Introduction
The proud boys group was founded by an extremist Gavin McInnes of hard-rightist beliefs in 2016, basing the group in New York. After successfully founding the group, he published Taki’s articles that previously supported the core of liberalism movements under the editorial management of Richard Spencer, a renowned advocate of white supremacy (Hummel, 2022). In the publication, Gavin cited that group formation was necessary since modern society inhibited males from enjoying the western culture. Hence, the group was formed to promote western chauvinistic practices. However, ideally, the group is a criminal organization that employs radicalization methods to violence and often compels its sympathizers to resist modern conservatism (Hummel, 2022). The group has also been linked to incorporate the teachings of Marxism and Communists practices in the place of the modern American ideological foundations.
It has also been accused of having links to white supremacist groups like Rise Above and Identity Europa and terror gangs subscribing to the Nazi’s theory, such as the Atomwalfen (Hummel, 2022). The political atmosphere at the time of forging this group contributed to the group’s aggressive criminal activities that they have carried out. They have constantly been involved in major street fighting movements that they view have been polarizing American society and degrading traditional western culture. They have been on record in opposing such movements as the LGBTQ, Black Lives Matter and immigration to the States (Hummel, 2022). By the end of December, the group was reported to have been involved in major politically affiliated crimes in the US, including the Capitol breach, with their membership widespread across American states (Jensen & Kane, 2022). This paper explains the motives, planning, major events, and reactions from the media and the Criminal Justice department on the said group as explained below.
Motivations
The political motive in favour of MAGA
One of the most notable motives is the group’s participation in the capitol breach on January 6 after Trump’s election loss. The group was heavily motivated by Trump’s ideological conservative beliefs and his comments about the group being ready for political debates. They were often seen toned in red hats bearing president Trump’s theme of Making America Great Again(MAGA) in their street action activities (Reneau et al., 2022). In this regard of participating in the MAGA movement, the group was mobilized behind the cry of “Stop the Steal”, which became the core of their quest. The nation witnessed the hugest skirmishes relating to the Proud Boys group since its formation during this period, with hundreds of its members flocking to Washington, DC, on December 12, 2020, in demos against the presidential election (Hummel, 2022). During these demonstrations, they sought to pick fights with the Antifa movement as they hovered around chanting and drinking for obvious reasons to instigate conflicts with rival groups, an event that left four stabbed. This day’s event foreshadowed the group’s role in the events that followed on January 6, with investigation reports tracing that the group was at the heart of the violence experienced in Capitol Hill (Reneau et al., 2022). The reports further indicate that the events leading to the conspiracy were planned before that particular day, with the group’s leadership giving orders to the members urging them to be present on that day with plans of breaching the Capitol inhibiting verification of electoral ballots.
Gavin McInnes motives
Being the founder of the group, he was vital in spearheading the violent political stance undertaken by the group. He arguably shaped its existence, and while as chair for two years between 2016 to 2018, he rubber-stamped the group’s violent response tactics and its politically polarizing ideologies in society (Hummel, 2022). He also set the pace assumed by the group’s leadership helm (Elders Council) of maintaining a loose grip on the command structures, which oversaw the group’s Rise in violent activities and dual membership with the Atomwaffen terror group.
The ideology of the Proud Boys group
The group was formed with the ideology of instituting the traditional western culture and conservatism in the face of what the group felt was the limitation of society to male chauvinistic practices. However, the political temperature around its formation motivated the group to embark on violent activities whenever they wanted to air their conservative political ideology, a reason that made the group support president Trump’s MAGA idea (Hummel, 2022). These nationalistic ideas of conservativeness, coupled with the violent practices of the group, served as the motive influencing their recruitment and radicalization of new members.
Strategies
Seditious actions
The group was termed a hate group and solely responsible for the violent assault on Capitol Hill on January 6. A document featured by the New York explicitly indicates the entire plan and strategies that were to be employed by the group in talking over the Capitol, although not effected (Pilkington, 2022). The document uncovered the group’s violent plans and how they planned to cover their tracks after their attacks. The featured document contained their plan of calling into a rally in support of Trump in New York on January 10, shortly after the validation of Biden’s win, a rally that was to end up in the toppling of the regime (Pilkington, 2022). The language in the said document indicated the ones used in military combat operations, while the paper affirmed that the group would not disappoint in the planned attack.
Street violence
A Guardian publication by Campbell cites the group as an organized defence gang capable of violent activities. The group is portrayed as one that assumes the role of vigilantism policing, and in case of any violence outbreak and a member of the group is involved, the others are to step in immediately, helping out their own and neutralizing the threat (Pilkington 2022). However, the group’s leadership in an interview, like Gavin, denies this fact causing a contradiction, although the group has been heavily linked with street violence in political activities. However, the group’s conservative stand has seen its participation in most anti –rallies like the ones for anti-vaccination, advocacy for gun demos, Pro-Trump rallies and anti-vaccine rallies (Pilkington, 2022). This point to a common trial strategy of the group in promoting violence.
Passive online campaigns
In addition to violent street actions, the group furthers its ideological agenda using social media platforms to communicate with the members and also engages in radicalization campaigns. As early as 2017, Twitter, for instance, suspended the accounts of vocal individuals linked with the right-wing extremist group like Gavin (Linton, 2018). This happened shortly before a planned rally in Washington duped the Charlottesville Right-wing rally.in addition, the group also used online platforms like crowdfunding to raise money for their violent political actions. A data leak to the press indicated that the crowd site was used to make anonymous donations for charitable works such as medical bills, religious excursions and aid for various projects (Wilson, 2021). however, the site was known for its strong support of right-wing extremist groups; hence they must have also used the site evidently after there were more than crowdfunding drives linked to the Proud Boys group raising a tune of $375,000 in a short time period of funds that were geared to the capitol attack (Wilson, 2021). Most of these funds were from anonymous donors who could not be identified, indicating the deep entrenchment of the group’s activities on such platforms.
