Archive/File: orgs/american/christian.identity chr-iden.01 Last-Modified: 1993/11/02 From: NLG Civil Liberties CommitteeNewsgroups: alt.conspiracy Date: 19 Sep 92 22:00 PDT Subject: Growth of Christian Identity Message-ID: <1299600066@igc.apc.org> Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1299600066:000:8918 Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!cberlet Sep 19 22:00:00 1992 Lines: 213 From: NLG Civil Liberties Committee Subject: Growth of Christian Identity /* Written 9:56 pm Sep 19, 1992 by cberlet in cdp:publiceye */ /* ---------- "Growth of Christian Identity" ---------- */ The use of deadly force against the family of Randy Weaver was a tragic example of police misconduct and abuse of power by government agencies. At the same time, Weaver's belief in Christian Identity should not be sanitized, it is a white supremacist anti-Jewish philosophy. We must oppose both government abuse of power and racism. The following article is adapted from the "Public Eye" magazine and was written in the mid-1980's. -CB THE POSSE COMITATUS & THE REBIRTH OF "CHRISTIAN IDENTITY" by Chip Berlet [The author is a founding co-editor of the Police Misconduct and Civil Rights Law Report published by Clark Boardman Callaghan Law Publishers] In the 1980's, while the Klan and Nazis were beginning to work together, primarily in the South, another racist and anti- Jewish phenomena was growing in the West and Midwest. The ideology was based on a distorted view of the Constitution which held that State and Federal officials were illegally holding power. The religious element was called Christian Identity. Based on an earlier concept called "British Israelism," Identity Christians believed that God's Chosen People were really white Americans, and that the people calling themselves Jews in Israel and here were fakes. By extension, America was the Promised Land. The most vicious proponents of this belief system called for ridding America of all the Jews, especially those they saw as running the country from Washington, D.C. The group most responsible for spreading this ideology was the Posse Comitatus. The Posse began in the late 1960's. In 1969 Posse charters were issued by H. L. "Mike" Beach in Portland, Oregon. The same theories were promulgated at the same time by Col. William Potter Gale in California. Shortly after Beach began issuing "Sheriff's Posse Comitatus" charters and handbooks, Gale began issuing charters and a handbook called the "Guide for Volunteer Christian Posses." The early 70's was marked by some factionalism, but by 1974 the Beach and Gale forces in the Posse had formed an informal political and religious movement which began to grow. A manifesto was issued in booklet form. In late 1974 Wisconsin hosted an early Posse convention: 200 - 300 attended. The most visible and active branch of the Posse for many years was in Wisconsin. The press gave much attention to Wisconsin Posse leader James Wickstrom, although his claims to hold some vague national leadership post was flatly contradicted by the autonomous and anarchistic nature of the Posse itself. The most violent Posse confrontation involved the mishandled attempt to serve legal papers on Posse activist Gordon Kahl. Two federal Marshalls were killed, and several persons wounded. Kahl fled underground and was later killed in another mishandled attempt to flush him from a fortified bunker. Kahl has since become a martyr to not only Posse adherents but many other like- minded groups. After the Gordon Kahl incident, many Posse members decided to carry out activities in secret or through front groups. Some members began buying large quantities of grains, canned goods and vitamins in anticipation of long-projected economic or political collapse and racial rioting. The Posse has attempted to recruit members from among: Tax protest and resistance groups Farm foreclosure moratorium groups Farm and ranch organizations including American Agricultural Movement, especially "Grassroots" section, and the National Farm Organization Former or current members of the Ku Klux Klan and Nazi Party Supporters of groups led by Lyndon LaRouche National Democratic Policy Committee National Caucus of Labor Committees States where Posse activity has been reported in last few years include: California Minnesota Pennsylvania Colorado Missouri South Dakaota Idaho Montana Texas Illinois Nebraska Washington Iowa North Dakota Wisconsin Kansas Oregon Wyoming Following the Greensboro shootings by the Klanmen and Nazis, and the death of Gordon Kahl, a number of previously-antagonistic racist groups