In the aftermath of the January 6, 2021 invasion of the Capitol, which has resulted in multiple convictions, and despite receiving increasing scrutiny by the press, you might be wondering what is happening with the recruiting efforts of White supremacist, neo-Nazi, and MAGA-supporting militia groups? Unfortunately, you need look no further than Facebook to see that these groups are boldly using the platform to recruit in plain sight.
According to WIRED magazine’s Tess Owen, “After lying low for several years … militia extremists have been quietly reorganizing, ramping up recruitment and rhetoric on Facebook—with apparently little concern that Meta will enforce its ban against them, according to new research by the Tech Transparency Project, shared exclusively with WIRED.”
In a WIRED piece titled “Extremist Militias Are Coordination in More Than 100 Facebook Groups” (https://www.wired.com/story/extremist-militias-are-coordinating-on-facebook/), Owen reported:
Individuals across the US with long-standing ties to militia groups are creating networks of Facebook pages, urging others to recruit ‘active patriots’ and attend meetups, and openly associating themselves with known militia-related sub-ideologies like that of the anti-government Three Percenter movement. They’re also advertising combat training and telling their followers to be ‘prepared’ for whatever lies ahead. These groups are trying to facilitate local organizing, state by state and county by county. Their goals are vague, but many of their posts convey a general sense of urgency about the need to prepare for ‘war’ or to ‘stand up’ against many supposed enemies, including drag queens, immigrants, pro-Palestine college students,
communists—and the US government.
One Facebook group called Free American Army, which claims more than 650 members, recently posted “JOIN YOUR LOCAL Militia or III% Patriot Group.” According to Owen, “Accompanied by the logo for the Three Percenters militia network and an image of a man in tactical gear holding a long rifle, the post continues: ‘Now more than ever. Support the American militia page.’”
Despite the fact that Facebook has rules banning “paramilitary organizing and [has] deemed the Three Percenters an ‘armed militia group’ on its 2021 Dangerous Individuals and Organizations List (https://transparency.meta.com/policies/community-standards/dangerous-individuals-organizations/),” Owen noted, “the post and group remained up until WIRED contacted Meta for comment about its existence.”
“Many of these groups are no longer fractured sets of localized militia but coalitions formed between multiple militia groups, many with Three Percenters at the helm,” Katie Paul, director of the Tech Transparency Project, told WIRED. “Facebook remains the largest gathering place for extremists and militia movements to cast a wide net and funnel users to more private chats, including on the platform, where they can plan and coordinate with impunity.”
According to Paul, over the past year, militia groups are becoming “increasingly emboldened with more serious and coordinated organizing.”
WIRED’s Owen maintains that Meta has an “inconsistent approach to content moderation.” In an email to WIRED, Meta claimed it is doing its best and is “removing the groups and accounts that violate our policies.”
Meta critics maintain that the company is failing to provide enough resources to fully engage toxic groups. Last year, according to Owen, Meta laid off more than 200 content moderator’s contracts.
The militia movement may have mostly retreated from the streets, but they most certainly aren’t cashing in their chips. The upcoming presidential election is providing the perfect platform for misinformation and disinformation. There will more opportunities to go down anti-government rabbit holes. More people will be online, so more people will be exposed to extremist rhetoric and recruitment pitches. What is particularly threatening is that these groups have the tech wherewithal not only to create networks of like-minded groups, but also to be able to morph into new groups if they are discovered and sanctioned.
