The Patriot Movement is a loose collection of independent minarchist social movements in the United States beginning in the latter half of the 20th century. It centers on a view that individual liberties are in jeopardy due to unconstitutional actions taken by elected government officials, appointed bureaucrats, and some special interest groups outside of government, to illegally accumulate power.[1]
The Patriot Movement includes diverse conservative and libertarian causes addressing issues such as national sovereignty, State sovereignty, the United States Constitution, individual liberties including the Bill of Rights, and American exceptionalism. The movement's iconography centers on themes relating to the American Revolution, such as the colonial Minuteman, the 13-star "Old Glory" flag, Uncle Sam, and the painting titled "The Spirit of '76". Media outlets have associated the patriot movement with the right-wing militia movement.[2][3][4]
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While the patriot movement is quite diverse, it is united in its constitutionalist philosophy. The movement is particularly outspoken regarding the 14th amendment and 2nd amendment.[5] As a result, some members refuse to pay their income taxes,[5] and some groups operate their own common-law legal system.[6] Patriot movement members are often concerned about the rise of a New World Order,[2][5] sometimes coming in the form of a United Nations takeover.[7]
In addition, the patriot movement has been associated with the following views:
Elements of the patriot movement have expressed support for various conspiracy theories:
The reformist wing of the patriot movement is considered to have begun in 1958 with the formation of the John Birch Society and opposition to communism, the United Nations and the civil rights movement.[10][11] An insurgent wing has been traced in origins to the Liberty Lobby active in the 1950s with promotion of themes of White supremacy and antisemitism.[12] The patriot movement was highly active in the mid-1990s, but saw decline into the 2000s.[13][14]
In the early 1990s, the patriot movement saw a surge of growth spurred by the confrontations at Ruby Ridge and Waco.[2][3] The 1995 Oklahoma City bombing was carried out by two patriot movement members, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols.[8][15] During the 1990s the movement organized using "gun shows and the Internet".[6] At its peak the movement contained around 800 separate groups,[8] but in the later 1990s the movement declined.[13][14]
In March 2009 Stewart Rhodes in Lexington, Massachusetts founded organization "The Oath Keepers" which advocates that its members (current and former U.S. military, and law enforcement) uphold their oaths of service, and pledging to protect the U.S. Constitution. The Oath Keepers as a group have grown to include chapters in many states across America.[16]
In 2009 the Southern Poverty Law Center expressed concern about a resurgent patriot movement,[17][18] and the United States Department of Homeland Security issued a report warning of heightened "Rightwing Extremism".[19][20] The growth has been attributed to "non-white immigration and ... the economic meltdown and the climb to power of an African American president."[21] An extremist member of the patriot movement carried out the 2009 anti-abortion murder of George Tiller,[22][23] and some extremists within the movement also have expressed support for Joseph Stack's 2010 plane crash into an IRS office.[24]
Various Patriot Movement aligned groups have frequently been criticized as racist, extremist, anti-semitic and violent by groups such as the Southern Poverty Law Center, Anti-Defamation League, and the FBI.
Author John Avlon, a self-described political centrist, has coined the term "Hatriot" (a pun on hate) as an alternative designation, since he and many Americans do not believe the Patriot movement is truly patriotic, but is instead rooted in hate and extremism:
"When love of country is mixed with fear of the government and hate for the president, that's when you become a Hatriot." [25]