in America began to make contact with each other, and began to establish informal means of communication and information sharing. Not all Klan groups accepted the new coalition, but those that did began to call themselves the Fifth Era Klan to demark what they hoped would be the fifth period of growth by the Klan since its inception. The Fifth Era Klan adherents sought to forge ties with other racist groups across the nation. This move towards cooperation was enhanced by the establishment of the computerized bulletin board system (BBS). Groups began to work more closely and stage joint activities, sometimes built around "Survivalist" encampments. As this cooperation became more formalized, what emerged was, in effect, a White Racist Alliance which shared a common base of beliefs - Identity. WHAT DOES THE WHITE RACIST ALLIANCE BELIEVE Since the Alliance is not entirely homogeneous, not all persons involved share all of the related beliefs. Many of the beliefs are widely held, however. (The broader term "Identity" in the loose sense incorporates a wider range of views than are accurately described by the term "Christian Identity" with its emphasis on religion). As in many similar philosophies, Identity sees the world as divided into "Us" and "Them". Evil conspirators control world events. A special few have been given the knowledge of this massive conspiracy and it is their solemn duty to spread the alarm across the land. Identity is not a new philosophy, merely a variation on an old, discordant theme. In specific terms, Identity says that "alien conspirators" have seized control of America away from "White" Christian patriots. ("Aryan" or "White" as used by Identity ostensibly refers to persons of Nordic, Anglo-Saxon or Germanic stock, or at the very least, persons stemming from Northern or Middle European ancestors. The Identity definition of "Aryan" is more closely related to mythological or operatic reality rather than any scientific or anthropological definition of Indo-European peoples) Among the alien conspirators: Jews Blacks Latinos Asians Indians All non-Aryans Elected politicians above county level Law enforcement officials above level of County Sheriff All politicians and law enforcement officials Game Wardens Internal Revenue Agents All government employees Judges Lawyers Journalists Network Television Employees Unionists Leftists Socialists Communists The Rockefellers Trilateralist Commission The Bilderberger Group Council on Foreign Relations Federal Reserve Bank Officials All Other Bankers Persons who believe in Identity often: * Support White Power & Aryan Supremecy; * Believe in Black genetic inferiority; * Possess Romanticized notions of Aryan culture; * Are virulently anti-Communist; * Manifest a jingoistic patriotism a la "Rambo;" * Mistrust government & law enforcement; * Fear Black power & Black pride; * See media coverage of non-Aryans as a Jewish-Communist Plot; * Resent Black job gains in the working class & professions; * Think Black politicians are pawns of Jews; * Believe Black activism is directed from Moscow or Tel Aviv; * Practice armed survivalism as a defensive necessity. Among the groups other than the Posse which espouse portions of the Identity philosophy: Aryan Nations - Hayden Lake, Idaho, (Church of Jesus Christ Christian), Christian Patriots Defense League - Illinois, Mountain Churches of Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, & Wisconsin, Covenent, Sword and Arm of the Lord - Arkansas, Christian Defense League - Arabi, Louisiana, Sons of Liberty - Metaire, Louisiana, Lord's Covenant Church - Phoenix, Arizona, National Socialist Liberation Front - Kenner, Louisiana, White People's Committee to Restore God's Laws, National Emancipation of our White Seed - Louisiana, New Christian Crusade Church - Louisiana, -30- From ubc-cs!destroyer!caen!spool.mu.edu!agate!stanford.edu!ames!sgi!cdp!cberlet Wed Sep 23 08:36:46 PDT 1992 Article: 5877 of alt.conspiracy Path: oneb!ubc-cs!destroyer!caen!spool.mu.edu!agate!stanford.edu!ames!sgi!cdp!cberlet From: NLG Civil Liberties Committee Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy Date: 22 Sep 92 21:34 PDT Subject: Re: Growth of Christian Identity Sender: Notesfile to Usenet Gateway Message-ID: <1299600070@igc.apc.org> References: <1299600066@igc.apc.org> Nf-ID: #R:cdp:1299600066:cdp:1299600070:000:1481 Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!cberlet Sep 22 21:34:00 1992 Lines: 34 Randy Weaver, according to his neighbors, professed adherence to the Christian Identity religion. Does anyone have facts to contradict that