Aryan Nations is a North American

antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

neo-Nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...

white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other Race (human classification), races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any Power (social and polit ...

organization that was originally based in

Kootenai County Kootenai County ( ) is located in the U.S. state of Idaho. In 2020, the United States Census Bureau estimated the county's population at 171,362, making it the third-most populous county in Idaho and by far the largest in North Idaho, the count ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

, about miles (4.4 km) north of the city of

Hayden Lake Lake Hayden, also known as Hayden Lake, is a lake located Kootenai County, Idaho Idaho ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–Unit ...

Richard Girnt Butler Richard Girnt Butler (February 23, 1918 – September 8, 2004) was an American engineer and white supremacist. After dedicating himself to the Christian Identity movement, a racialist offshoot of British Israelism, Butler founded the neo-Na ...

founded the group in the 1970s. In 2001 the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

(FBI) classified Aryan Nations as a "terrorist threat." In a review of terrorist organizations, the

RAND Corporation The RAND Corporation (from the phrase "research and development") is an American nonprofit global policy think tank created in 1948 by Douglas Aircraft Company to offer research and analysis to the United States Armed Forces. It is financed ...

called it the "first truly nationwide terrorist network" in the United States and Canada.

History

The beliefs of Aryan Nations are based on the teachings of

Wesley A. Swift Wesley A. Swift (September 6, 1913 – October 8, 1970) was a minister from Southern California who was known for his white supremacist views and was the central figure in Christian Identity from the 1940s until his death in 1970. Early life and ...

, a leading figure in the early

Christian Identity Christian Identity (also known as Identity Christianity) is an interpretation of Christianity which advocates the belief that only Celtic and Germanic peoples, such as the Anglo-Saxon, Nordic nations, or Aryan people and people of kindred blood ...

movement. Swift combined

British Israelism British Israelism (also called Anglo-Israelism) is the British nationalist, pseudoarchaeological, pseudohistorical and pseudoreligious belief that the people of Great Britain are "genetically, racially, and linguistically the direct descendant ...

, extreme

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

, and political militancy. He founded his own church in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

in the mid-1940s. He hosted a daily radio broadcast in California during the 1950s and 1960s. In 1957, the name of his church was changed to the

Church of Jesus Christ–Christian The Church of Jesus Christ–Christian is an American Christian Identity, white supremacist church, which was founded in 1946 by Ku Klux Klan organizer Wesley A. Swift. Swift was the son of a Methodist Episcopal Church, South minister and is con ...

, which continues to be used by Aryan Nations churches. From 1974 until 2001, Aryan Nations headquarters was located in a 20-acre (8.1 ha) compound 1.8 miles (3 km) north of

Hayden, Idaho Hayden is a city in Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. Located in the northern portion of the state, it is a suburb of nearby Coeur d'Alene and its population was 15,570 at the 2020 census. History The origins of the city of Hayden has ...

. The Aryan Nations had a number of state chapters, but it was highly decentralized and the chapters' ties to the organization's headquarters were extremely loose. The group hosted an annual World Congress of Aryan Nations at Hayden Lake for Aryan Nations members and members of similar groups. Until 1998, the leadership of the Aryan Nations remained firmly in the hands of

. By that time, he was over 80 years old and his health was poor. At the annual Aryan Nations World Congress in 2001, Neuman Britton was appointed to lead the Aryan Nations as Butler's successor. But in August 2001, after Britton died, Butler appointed Harold Ray Redfeairn who was from Ohio to lead the Aryan Nations as his successor; he had been agitating for control of the organization since the mid-1990s. Redfeairn had brought in Dave Hall, an

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

informant who exposed the group's illegal activities. After this was discovered, Redfeairn was distrusted by some in the group. Redfeairn and

August Kreis III August Byron Kreis III (born November 2, 1954) is an American neo-Nazi leader and convicted child molester. He was a member of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), the Posse Comitatus, and Aryan Nations. Biography It was during his high school days that Krei ...

, the propaganda minister for Aryan Nations, formed a splinter group, and Butler expelled them from Aryan Nations. A few months later, Redfeairn returned to form an alliance with Butler. Butler's 2002 World Congress drew fewer than 100 people, and when he ran for mayor, he lost, garnering only 50 votes against more than 2,100 votes. Redfeairn died in October 2003, and Butler died of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

in September 2004. At the time of Butler's death, Aryan Nations had about 200 actively participating members.

Shooting and lawsuit

In September 2000, the

Southern Poverty Law Center The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white su ...

