Multiple sources are linking Gavin Long to homegrown hate groups.

[KMOD]

The gunman was identified by CBS as Gavin Eugene Long. Multiple reports linked Long to homegrown hate groups. The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, said he belonged to an antigovernment group called the New Freedom Group. MSNBC reported he belonged to a different group, called the Sovereign Citizens.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/multiple-baton-rouge-police-officers-killed-shooting-attack-article-1.2714761

[villager]

1. A *black* guy belonged to those groups... in Missouri?

[Joe the Revelator]

2. and just happened to show up in Baton Rouge...

...this has nothing to do with recent events at all.

[NutmegYankee]

7. The SPLC does report that the sovereign citizen movement has made inroads in the AA community.

And directly noted the irony considering the white supremacist leanings of the original movement.

[villager]

8. Don't know if I'd call them "inroads," exactly...

...thanks for the info, though....

[NutmegYankee]

10. This is what i was quoting:

https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/ideology/sovereign-citizens-movement

The movement is rooted in racism and anti-Semitism, though most sovereigns, many of whom are African American, are unaware of their beliefs' origins. In the early 1980s, the sovereign citizens movement mostly attracted white supremacists and anti-Semites, mainly because sovereign theories originated in groups that saw Jews as working behind the scenes to manipulate financial institutions and control the government. Most early sovereigns, and some of those who are still on the scene, believed that being white was a prerequisite to becoming a sovereign citizen. They argued that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which guaranteed citizenship to African Americans and everyone else born on U.S. soil, also made black Americans permanently subject to federal and state governments, unlike themselves.

......

Recruits
In the late 2000s and early 2010s, most new recruits to the sovereign citizens movement are people who have found themselves in a desperate situation, often due to the economy or foreclosures, and are searching for a quick fix. Others are intrigued by the notions of easy money and living a lawless life, free from unpleasant consequences. Many self-identified sovereigns today are black and apparently completely unaware of the racist origins of their ideology. When they experience some small success at using redemption techniques to battle minor traffic offenses or local licensing issues, they're hooked. For many, it's a political issue. They don't like taxes, traffic laws, child support obligations or banking practices, but they are too impatient to try to change what they dislike through traditional, political means.

[villager]

11. Thanks for the expansion. What I actually meant was that "inroads" often has a positive

....connotation, whereas the "Sovereign" movement will be anything but for anyone of color, should they at all "prevail..."

[NutmegYankee]

12. Your view of inroads and mine are out of sync - mine is negative.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inroad


Definition of inroad

1
: a sudden hostile incursion : raid

2
: an advance or penetration often at the expense of someone or something —usually used in plural

[villager]

13. I guess we differ. "Inroads" has also connoted a kind of group "interconnection," at least

...when talking about the "ability" to expand memberships...

But yeah, it's probably too fine a point to worry about much, given the other shades of meaning it has, too....

[MrScorpio]

3. Every time I hear someone describe themselves as a "Sovereign Citizen..."

I pretty much expect them to use THAT as an excuse to be an asshole.

[KMOD]

6. from what little I've read about them,

I think being an asshole is a requirement.

[6chars]

4. New Freedom Group?

google indicates that is a substance abuse rehab group. There is a Freedom Group (not new) that is anti-government.

[MattP]

5. Freedom group is for tea party extremists

[Cal Carpenter]

9. There are a lot of different groups in this movement

The overall movement is usually labelled sovereign citizens, but there are a lot of variations on the theme, and racism/anti-semitism and other sort of social RW shit isn't universal.

There are also individuals in the movement that don't identify with any particular group.

It isn't contradictory that a black person or other PoC would be part of this particular flavor of anti-government shit.