information? I have been studying the Christian Identity movmement since 1979, if anyone has found an error in my reporting on the subject I would very much like to know. There have been many misinformed statements on the net concerning Christian Identity, I thought some people might appreciate some factual reporting on the subject. Although I am a leading researcher and critic of racist hate groups, I have repeatedly written and spoken against the government repression against members of these groups, and some of my comments in defense of civil liberties have been re-printed in race hate publications. Bo Gritz is an artful dodger who says one thing when speaking to Christian Identity and pro-Nazi audiences, and then turns around and tells a different story to mainstream and progressive audiences. The Spotlight newspaper is hardly a source you can trust. It is obsessed with Jewish control of banking, foreign policy and covert operations in the U.S. It has said praiseworthy things about the Waffen SS and neo-Nazi skinheads. I accept a persons right to promote or apologize for Nazi ideology, that's what the First Amendment is all about, but let's not kid ourselves about the Christian Identity movement...it's a neo-Nazi movement wrapped in religious trappings. Promoting fascism is not my idea of patriotism. -Chip From ubc-cs!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!spool.mu.edu!agate!ames!sgi!cdp!cberlet Wed Sep 23 09:06:57 PDT 1992 Article: 10997 of alt.activism Path: oneb!ubc-cs!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!spool.mu.edu!agate!ames!sgi!cdp!cberlet From: NLG Civil Liberties Committee Newsgroups: alt.activism Date: 22 Sep 92 21:04 PDT Subject: Re: Weaver Sender: Notesfile to Usenet Gateway Message-ID: <1296500377@igc.apc.org> References: <1992Sep21.184316.3271@null.uucp> Nf-ID: #R:1992Sep21.184316.3271@null.uucp:328259797:cdp:1296500377:000:1281 Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!cberlet Sep 22 21:04:00 1992 Lines: 22 Neither the mainstream media nor Spotlight newspaper are telling the truth. Both are misrepresenting the situation to fit their political goals. Weaver was part of an armed racist underground movement in this country. He is, however, a victim of unjustified deadly force by federal authorities. Both Weaver and the government are wrong. The government is using unconstitutional tactics against the white supremacist movement, and has been for nearly eight years. This is not the first fatal shoot-out. Weaver and others in the Christian Identity movement such as Bo Gritz, believe the federal government is controlled by Jewish banking interests in concert with a massive conspiracy of secret elites. Some, like Weaver, armed themselves and moved to the pacific northwest awaiting the final confrontation. Spotlight, which praises neo-Naziss and peddles the Jewish conspiracy theories] of the fascist right, is attempting to use the Weaver incident, with its murderous abuse of power by federal authorities, to recruit people into its circle. We are in the middle of a propaganda war between an authoritarian government and a fascist political movement. It's easy to be confused when so many people are lying. -Chip Berlet co-editor, Police Misconduct and Civil Rights Law Report From ubc-cs!destroyer!caen!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!darwin.sura.net!sgiblab!sgigate!odin!sgi!cdp!cberlet Mon Sep 28 10:30:26 PDT 1992 Article: 5951 of alt.conspiracy Path: oneb!ubc-cs!destroyer!caen!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!darwin.sura.net!sgiblab!sgigate!odin!sgi!cdp!cberlet From: NLG Civil Liberties Committee Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy Date: 27 Sep 92 18:19 PDT Subject: Re: Growth of Christian Identity Sender: Notesfile to Usenet Gateway Message-ID: <1299600074@igc.apc.org> References: <1299600066@igc.apc.org> Nf-ID: #R:cdp:1299600066:cdp:1299600074:000:1526 Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!cberlet Sep 27 18:19:00 1992 Lines: 26 Hi, Some persons have asked about my definition of Fascism, not a word I throw around lightly. I have posted a new topic "What is Fascism?" that outlines my position. For further information on the Christian Identity Movement I suggest the cleverly titled "The 'Christian' Identity Movement: Analyzing its Theological Rationalization for Racist and Anti-Semitic Violence" by Leonard Zeskind of the Center for Democratic Renewal, published by the National Council of Churches, Division of CHurch and Society. Also see "The American Neo-Nazi Movement Today" by Elinor Langer, The