High Profile event
The highest profile event engineered by the Proud Boys group was the event on January 6 when the group members orchestrated a riot on the Capitol Hill building, a day during which Biden’s election victory was being validated. This offence was termed a seditious conspiracy that would have resulted in a total insurrection as it is a pact between more than one person to act unlawfully, and the riot attempt made by the group qualified that (Bekiempis, 2022). A post by the Guardian indicated that the full weight of the justice system in the US was behind the trial of arguably one of the pre-eminent high-profile cases in the country (Bekiempis, 2022). The trial was on the recent members and leaders of the Proud Boys group, starting with the chairman Enrique Tarrio and his four counterparts, investigations on their roles in the insurrection completed by a joint committee. The defence cited that the four were in a group of 100 belonging to the Proud Boys gang who assembled in Washington and then later made their way to the Capitol, causing the violence that erupted.
Media Responses
The mainstream media response to the growing extremist group’s influence was through the suspenseful action of the ring leaders’ accounts on social platforms like Twitter. McInnes was the first casualty when his Twitter account was suspended before a Right-wing rally he had planned for the group in Charlottesville (Linton, 2018). This halted their growing influence and radicalization process, an action that was a result of public backlash and pressure on the CEO Jack Dorsey on the platform’s indecisiveness to suspend the accounts. The media was also at the forefront of airing the defence group’s violent acts, which helped shape the public opinion agonists of the political ideologies advocated by the group.
In addition, during the preliminary investigations, the media released the evidence they recorded in terms of videos and other discoveries that were instrumental in the prosecution process. They include the memo indicating the strategic course of action and cover-up by the Proud Boy group actions in the capitol attack by the extremist journalist Andy Campbell (Pilkington, 2022). The press also unearthed the leaked materials of the GiveSendGo site, a crowdfunding platform used to raise funds by extremist groups.
Criminal Justice Response
In the wake of the Capitol Hill violent attack, the criminal system agencies rushed to arrest the suspected perpetrators of the violence. Amongst those arrested included more than ten notable individuals, like Florida Combat, Ethan Nordean and Joe Biggs, all bigwigs in the group (Wilson, 2021). They were charged with different counts ranging from abetting the crimes committed through active participation as well as the impending congressional house. The trials of the group leader Enrique Tarrio and four of his counterparts also indicate the swift response from the criminal justice system. Tarrio and his partners were charged with the serious offence of seditious conspiracy crime alongside other criminal charges after a proper crackdown on the perpetrators by the federal agency (Bekiempis, 2022). Despite the five denying involvement and pleading not guilty, the prosecution appeared to have overwhelming evidence, much of it in the mainstream media through the videos captured, even though enough proof during the trial is necessary.
The government response
Unlike the Trump administration, the current government does not rub shoulders with the ideologies of the extremist group. The aftermath of the capitol event changed the reception and the view of the right-wing extremist group by law enforcement agencies and elected officials, with the group termed a hate group (Wilson, 2021). Several actions have been taken on the group threatening its existence, such as the move to outlaw the group as a domestic terrorist organization through a bill sponsored by the democrats led by Brad Schneider (Wilson, 2021). This follows the stance the Canadian parliament took, which passed that the group ought to be classified as a terror gang together with the jihadist and misogynistic ideologies it champions.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the entire context of the Proud Boys group indicates a violent formation destined to shake up the existing commonly accepted policies and ideologies through anti-resistance movements resulting in violent actions. Even though its founders claim the formation was due to the conservatism of the western culture, the group’s actions showcase a different narration, and it must be stopped to avoid more haemorrhage. There is a need to trust the existing democratic institutions and the rights and freedoms of all people considered as part of the larger American society, ‘the free world.’
References
Bekiempis, V. (2022, December 25). Highest-profile January 6 trial begins with proud boys leader Enrique Tarrio. The Guardian. from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/dec/25/january-6-proud-boys-trial-begins-enrique-tarrio
Hummel, K. (2022, January 7). Pride & Prejudice: The violent evolution of the proud boys. Combating Terrorism Center at West Point. from https://ctc.westpoint.edu/pride-prejudice-the-violent-evolution-of-the-proud-boys/
Jensen, M., & Kane, S. (2022). Proud boys crimes and characteristics. Proud Boys Crimes and Characteristics | START.umd.edu. from https://www.start.umd.edu/publication/proud-boys-crimes-and-characteristics
Linton, C. (2018, August 22). Twitter suspends proud boys, Gavin McInnes accounts ahead of Unite the Right Rally. CBS News. from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/proud-boys-gavin-mcinnes-twitter-suspension-today-unite-the-right-2018-08-10/
Pilkington, E. (2022, September 19). Proud boys memo reveals meticulous planning for ‘street-level violence’. The Guardian. from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/sep/19/proud-boys-document-jan-6-violence
Reneau, N., Cooper, S., Feuer, A., & Byrd, A. (2022, June 17). How the proud boys breached the Capitol on January 6: Rile up the Normies. The New York Times. from https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/politics/100000008392796/rile-up-the-normies-how-proud-boys-breached-the-capitol.html
Wilson, J. (2021, April 10). Proud boys and other far-right groups raise millions via Christian Funding Sites. The Guardian. from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/10/proud-boys-far-right-givesendgo-christian-fundraising-site
Wilson, J. (2021, February 13). The decline of proud boys: What does the future hold for far-right group? The Guardian. from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/13/proud-boys-far-right-group-future
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