(SPLC) won a $6.3 million judgment against Aryan Nations from an

jury, who awarded punitive and compensatory damages to plaintiffs Victoria Keenan and her son Jason. The two Native Americans had been beaten with rifles by Aryan Nations security guards in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho in July 1998. The woman and her son were driving near the Aryan Nations compound when their car

backfired "Backfired" is the debut solo single from American singer and Blondie vocalist Debbie Harry. Released in 1981, it was taken from her debut solo studio album, ''KooKoo''. Song information "Backfired" peaked at number 32 in the UK, and number 43 ...

, which the guards claimed to misinterpret as gunfire. The guards fired at the car, striking it several times. The car crashed and one of the Nations guards held the Keenans at gunpoint, beating them. The SPLC filed suit on behalf of the Keenans. A jury found that Butler and Aryan Nations were grossly negligent in selecting and supervising the guards, and awarded the Keenans $6.3 million. A local attorney from Keenan's legal team said that the large verdict was partly to compensate the Keenans, but largely to punish Butler and his followers, and serve to deter similar conduct in the future. The $6.3 million verdict caused Butler to file for bankruptcy one month later. As part of the bankruptcy process, the group's property was put up for auction. SPLC loaned the Keenans $95,000 to bid on the 20-acre property. In February 2001, the group's Hayden Lake compound and intellectual property, including the names "Aryan Nations" and "Church of Jesus Christ Christian", were transferred to the Keenans. Idaho native and millionaire philanthropist Greg Carr purchased the property from the Keenans, donating it to the

North Idaho College North Idaho College (NIC) is a public community college in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. It has an enrollment exceeding 6,000 and is situated at the north end of Lake Coeur d'Alene near downtown Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and Tubbs Hill, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho ...

Foundation. It has been converted to a park dedicated to peace. Local fire departments demolished some of the church's former buildings by burning them during training exercises.

Edgar Steele Edgar James Steele (July 5, 1945 – September 4, 2014) was an American author and disbarred trial lawyer, attorney from northern Idaho, best known for serving as the defense attorney for Richard G. Butler, the founder of the white supremacist g ...

, the attorney who had represented Butler, was later convicted of hiring a handyman to kill his own wife. In 2014, Steele died while serving a 50-year prison sentence.

Split and decline

There are three main Aryan Nations factions. One was led by Charles John Juba, followed by

. In 2012, Kreis stepped down as leader and designated Drew Bostwick as his successor. In 2002, Juba's group was based on a compound in the rural town of

Ulysses Ulysses is one form of the Roman name for Odysseus, a hero in ancient Greek literature. Ulysses may also refer to: People * Ulysses (given name), including a list of people with this name Places in the United States * Ulysses, Kansas * Ulysse ...

in Potter County, north central

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

; it hosted the 2002 Aryan Nations World Congress. Juba resigned in March 2005, announcing that Kreis was the group's new leader. Kreis established a new headquarters in Lexington,

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

and eventually moved it to near

Union City, Tennessee Union City is located in Obion County, Tennessee, United States. The 2020 census reported the population of the town as 11,170. It is the principal urban settlement of the surrounding micropolitan area, which includes Obion County and Fulton Count ...

. In 2005, Kreis received media attention by seeking an Aryan Nations–

al Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...

alliance. In 2005, the Holy Order of the

Phineas Priesthood The Phineas Priesthood, also called Phineas Priests, are American domestic terrorists who adhere to the ideology which was set forth in the 1990 book ''Vigilantes of Christendom: The Story of the Phineas Priesthood'' by Richard Kelly Hoskins. The ...

, formerly in association with the faction operated by Kreis, seceded and formed Aryan Nations Revival, based in New York City. The Holy Order was created in opposition to Kreis's acceptance of adherents of

Wicca Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

, and

Odinism Heathenry, also termed Heathenism, contemporary Germanic Paganism, or Germanic Neopaganism, is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religious studies classify it as a new religious movement. Developed in Europe during the early 20th cent ...

. It considered such groups to be a deviation from the core Christian Identity belief of Aryan Nations. This Revival rapidly became the largest faction. Aryan Nations Revival leaders were listed in the ''

Congressional Record The ''Congressional Record'' is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress, published by the United States Government Publishing Office and issued when Congress is in session. The Congressional Record Inde ...