Nation, July 16-23, 1990. Langer lists Christian Identity among the groups and movements she defines as neo-Nazi. For those who wondered what I do...I am a paralegal investigator employed by Political Research Associates in Cambridge, MA. I have worked on several lawsuits against government intelligence abuse. My articles have appeared in the Boston Globe, Chicago Sun-Times, Des Moines Register, The Progressive, In These Times, Etc. I have been interviewed on all three TV network news programs, been quoted in the New York Times, and appeared live on the Today Show to discuss racist right hate groups. I am secretary of the National Lawyers Guild Civil Liberties Committee, and a founding co-editor of Police Misconduct & Civil Rights Law Report. None of this makes my views any more important that anyone else on the net, but it does show that other people have found that it the long run my research has proven reliable. -Chip Berlet From cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!caen!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!cis.ohio-state.edu!igc.apc.org!nlns Wed Sep 30 16:41:38 PDT 1992 Article: 11337 of alt.activism Newsgroups: alt.activism Path: oneb!cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!caen!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!cis.ohio-state.edu!igc.apc.org!nlns From: nlns@igc.apc.org (New Liberation News Service) Subject: NLNS: CHRISTIAN IDENTITY (UPDATED VERSION) Message-ID: <9209301854.AA02095@igc.apc.org> Sender: daemon@cis.ohio-state.edu Organization: The Ohio State University Department of Computer and Information Science Date: Wed, 30 Sep 1992 18:54:22 GMT Lines: 242 /* Written 6:18 pm Sep 29, 1992 by nlns in cdp:nlns.news */ /* ---------- "NLNS Packet 3.2 *** 9/28/92" ---------- */ CHRISTIAN IDENTITY, SURVIVALISM & THE POSSE COMITATUS Chip Berlet, NLNS (NLNS)--The use of deadly force against the family of Idaho white supremacist Randy Weaver was a tragic example of police misconduct and abuse of power by government agencies. But even as the seige was underway, far rightists began manipulating justifiable revulsion over the government's murderous tactics to recruit persons into a brand of populism that avoids overt racist appeals and uses radical-sounding anti-government rhetoric to mask the same underlying fascist goals promoted by former neoNazi and Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke. Both Duke and Weaver promote versions of Christian Identity, a white supremacist philosophy that mirrors resugent neo-Nazi activism world-wide. "Identity is based on the premise that the Jews are literally Children of Satan - the seed of Cain, that people of color are 'pre-Adamic' mud people - God's failures before perfecting Adam, and that white Christian Aryans are the 'Lost Sheep of the House of Israel' - God's chosen people, and therefore America is the biblical promised land," explains Lenny Zeskind, research director of the Center for Democratic Renewal. "Some Identity members collect weapons and ammunition in expectation that the Biblical "End-Times" are near," says Zeskind who wrote a monograph on Christian Identity for the Division of Church and Society of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. "Identity theology binds together a number of previously isolated groups... Important sections of the Ku Klux Klan, the neo- Nazi movement, the Posse Comitatus, the Aryan Nations, and other groups have adopted Identity theology," Zeskind reports. Identity is based in part on an earlier religious concept called "British Israelism." The group most responsible for spreading Christian Identity in the 1980's was the Posse Comitatus, a loosely- knit survivalist movement which grew out of the Christian Identity teachings of Col. William Potter Gale in California. Survivalists believe the collapse of society is imminent, and thus they collect weapons and conduct field exercises in armed self-defense and reconnaissance. Some survivalists store large quantities of grains, dried foods, canned goods, water and vitamins in anticipation of long-projected economic or political collapse and racial rioting. Many have moved to isolated rural areas. Not all survivalists are part of the white supremacist movement, but many are. Randy Weaver was a survivalist as well as a promoter of racist Christian Identity. The Posse Comitatus, Latin for "power of the county" but more accurately transliterated as "to empower the citizenry," is the legal concept used by sheriffs in Hollywood westerns to round up a posse and chase the varmints. In modern legal terms it means the right