PROUD BOYS

Metropolitan Police Lt. Shane Lamond's testimony is crucial for the former Proud Boys national chairman's defense against seditious conspiracy and other serious charges stemming from the attack, Tarrio's attorneys say. The Washington Post reported in February that Lamond was placed on leave as part of an investigation into his contacts with the Proud Boys. Lamond, an intelligence officer for the police force, was responsible for monitoring groups like the Proud Boys when they came to Washington. Tarrio told Lamond that Proud Boys would not be wearing their traditional colors of black and yellow in order to protect themselves from possible attacks from antifa activists. “How can there be sedition if the Proud Boys are informing law enforcement of their plans on Jan. 6?” Tarrio attorney Sabino Jauregui said during a recent hearing.

A legal fight has erupted over a Washington D.C. police officer who was communicating with Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol attack that could shape the outcome of the upcoming trial of Tarrio and other far-right extremists. Metropolitan Police Lt. Shane Lamond's testimony is crucial for the former Proud Boys national chairman's defense against seditious conspiracy and other serious charges stemming from the attack, Tarrio's attorneys say.

Defense attorneys for Henry “Enrique” Tarrio say their client provided Lt. Shane Lamond information on their locations during Capitol insurrection

Hot-button issues have made local education decisions part of the national political discussion.

An Aurora man who is an admitted member of the far-right group Proud Boys pleaded guilty Wednesday to using a flagpole to assault officers trying to hold back the violent mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

Students aired safety concerns prior to an event featuring Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes and his violent gang. University administrators called it a speech issue.

It was an abrupt reversal for the school, which had condemned the views of Gavin McInnes even as it said free speech required it to host the event. Protesters confronted each other and police.

Former White House national security adviser Michael Flynn is influential in the far-right Christian nationalist movement that has growing stature in the Republican Party.

The FBI, Capitol Police, D.C. police and other agencies gave the Secret Service intelligence about potential threats, says Rep. Adam B. Schiff.

As it made its case to bring Gavin McInnes to campus, a student group compared him to "many great comedians that have come before," who challenge the way people see the world.

In a message posted in an Oath Keepers chat room on Nov. 25, 2020, weeks after the presidential election, Rhodes allegedly stated: “Time to get serious about training. According to the prosecution, on Dec. 12, 2020, Rhodes warned an Oath Keepers “Old Leadership Chat” group online that “We are going to have a fight. “I can only guess about what is going on in his head,” he allegedly wrote in the Oath Keepers group chat, according to evidence introduced by prosecutors. Prosecutors say that he posted messages to fellow Proud Boys urging them to participate in a Capitol siege and at one point posted a message on a public social media account declaring “DO NOT GO HOME. Earlier this year, three Oath Keepers members pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy in connection with the Jan. 6 riot.

Bertino's cooperation could ratchet up the pressure on other Proud Boys charged in the siege. The charging document for Bertino's case names those five defendants and a sixth Proud Boys member as his co-conspirators. Proud Boys members describe the group as a politically incorrect men’s club for “Western chauvinists.” They have brawled with antifascist activists at rallies and protests. Nordean, of Auburn, Washington, was a Proud Boys chapter president and a member of the group’s national “Elders Council.” Biggs, of Ormond Beach, Florida, is a self-described Proud Boys organizer. Pezzola is a Proud Boys member from Rochester, New York.

He is the first member of the Proud Boys to plead guilty to seditious conspiracy.

Jeremy Joseph Bertino, 43, has agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department's investigation of the role that Proud Boys leaders played in the mob's attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, a federal prosecutor said. Bertino also pleaded guilty to a charge of unlawfully possessing firearms in March 2022 in Belmont, North Carolina. The Civil War-era seditious conspiracy charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. More than three dozen people charged in the Capitol siege have been identified by federal authorities as leaders, members or associates of the Proud Boys. Proud Boys members describe the group as a politically incorrect men’s club for “Western chauvinists.” They have brawled with antifascist activists at rallies and protests.

A North Carolina man has pleaded guilty to plotting with other members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group to violently stop the transfer of presidential power after the 2020 election.

Jeremy Bertino was in inner circle of right-wing group led by Henry ‘Enrique’ Tarrio, accused with some Oath Keepers of planning violence to oppose President Biden's inauguration.

The Maryland man is affiliated with the far-right Proud Boys extremist group.

