Over 1,000 private `militia' groups -- and counting

Date: Sat, 6 May 1995 10:35:14 -0700

They have dramatic names -- The Righteous, Defenders of the Pure, God's Posse.

Some just sit around, slam back a few drinks, and shoot the bull about America 
going to hell in a handbasket. Some are dead serious, better armed than some 
nations and bent on violence.

They are the more than 1,000 secretive and private ``militia'' groups across 
America. You may never have heard of them until the Oklahoma City bombing. But 
you will, you will.

Before April 19, when a truck bomb destroyed an Oklahoma City federal building 
and took at least 163 lives, citizen militias drew attention mostly from civil 
liberties groups, a few sheriffs and a handful of magazine writers.

Today, politicians howl for public hearings and scalps, talk show hosts analyze 
their intentions, and mainstream media cannot devote enough coverage.

No one really knows how many Americans belong to such outfits, nor how many 
militia groups have mustered.

``The militias claim as many as 100,000 members,'' said John Nutter, a Michigan 
State professor and expert on paramilitary organizations. ``Well, maybe. I 
suppose it's possible they've got an average of 2,000 a state. But that just 
seems pretty unlikely to me.''

Some investigators have estimated as many as 1,800 militia groups, but as 
Nutter points out, ``a unit can be, like, three guys -- and I suspect some of them are.''

The Center for Democratic Renewal -- a private Atlanta group that monitors 
militias -- believes there are up to 100,000 members in at least 30 states.

Mary Ann Mauney, research analyst, explained that figure: ``We know there are a 
certain number of people who subscribe to publications that push the militias' 
message, and that there are these regional and state meetings that attract a 
certain number of people. From all those, we can get a good idea of how many 
people are actually involved.''

The list is thought to be growing.

When the Anti-Defamation League published a report on militias six months ago, 
the number of states where ``serious'' groups were meeting was set at 13. Last 
month, ADL updated that to 27.

``These groups were initially small and independent, with no umbrella 
organizations,'' said Myrna Shinbaum, ADL spokeswoman. ``But we have seen 
cross-fertilization recently. A lot of that has to do with getting on-line on 
the Internet. They have broadened their connections with other groups.''

Members of militias are less analytical about technical reasons for their 
spread. Said Norm Olson, replaced last week as commander of the Michigan 
Militia: ``The last time the militia emerged was World War II. We had coastal 
watches because we had empire governments. We had the Japanese empire 
government, the German empire government, and the people formed militias to 
defend themselves in the event of an invasion.

``After the war, of course, they all disbanded and went home. We haven't had 
another empire government emerge until the emergence of the U.N., perhaps -- 
and/or the U.S. government that seems to alienating itself from the American 
people. I think that is very significant.''

The sudden upsurge of membership in citizen militias does not mean the movement 
is new. There were many precursors.

``The Christian Patriots and Posse Comitatus have both been around for a long 
time,'' said Mauney. ``But this is kind of a new twist to it and mostly in the 
past two to three years, it's been building. It's embraced a lot of people who 
would never have joined the Posse or the Christian Patriots before.''

To many militia members, the impetus for joining focuses on a very real fear 
the federal government is turning into Big Brother in hopes of promoting a 
one-world government under U.N. auspices.

``I know President Clinton made statements around election time that he was 
considering governing by executive order,'' said John Trochmann, co-founder of 
the Militia of Montana. ``That's a spooky statement. To put it more bluntly, to 
me that means ruling by martial law.

``We have true taxation without representation now. When that $20 billion was 
sent to Mexico after Congress said no, he (Clinton) stuck his finger in the air 
and said `Screw you, Congress.' ''

Most of the groups are joined in common hatred of big federal law enforcement 
agencies like the FBI, the Justice Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, 
and Firearms -- ATF-- and, recently, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 
which has new riot-control powers the militias interpret as a tool for quelling 
rebellion.

Whatever the philosophical causes, Congress, law enforcement officials and a 
good portion of the public tended to view the groups as mostly harmless 
middle-aged guys who dressed up in camouflage on weekends and drilled with 
pistols, rifles and semi-automatics in the woods.

``When you have one wacko go into a McDonald's and mow down 20 people, everyone 
said `how terrible,' '' said Shinbaum, who believes the militias are dangerous. 
``But when you put 20 of these people together in combat fatigues on a weekend, 
they look like regular Joes.