to deputize citizens to carry out law enforcement functions, and it also is the basis of a federal law preventing the use of federal troops in civilian law enforcement without the express consent of the President. Members of the Posse Comitatus, however, promote an unsubstantiated belief that the Constitution does not authorize any law enforcement powers above the level of county sheriff, and that state and federal officials above the county level are part of a gigantic conspiracy to deny average citizens their rights. Many Posse and Identity adherents believe Jews, Blacks, Communists, Homosexuals and race-traitors have seized control of the United States. They refer to Washington, D.C. as the Zionist Occupational Government (ZOG). They read the novel "The Turner Diaries" in which an underground white army leads a revolution against ZOG. In 1969 H. L. "Mike" Beach in Portland, Oregon began issuing "Sheriff's Posse Comitatus" charters and handbooks. Soon Gale began issuing his own charters and a handbook called the "Guide for Volunteer Christian Posses." Early factionalism gave way to an informal political and religious movement which began to grow. In the early 1970's a Posse manifesto was issued in booklet form. In late 1974 a national Posse convention was held in Wisconsin with 200 - 300 attending. The most visible and active branch of the Posse for many years was in Wisconsin. The press gave much attention to Wisconsin Posse leader James Wickstrom, although his claims to hold some vague national leadership post was flatly contradicted by the autonomous and anarchistic nature of the Posse itself. States where Posse activity was reported in the 1980's included: California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. The most violent Posse confrontation involved the mishandled attempt to serve legal papers on Posse activist Gordon Kahl. Two federal Marshalls were killed, and several persons wounded. Kahl fled underground and was later killed in another mishandled attempt to flush him from a fortified bunker. Kahl and other white supremacists killed or jailed by the government have become martyrs to Posse adherents and other racists. After the Gordon Kahl incident, many Posse and Christian Identity members decided to carry out activities in secret or through front groups. While the Posse was growing in the midwest and west, members of Ku Klux Klan and Nazi groups joined together for a deadly assault on an anti-Klan rally in Greensboro, North Carolina on November 3, 1979. Five members and supporters of the Communist Workers Party were killed in the shootout. Following the Greensboro shootings and the death of Gordon Kahl, a number of previouslyantagonistic racist groups in America began to make contact with each other, and began to establish informal means of communication and information sharing. Christian Identity was the glue than held the groups together. Not all Klan groups accepted the new Identity-based coalition, but those that did began to call themselves the Fifth Era Klan to demark what they hoped would be the fifth period of growth by the Klan since its inception. The Fifth Era Klan adherents sought to forge ties with other racist groups across the nation. One concept hotly debated was the idea of a mass movement of white supremacists to the pacific northwest where there were relatively few minorities and a low population density. The idea was to create a racially-pure Aryan bastion, an idea that attracted Randy Weaver. Cooperation among racist groups was in the 1980's by the establishment of several racist computerized bulletin board systems and the distribution of a cable TV program "Race and Reason" hosted by California's Tom Metzger, head of White Aryan Resistance. Racist groups staged joint activities, sometimes built around survivalist encampments. As this cooperation became more formalized, what emerged was, in effect, a white racist alliance which shared a belief in Identity. One of the leaders of the movement in the northwest was Identity Pastor Richard Butler of the Church of Jesus Christ - Christian which operated out of a compound called Aryan Nations in Hayden Lake, Idaho, near the Weaver family home. The members of the group variously called The Order, White American Bastion, or The Silent Brotherhood, who were convicted in Seattle for staging armed robberies and mudering Denver talk show host Alan Berg, were predominantly adherents of Identity. According to the Klanwatch Intelligence Report of the Southern Poverty Law Center: "A look at the backgrounds of some of the 23 Order members prosecuted