A group called Patriot Front was intercepted in a U-Haul on their way to a Pride event in Idaho on Saturday. Their names and photos have been released by the Kootenai Sheriff's Office.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) classifies the group as a white supremacist group "whose members maintain their ancestors conquered America and bequeathed it to them, and no one else". The ADL also cites that roughly 80% of all white supremacist propaganda in the United States is produced by the Patriot Front.
The group was founded in Texas by Thomas Ryan Rousseau after it split from Vanguard America in 2017 during infighting about group leadership. They were arrested with smoke grenades, riot gear and paperwork that the police described as "an operations plan". The plans were busted after a "concerned citizen" called police with a tip that a "little army" was headed toward the Pride event. The group is known for flash rioting at events for marginalized communities. Creating photo opportunities in their key uniform of a balaclava, khakis and blue shirts, then uploading the flash content to the internet as a photo op. The video of the most recent arrest in Idaho can be found on Twitter.
The group, in addition to pamphlets, uses social media and websites, vandalizes with graffiti, conducts banner drops and reprograms traffic signs. They have also been known, in addition to racist propaganda, to sticker LGBTS community centers and now to pursue rioting at Pride events in order to spread their ideology and gain visibility.
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