'' as domestic terrorists. The government concluded that the Holy Order of the Brotherhood of the Phinehas Priesthood was the enforcement/terrorist wing of Aryan Nations. Aryan Nations Revival hosted a weekly radio broadcast titled ''The Aryan Nations Broadcast''. Airing from 1979 to 2009, the radio program was authorized by Richard Butler. The program ended when host

Hal Turner Harold Charles "Hal" Turner (born March 15, 1962) is an American far-right political commentator and convicted felon from North Bergen, New Jersey. Turner's viewpoints typically encompass Holocaust denial, conspiracy theories, white supremacy, ...

was arrested for threatening the lives of federal judges in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. While incarcerated, Turner announced, through his attorney, that he was a federal informant, and that Aryan Nations was among those organizations which had been informed upon. In 2009, Aryan Nations Revival, which was then based in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, merged with Pastor Jerald O'Brien's Aryan Nations, which was based in

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Coeur d'Alene ( ; french: Cœur d'Alène, lit=Heart of an stitching awl, Awl ) is a city and the county seat of Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. It is the largest city in North Idaho and the principal city of the Coeur d'Alene Metropolita ...

. Both parties were ardent Christian Identity adherents.

Symbols

The emblem (or shield) of the Aryan Nations is designed to reflect aspects of

Associates

In 1983,

Robert Jay Mathews Robert Jay Mathews (January 16, 1953 – December 8, 1984) was an American neo-Nazism, neo-Nazi activist and the leader of The Order (white supremacist group), The Order, an American White supremacy, white supremacist militant group. He was ki ...

, who had visited the Aryan Nations compound many times, formed The Order, along with Aryan Nations members Dan Bauer, Randy Duey, Denver Parmenter, and Bruce Pierce. The Order's mission was to overthrow the Zionist Occupational Government and establish the

Northwest Territorial Imperative The Northwest Territorial Imperative (often shortened to the Northwest Imperative or simply known as the Northwest Front) is a white separatist idea that has been popularized since the 1970s–80s by White nationalism, white nationalist, White su ...

through an orchestrated plot to commit acts of

domestic terrorism Domestic terrorism or homegrown terrorism is a form of terrorism in which victims "within a country are targeted by a perpetrator with the same citizenship" as the victims.Gary M. Jackson, ''Predicting Malicious Behavior: Tools and Techniques ...

, which would include

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wat ...

armed robbery Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or by use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the perso ...

theft Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for some ...

counterfeiting To counterfeit means to imitate something authentic, with the intent to steal, destroy, or replace the original, for use in illegal transactions, or otherwise to deceive individuals into believing that the fake is of equal or greater value tha ...

, and extortion between 1983 and 1984. Dennis McGiffen, who also had ties to Aryan Nations, formed a group called "The New Order", inspired by Mathews' group. The members were arrested before they could follow through with their violent plans. Buford O. Furrow, Jr., who was convicted of both the

Los Angeles Jewish Community Center shooting On August 10, 1999, at around 10:50 a.m. PT, American white supremacist Buford O. Furrow Jr. walked into the lobby of the North Valley Jewish Community Center in Granada Hills and opened fire with an Uzi sub machine gun, firing 70 bullet ...

and the murder of

Filipino American Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New S ...

postal worker Joseph Ileto, had previously worked as a security guard at the Aryan Nations compound for some time. On April 4, 2004, intending to start a "Race War", Sean Michael Gillespie (former member of Aryan Nations) threw a

Molotov cocktail A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see other names'') is a hand thrown incendiary weapon constructed from a frangible container filled with flammable substances equipped with a fuse (typically a glass bottle filled with flamma ...

at B'nai Temple Israel in the city of

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. There were no casualties, but the building sustained material damage. Gillespie was arrested in

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

, Arkansas, on April 16 of the same year, but it was not until August 2005 that he was sentenced to 39 years in prison for attacking the Jewish temple and then trying to send a racist letter to the congregation. The defendant raised his hand in a Nazi salute with stiff arms as the judge left the courtroom.

References

External links

Official website

Poisoning the Web: Hatred Online
��ADL article
Keenan vs Aryan Nations
��summary of a lawsuit against the Aryan Nations for its violent activities.
SPLC Hate Group Map of the USA
��includes Aryan Nations in "Neo-Nazi" category (archived)
FBI file on Aryan Nations
{{white nationalism British Israelism Christian fundamentalism Christianity and race Christianity and violence Groups claiming Israelite descent Late modern Christian antisemitism Neo-Nazi organizations in the United States Nordicism Politics and race Prejudice and discrimination by type Pseudohistory Terrorism in the United States White-supremacist organized crime groups in the United States 1970s establishments in Idaho