in Seattle illustrates the cooperation between radicals that now permeates the extremist right: Five had Klan ties, one had been a Nazi party member, a half-dozen were Aryan Nations, one was a veteran tax protester, four CSA's [Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord] five National Alliance membersI.Many of the 23 were united by IdentityI" "Aryan" or "White" as used by Identity ostensibly refers to persons of Nordic, Anglo-Saxon or Germanic stock, or at the very least, persons stemming from Northern or Middle European ancestors. The Identity definition of "Aryan" is more closely related to mythological or operatic reality rather than any scientific or anthropological definition of Indo-European peoples. Aryan actually is a term used by linguists to trace the common roots of the Indo- European languages. Christian Identity borrows paranoid conspiratorial beliefs from reactionary groups such as the John Birch Society. Birchers claim that secret cabals run most world governments under orders from wealthy elites such as the Rockefeller family acting through groups such as the Trilateralist Commission, the Bilderberger banking conference, the Council on Foreign Relations, and officials of the Federal Reserve Bank. From ultra-right Christian fundamentalists comes the idea of a secular humanist conspiracy involving liberal elites such as radical academics, teachers union leaders, journalists and network television programmers and gay men and lesbians who pave the way for leftists, socialists and communists. These are the core beliefs of persons such as Reed Irvine of Accuracy in Academia and Accuracy in Media, and Phyllis Schlafly of the Eagle Forum. Pat Robertson, leader of the Christian Coalition, recently wrote a book attacking president Bush's New World Order and echoing many paranoid conspiratorial charges of the reactionary and fascist right. Robertson also throws in a discussion of sinister networks of Masonic lodges and the shadowy Illuminati group. It is these reactionary forces that made TV appearances during the Republican convention. White supremacists add to the bizare brew a list of racial enemies such as Jews, Blacks, Latinos, Asians, Indians, indeed all non-Aryans. The Posse Comitatus also sees as agents of the conspiracy all state and national elected politicians, and all law enforcement officials above level of county sheriff such as game wardens, Internal Revenue Service agents, federal marshalls, and the FBI. Christian Identity wraps all the conspiracy theories together and adds the myth that white Christian Americans are God's Chosen People fighting a religious war against satanic forces. Identity combines the worst aspects of Hitlerian racial theories, the Spanish Inquisition and the Crusades. Persons who believe in Christian Identity generally: * Support White Power & Aryan Supremecy; * Believe in Black genetic inferiority; * Possess Romanticized notions of Aryan culture; * Are virulently anti-Communist; * Manifest a jingoistic patriotism a la "Rambo;" * Mistrust government & law enforcement; * Fear Black power & Black pride; * See media coverage of non- Aryans as a Jewish-Communist Plot; * Resent Black job gains in the working class & professions; * Think Black politicians are pawns of Jews; * Believe Black activism is directed from Moscow or Tel Aviv; * Practice armed survivalism as a defensive necessity. Identity theories permeate the Populist Party. Currently running for President under the Populist Party banner is Bo Gritz, who served as the negotiator who brought Randy Weaver out of his cabin to surrender to authorities. Gritz has called for right and left to join forces to smash the government. The fascist right has targetted for recruitment members of tax protest groups, farm and ranch organizations, former or current members of the Ku Klux Klan and various nazi groups, supporters of Lyndon LaRouche, persons organizing against government repression or covert action, alternative health care advocates, antiwar organizers, and persons concerned about peace in the Middle East. Gritz, however, primarily seeks to build networks of support in reactionary and far-right circles. He made a presentation on "MIA/POW & Government Drug Dealers" at the Third Christian Heritage National Conference held in November of 1990 in Florida. Among other featured speakers were Bob Weems, Pete Peters, Col. Jack Mohr and other persons who promote Christian Identity. Also speaking were Eustace Mullins, who provided the "Total Conspiracy Update," and A.J. Barker, national chairman of the Populist Party which ran