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Militia Movement

DHS defines militia extremists as groups or individuals who facilitate or engage in acts of violence directed at federal, state, or local government officials or infrastructure in response to their belief that the government deliberately is stripping Americans of their freedoms and is attempting to establish a totalitarian regime. These individuals consequently oppose many federal and state authorities’ laws and regulations (particularly those related to firearms ownership), and often belong to armed paramilitary groups. They often conduct paramilitary training designed to violently resist perceived government oppression or to violently overthrow the US Government.

The militia movement was the focus of national scrutiny since a bomb exploded at the Oklahoma City federal building in April 1995, killing over 100 people and injuring hundreds of others. The evidence pointed toward 27­ year­ old Timothy McVeigh, an Army veteran and Pendleton, NY native who had a history of involvement with the militia groups.

There were at least 224 militia groups operating in 39 states, according to a report by Klanwatch, an affiliate of the Southern Poverty Law Center. They are united in their hatred of federal regulatory and taxation policies. Some of them are armed and want to overthrow the federal government by force. Others want more power to be given to local officials.

John Trochmann, founder of the Militia of Montana, told a congressional panel that the militias were nothing more "than a giant neighborhood watch." But Michael Reynolds, the head of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Militia Task Force, says many militia members seek to revive the states­ rights arguments settled by the Civil War. Others have ties to the Ku Klux Klan, the neo­ Nazis and other white supremacist groups. Reynolds calls them spewers of " fear and hatred."

The militia movement is a group of people who want to fight the movement of the federal government away from its constitutional foundations," argues M. Samuel Sherwood, national director of the U.S. Militia Association. "The groups fight for different things in different parts of the country," Sherwood adds. " In Idaho, the federal government administers more than half of the state's land, through its control of national parks, military bases and other apparatus. The land available for private ownership is very expensive. This makes life more difficult in the state. There is less property tax money available for state revenue. This contributes to the poor quality of the Idaho schools."

Sherwood says only one (1) percent of militia members are white supremacists. In his view, the federal government oppresses everyone. Whatever reforms the militia movement is able to carry out must take into account the diversity of U.S. society. Racism only allows the federal government to engage in the practice of " divide and conquer," Sherwood adds. "There are 2,000 men enrolled in militia groups in Idaho alone. And there will be more incidents like the Oklahoma City bombing unless some changes are made."

"Many of the people in militias are evangelical Christians," states Phillip Litton, a member of the California Republican Assembly. " The state is ordained by God," Litton continues. " It is our responsibility to oppose the state when it violates divine laws from above. The federal government is confiscating people's wealth through income tax. It is getting hard for the lower middle class to pay taxes. The government is also violating the civil rights of its citizens. It violates the rights of Randy Weaver. If it violated his rights, it will violate the rights of all of us. But violence should only be used as a last resort."

Weaver was a white supremacist who barricaded himself inside his Naples, Idaho home in August 1992 and fought an eight­ day series of gun battles with federal law enforcement officials trying to arrest him. His wife, son and a federal marshal were killed in the standoff. Weaver had been a fugitive sought on gun­ peddling charges. He was later exonerated by a jury from conspiracy charges and has become a hero to supporters of anti­ government, right­ wing policies.

"After the Waco and Randy Weaver incidents, I began to realize that something was wrong," states militia leader John Mills. " That was when I decided to form the Alameda County Militia six or seven months ago. Clinton and his people have been running cocaine through Arkansas. His wife has already been indicted. The government is importing drugs into the inner city."

The concept of the independently operating militia unit was conceived from a 1992 gathering of white supremacists in Estes Park, Colorado, the Klanwatch report continues. Stirred by Weaver incident, they hashed out the idea that small, leaderless groups could some day provoke a revolt against the federal government by engaging in random acts of violence. The most extreme, racist militias evolved out of this meeting, the report adds.

Most militia members, however, are not white supremacists. Their connections to the radical right are often more subtle. They put forward reasonable sounding ideas like distributing federal power to local authorities. They may not even be aware that such concepts have been historically used to oppress minorities, states Chip Berlet, an analyst with Political Research Associates.

But opponents of the militia movement say it is anything but the benign image put forth by its proponents. Forty­five (45) of the nation's 224 militia groups have ties with white supremacist groups, according to a Klanwatch report. Many of them stockpile weapons and ammunition and conduct military­ style field exercises. Some sell propaganda and military manuals giving instructions on how to conduct guerrilla warfare, the Klanwatch report adds. The vast majority of the members of militia groups are white males.

There were perhaps 100,000 members of militia groups in the country, 25,000 of whom are hard­ core white supremacists, according to the Center for Democratic Renewal, an Atlanta­ based watchdog group that monitors right­ wing extremist activities.