``It doesn't have to do with size. These are people with similar aims that bind 
them in the belief the tyrannical federal government will come and get them, 
and therefore they have to arm themselves. They are stockpiling arms to protect 
against this tyrannical federal government.''

It's not hard to join your average militia.

``You want to get hooked up, it's actually an easy thing to do,'' said Nutter. 
``In most places where there are militias ... you can go to just about any gun 
shop and you'll see either some brochures or leaflets, or a little poster or 
something, for militias. You can find them at gun shows. All you have to do is 
look in the back of `Soldier of Fortune' or `American Survival' and you'll see 
all kinds of ads from people wanting to hook up with militias.''

Timothy J. McVeigh, 27, only suspect charged so far with responsibility in the 
Oklahoma truck bomb explosion, is believed by FBI agents to have attended 
militia meetings in Michigan -- and perhaps Arizona and Kansas. It is this 
connection that is driving the recent wave of publicity about militias.

The spectrum of belief in these groups ranges from extreme concern for the 
future to something to do on days off.

To members of the Florida State Militia, the motto on their security manual -- 
``If You Long for Peace, Prepare for War'' -- indicates an outlook much more 
serious than target practice.

Another group, Police Against the New World Order, founded by a retired Phoenix 
cop, has widely promulgated a pamphlet titled ``Operation Vampire Killer -- 
2000.'' These right-wing cops describe this as an ``American Police Action PLan 
for Stopping the Program for World Government Control.'' In the flier, the 
``vampires'' are the government leaders and multi-national businessmen who want 
a new world order.

Some members of the Militia of Montana don't pay taxes, ignore state hunting 
laws and won't sign drivers' licenses -- all standard protests of militia groups
 elsewhere. But the Montana ``Freemen'' also want autonomous geographical 
regions independent of state and local control. One member is doing time right 
now for trying to set up a free-lance court system and offering million-dollar 
bounties for arrest of county officials.

These extremists, however, may not be in the majority.

In northern Louisiana, the racially integrated Red River Militia Group -- which 
claims 4,000 members -- doesn't hold meetings or conduct drills.

Jon Whittington, a founder, said the group believes in law and order and strict 
interpretation of the Constitution. Its purpose, he said, ``is to change the 
policies of our government politically. ... Our ancestors fired on Fort Sumter 
once. We're not going to do that again.''

Some experts caution against over-blowing the dangers of militia groups.

``By and large, the militia groups have not taken any violent overt actions,'' 
said Frank Flinn, religion professor at Washington University of St. Louis.

Flinn said individual members within such organizations are sometimes prepared 
to take extreme measures, but group approval is withheld. ``There have been 
individuals (ready to do violence), but there have been no groups to do it or 
advocate it.''

This scenario seems to fit the FBI's reconstruction of the Oklahoma bombing. 
McVeigh and material witnesses James and Terry Nichols -- also held in federal 
custody -- are said by some associates to have been spurned by Michigan Militia 
members after attending meetings as having been too extremist.

The American public may get a closer look at militias soon. Reps. John Conyers 
of Michigan and Charles Schumer of New York, top two Democrats on the House 
Crime subcommittee, want hearings. The call the groups' rhetoric ``chilling and 
hateful.''

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., even submitted a constitutionally questionable 
bill that would outlaw any organization of two or more individuals who possess 
weapons or explosives ``with the intention they be used unlawfully to oppose 
the authority of the United States.''

Conyers and Schumer made the militia hearing request in response to House and 
Senate Republicans who have announced public probes of two recent events that 
have triggered the rise of militias across the nation.

They are the April 19, 1993 fire near Waco, Texas, that consumed the Branch 
Davidian compound under assault by agents from the FBI and ATF; and the federal 
mishandling of the 1992 Idaho arrest of white separatist Randy Weaver, which 
left his wife, son, and a federal marshal dead.

Academics and federal investigators agree those are the incidents -- along with 
passage of gun control legislation -- that have led to the burgeoning of 
militias across the country.

But a deeper ire and alienation of many patriotic Americans -- who view their 
government with fear, rage, and visceral distrust -- provided the fertile 
ground from which these paramilitary seeds sprouted.

``When you see Americans running around in the woods preparing to defend 
themselves against their own government,'' said Schumer, ``that is a danger 
signal.''