David Duke for President in 1988 with Gritz as the original vice-presidential nominee. Gritz later dropped off the ticket to run for local office, and now makes excuses for his earlier affiliation with Duke. Gritz claims he opposes racism and is trying to clean up the Populist Party. But as Zeskind of the Center for Democratic Renewal explains, "Gritz's standard stump speech is an amalgam of themes popular among white supremacists and others on the far right: the Federal Reserve System (FED) is unconstitutional and should be abolished and a vast conspiracy of "internationalists" are taking over the world." Pastor Pete Peters, a leading proponent of the Christian Identity religion, helped publish and distribute Gritz's book "Called to Serve," which is used to promote the Gritz presidential campaign. In a speech at Peter's Colorado headquarters, Gritz acknowledged Peters' assistance. In his book Gritz writes that "Eight jewish families virtually control the FED." In the past the KKK and other racist and fascist groups in the U.S. intertwined with the political and law enforcement power structure of the communities in which they operated, especially in the rural South. The new racist Identity movement, however, is openly hostile toward most law enforcement officers because they are seen as collaborating with the Zionist Occupational Government. Thus Identity's critique of government miscoduct is central to their ideology, and has resulted in repeated armed conflicts with government agencies which in turn have used questionable tactics to target this sector of the racist right. Police brutality should be opposed whether it is used against Rodney King or Randy Weaver, but persons fighting government misconduct must also ensure they do not become pawns of fascist political movements using anti-government appeals to mask their underlying white supremacist goals. Chip Berlet is the director of Political Researcch Asssociates and can be reached at 14 Beacon St #407, Boston, MA 02108; (617) 661-9313; cberlet@igc.apc.org --- 30 --- From cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!cis.ohio-state.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!agate!ames!sgi!cdp!cberlet Sat Oct 10 16:56:56 PDT 1992 Article: 6264 of alt.conspiracy Path: oneb!cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!cis.ohio-state.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!agate!ames!sgi!cdp!cberlet From: NLG Civil Liberties Committee Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy Date: 08 Oct 92 16:08 PDT Subject: Re: Growth of Christian Identity Sender: Notesfile to Usenet Gateway Message-ID: <1299600095@igc.apc.org> References: <1299600066@igc.apc.org> Nf-ID: #R:cdp:1299600066:cdp:1299600095:000:1972 Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!cberlet Oct 8 16:08:00 1992 Lines: 37 Andy Byler claims that since I am a member of the National Lawyers Guild, I am a communist. Wrong, Andy. The original charge that the NLG was a "communist front" was made during the McCarthy period. The Attorney General of the U.S., on the basis of the charge, listed the NLG as a "Subversive" group. The NLG, which is not a "communist front" sued the Attorney General (Brownell) demanding that he either present evidence or retract the false charge. After much foot-dragging the Attorney general withdrew the false charge. I once wrote an essay on the subject if you are interested. I have always objected to all forms of state repression whether they are communist or capitalist. I have never been attracted to communism because I have this attachment to the Bill of Rights. It's failure to preserve civil liberties in practice is its worst indictment, and Leninism in particular seems to create repressive bureaucracies. I have written at length in opposition to Stalinism. For these and other reasons I am not a communist. You may be interested in knowing that the false charge that someone is a communist is recognized under the law as "libel per se" which means the person making the charge has to prove it or it becomes a libel and then the only question is how much damages and other monetary considerations are awarded. The John Birch Society once claimed that Chicago attorney Elmer Gertz was a member of the NLG and thus was a communist. Gertz sued, and won hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages, nearly sending the Birch Society into bankruptcy. I would encourage you to retract your statement as soon as possible and accompany it with an apology. I take this kind of false statement very seriously--as a journalist and paralegal the