo-fascist militant organization that promotes and engages in political violence. The group's leaders have been convicted of violently opposing the United States government, including the constitutionally prescribed transfer of presidential power. It has been called a street gang and was designated as a terrorist group in Canada and New Zealand. The Proud Boys are known for their opposition to left-wing and progressive groups and for their support of former U.S. President Donald Trump. While Proud Boys leadership has denied being a white supremacist organization, the group and some of its members have been connected to white supremacist events, ideologies, and other white power groups throughout its existence.
Jon Eric Ritzheimer is an American political activist. He is affiliated with the 3 Percenters and formerly associated with the Oath Keepers group, and has used social media to declare his opposition to Islam and the Bureau of Land Management.
Ammon Edward Bundy is an American anti-government militant and activist who led the 2016 occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. He is the son of rancher Cliven Bundy, who was the central figure in the 2014 Bundy standoff in Nevada regarding unpaid grazing fees on federally-owned public land.
Antifa is a left-wing anti-fascist and anti-racist political movement in the United States. It consists of a highly decentralized array of autonomous groups that use nonviolent direct action, incivility, or violence to achieve their aims. Antifa political activism includes non-violent methods such as poster and flyer campaigns, mutual aid, speeches, protest marches, and community organizing. Some who identify as antifa also use tactics involving digital activism, doxing, harassment, physical violence, and property damage. Members of antifa aim to combat far-right extremists, including neo-Nazis and white supremacists.
Patriot Prayer is a US far-right group founded by Joey Gibson in 2016 and based in Vancouver, Washington, a suburban city in the Portland metropolitan area. Since 2016, the group has organized several dozen pro-gun, pro-Trump rallies held in cities in the Pacific Northwest and Northern California. Often met with large numbers of counter-protesters, attendees have repeatedly clashed with left-wing groups in the Portland area. Far-right groups, such as the Proud Boys, have attended the rallies organized by Patriot Prayer, as well as white nationalists, sparking controversy and violence.
Demonstrations in support of the presidency of Donald Trump were held in various parts of the United States following Trump's assumption of the office of President on January 20, 2017.
Chris G. Miller is an American politician representing the 110th district in the Illinois House of Representatives. His district, in southeastern Illinois, includes all or parts of Coles, Clark, Crawford, Cumberland, Edgar, and Lawrence counties.
Henry "Enrique" Tarrio is an American convicted seditionist and far-right activist. From 2018 to 2021, he was the chairman of the Proud Boys, a far-right neo-fascist organization that promotes and engages in political violence in the United States. Along with three other Proud Boys leaders, Tarrio was convicted in May 2023 of seditious conspiracy for his role in the 2021 United States Capitol attack. In September 2023, Tarrio was sentenced to 22 years in prison.
The boogaloo movement, whose adherents are often referred to as boogaloo boys or boogaloo bois, is a loosely organized far-right anti-government extremist movement in the United States. It has also been described as a militia. Adherents say they are preparing for, or seek to incite, a second American Civil War or second American Revolution which they call "the boogaloo" or "the boog".
Joseph Randall Biggs is an American veteran, media personality, organizer of the Proud Boys, and convicted felon for his participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
Protests began in multiple cities in the United States following the 2020 United States presidential election between then-President Donald Trump and Democratic Party challenger Vice President Joe Biden, held on November 3, 2020. Biden won the election, receiving 81.3 million votes (51.3%) to Trump's 74.2 million (46.9%) and winning the Electoral College by 306 to 232. Biden's victory became clear on November 7, after the ballots had been tabulated. The Electoral College voted on December 14, in accordance with law, formalizing Biden's victory.
On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. was attacked by a mob of supporters of then-U.S. president Donald Trump, two months after his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. They sought to keep Trump in power by occupying the Capitol and preventing a joint session of Congress counting the Electoral College votes to formalize the victory of President-elect Joe Biden. The attack was ultimately unsuccessful in preventing the certification of the election results. According to the bipartisan House select committee that investigated the incident, the attack was the culmination of a seven-part plan by Trump to overturn the election. Within 36 hours, five people died: one was shot by Capitol Police, another died of a drug overdose, and three died of natural causes, including a police officer. Many people were injured, including 174 police officers. Four officers who responded to the attack died by suicide within seven months. Damage caused by attackers exceeded $2.7 million.
Supporters of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States, held small-scale armed protests and demonstrations at U.S. state capitols in the five days leading up to the inauguration of Joe Biden on January 20, 2021, in opposition to the results of the 2020 United States presidential election, which continued after the failure of the violent January 6 attempt to overturn the election in Trump's favor. Pro-Trump groups failed to stage organized dissent or affect the transition of power in an environment of deterrence and heightened security.
Ethan Nordean, also known as Rufio Panman, is an American far-right political activist, convicted felon and a leader of the Proud Boys, an all-male neo-fascist organization that engages in political violence.
On January 6, 2021, supporters of then President Donald Trump attacked the U.S. Capitol Building, disrupting the joint session of Congress assembled to count electoral votes to formalize Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 United States Presidential Election. By the end of the month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had opened more than 400 case files and issued more than 500 subpoenas and search warrants related to the riot. The FBI also created a website to solicit tips from the public specifically related to the riot and were especially assisted by the crowdsourced sleuthing group Sedition Hunters. By the end of 2021, 725 people had been charged with federal crimes. That number rose to 1,000 by the second anniversary of the attack, and to 1,200 by the third anniversary, at which point over 890 people had been found guilty of federal crimes. These federal cases are handled by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia (D.C.). State cases, of which there are fewer, are handled in the D.C. Superior Court.
Since its foundation in 2016, members of the Proud Boys, a far-right, neo-fascist, and exclusively male organization, have been involved in a number controversial and violent events. This list contains a number of those events, some of which have resulted in criminal charges being filed against participants.
Alan Hostetter is an American convicted criminal, anti-lockdown activist and founder of the American Phoenix Project who took part in the United States Capitol attack on January 6, 2021.
↑ Morlin, Bill (May 16, 2013). "Behind the Walls". Montgomery, Alabama: Southern Poverty Law Center. Archived from the original on January 26, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016. But there's no sign that the latest fantastic plans from antigovernment extremists will ever come to much. Dave Resser, the sheriff of sparsely populated Benewah County, calls the whole thing a 'scam'.
↑ Canada, Public Safety (December 21, 2018). "Currently listed entities". www.publicsafety.gc.ca. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
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