Mark Slapinski
A group of protesters dubbed Patriot Front marched through downtown Washington, D.C. on Saturday. Videos of the protest sparked condemnation from the left, while some commentators on the right questioned whether the event was staged. Conspiracy theories describing well-documented events as being “false flags” have become more common post-January 6th.
Reporters at the Daily Beast documented the protest, writing in an article titled, White Supremacists Stage Bizarro Rally in Downtown D.C:
The rally by more than 100 members of the “Patriot Front” group, held just blocks from the White House, sparked fear among many bystanders and immediately attracted the attention of law enforcement, who shadowed the group to forestall any conflict.
Filmmaker Daniel Bostic weighed in, stating that Patriot Front is not a well-known group. “No one at any level of conservative grassroots or high level politics has heard of ‘Patriot Front.'” Washington Times columnist Tim Young demanded to know more about the group, stating, “Let’s see … proof that these ‘Patriot Front’ marchers are associated with conservatives or republicans.”
In November, the Charlottesville City Council condemned the Lincoln Project over a “tiki torch stunt” the group organized to protest a campaign event for Glenn Youngkin. The Lincoln Project impersonated Republicans in an effort to smear Youngkin and tie Republicans to white nationalism.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) considers Patriot Front to be a white supremacist group. In a page on its website, it states:
Patriot Front is a white supremacist group whose members maintain that their ancestors conquered America and bequeathed it to them alone. They define themselves as American fascists or American nationalists who are focused on preserving America’s identity as a European-American identity.
In addition, Alheli Picazo, a writer for CanadaLand, stated that Patriot Front is “not a ‘false flag’ or FBI operation. It’s a well-known and well-documented fascist movement.”
UPDATE: The reference to false flags was removed from the title, and additional context was added to the first paragraph. The tweet from @SherylLewellen has been removed from the article. An investigation revealed that tweet came from a fake account. Learn more about our editorial standards.