charge could damage my reputation and my livelihood--but in the spirit of free online debate I will settle for the retraction and apology and write it off as an ill-informed error on your part. -Chip Berlet From cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!menudo.uh.edu!ccsvax.sfasu.edu!f_gautjw Sat Oct 10 16:57:30 PDT 1992 Article: 6269 of alt.conspiracy Path: oneb!cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!menudo.uh.edu!ccsvax.sfasu.edu!f_gautjw From: f_gautjw@ccsvax.sfasu.edu Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy Subject: Re: Growth of Christian Identity Message-ID: <1992Oct10.161238.1448@ccsvax.sfasu.edu> Date: 10 Oct 92 16:12:38 CST References: <1299600066@igc.apc.org> <1299600095@igc.apc.org> Organization: Stephen F. Austin State University Lines: 33 In article <1299600095@igc.apc.org>, NLG Civil Liberties Committee writes: > > > Andy Byler claims that since I am a member of the National Lawyers > Guild, I am a communist. Wrong, Andy. [Text deleted] > You may be interested in knowing that the false charge that > someone is a communist is recognized under the law as "libel per > se" which means the person making the charge has to prove it or it > becomes a libel and then the only question is how much damages and [Text deleted] > > -Chip Berlet What about calling people fascists? Your list seems to be a long one including names from Ezra Pound to Bo Gritz and a broad range of patriotic citizens you lump into your "Christian Identity Movement". Lately you have been hinting that you think maybe Perot's running mate falls in the fascist category. Is calling a patriot a fascist not libelous? For years it was standard operating procedure for communist writers to call those who disagreed with them reactionary fascists. You may have no sympathy for the communist party but should you really be surprised if your broad definition of and use of the word fascist evokes such a response from someone on the net? Is this an attempt of yours to intimidate those on the net who have the audacity to disagree with someone who perhaps is accustomed to speaking to more sympathetic audiences already in tune with their viewpoints? From cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!linac!att!cbnewse!cbnewsd!att-out!pacbell.com!charon.amdahl.com!amdahl!key!rburns Mon Oct 12 22:25:10 PDT 1992 Article: 6325 of alt.conspiracy Path: oneb!cs.ubc.ca!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!linac!att!cbnewse!cbnewsd!att-out!pacbell.com!charon.amdahl.com!amdahl!key!rburns From: rburns@key.COM (Randy Burns) Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy Subject: Re: Growth of Christian Identity Message-ID: <3729@key.COM> Date: 12 Oct 92 20:34:21 GMT References: <1299600066@igc.apc.org> <1299600095@igc.apc.org> Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Advanced Systems, Fremont CA Lines: 28 In article <1299600095@igc.apc.org>, cberlet@igc.apc.org (NLG Civil Liberties Committee) writes: > Andy Byler claims that since I am a member of the National Lawyers > Guild, I am a communist. OK, how would you describe the orientation of the National Lawyers guild? Would it be fair to say that the NLG an orientation towards "economic democracy"? What is your own economic ideology? I just want to know exactly what is the intellectual ax that you are grinding. > You may be interested in knowing that the false charge that > someone is a communist is recognized under the law as "libel per > se" which means the person making the charge has to prove it or it > becomes a libel and then the only question is how much damages and > other monetary considerations are awarded. The John Birch Society > once claimed that Chicago attorney Elmer Gertz was a member of the > NLG and thus was a communist. Gertz sued, and won hundreds of > thousands of dollars in damages, nearly sending the Birch Society > into bankruptcy. Which proves only to me that the NLG has more powerful lawyers than the John Birch society. I don't see that much difference between most of the JBS accusations of "communism"(small C intential to distinguish it from accusation of active involvement with the former Soviet government) and your own accusation of facism towards folks like Stockdale. My honest guess is that there may have been as more Marxists associated with the NLG as there have been folks with real intellectual identification with the facist governments of Spain, Italy or Germany who have been associated with the Rockford Institute. Please correct me if this impression is mistaken.
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