Prosecutors had recommended a five-year prison sentence for Pruitt, a Silver Spring, Maryland, resident who has worked as a bartender and personal trainer. They described him as an aspiring Proud Boys member whose intimidating figure made him an “ideal recruit” for the group on Jan. 6. Defense attorney Robert Jenkins Jr. said there is no “direct evidence” that Pruitt coordinated with Proud Boys members to attack the Capitol. Vice Media co-founder Gavin McInnes founded the Proud Boys in 2016. Dozens of Proud Boys leaders, members and associates have been charged with Capitol riot-related crimes.

A Maryland man affiliated with the far-right Proud Boys extremist group was sentenced on Monday to more than four years in prison for storming the U.S. Capitol, where authorities say he encountered Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer as his armed security detail led the New York Democrat to safety. Joshua Pruitt, 40, was one of the few Capitol rioters to come face-to-face with a member of Congress during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack by a mob of Donald Trump supporters, according to federal prosecutors. “One look at Pruitt, and the leader of Senator Schumer’s security detail immediately saw the threat and hustled the 70-year-old senator down a hallway, having to change their evacuation route on a dime,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexis Loeb wrote in a court filing ahead of Monday's hearing.

MENLO PARK, Calif. — (AP) — Facebook parent Meta says it has removed a network of accounts linked to the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group it banned in 2018. Meta said on Thursday that it recently uncovered and removed about 480 Facebook and Instagram accounts, pages and groups linked to the Proud Boys. That brought the total number of Proud Boys assets it has removed to around 750 this year, it said. Such tactics are commonly used by extremist groups and those spreading misinformation as they try to evade social media companies' crackdowns. On the day of the riot, Proud Boys members carried out a coordinated plot to storm past police barricades and attack the building with a mob of Trump supporters, the indictment says.

Facebook parent Meta says it has removed a network of accounts linked to the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group it banned in 2018.

The police investigation into the storming of Congress is one of the biggest in US history.

Former Oath Keepers spokesman Jason Van Tatenhove left little doubt about the intentions of the white nationalist militia group on Jan. 6.

Lawmakers shared evidence that tied Trump's associate Roger Stone and Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn to the Proud Boys.

The longtime Trump associate is on video reciting a creed that's known as "the first level of initiation" into the far-right group Proud Boys.

The extremist group, already fighting on Trump's behalf, understood where and when he wanted them to do so.

As dozens of lawsuits and false claims of voter fraud fizzled, Trump tweeted the rally invitation, a pivotal moment, the committee said.

Tuesday's 1 p.m. ET hearing will look at the role of extremist organizations on the Jan. 6 Capitol attack — and the groups' possible connection to former President Donald Trump.

The panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol siege is set to convene Tuesday for a public hearing probing what it calls the final phase of Trump's multi-pronged effort to halt Joe Biden's victory. The far-right Proud Boys, Oath Keepers and others now facing criminal charges readily answered. The Oath Keepers have denied there was any plan to storm the Capitol. The Oath Keepers had also been organizing for Jan. 6 and established a “quick response force” at a nearby hotel in Virginia, according to court filings. The panel also intends to discuss the way many of the Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 appeared to be QAnon believers.

For Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Fla., investigating who was responsible for the riot at the U.S. Capitol Building is vital and personal.

The bar was hosting a drag show Thursday when about 10 people showed up to yell about “pedophiles” and harass bar operators and patrons.

For many LGBTQ individuals and communities across the nation, Pride 2022 has been unlike any other in recent memory.

The South Pacific nation also designated far-right extremist group The Base a terrorist organization.

Proud Boys Chairman Enrique Tarrio and four other members were federally charged earlier this month with conspiring to overthrow the government by attacking the Capitol in the Jan. 6 riots.

New Zealand Proud Boys New Zealand Police Minister Chris Hipkins during his press conference at Parliament, Wellington, New Zealand, Thursday, June 30, 2022. New Zealand's government has declared that American far-right groups the Proud Boys and The Base are terrorist organizations. (Mark Mitchell/New Zealand Herald via AP) (Mark Mitchell)WELLINGTON, New Zealand — (AP) — New Zealand's government has declared that American far-right groups the Proud Boys and The Base are terrorist organizations. But the Proud Boys were last year named a terrorist group in Canada, while The Base has previously been declared a terrorist group in Britain, Canada and Australia. The statement said there are unlinked but ideologically affiliated chapters of the Proud Boys operating in Canada and Australia.

New Zealand’s government has declared American far-right groups the Proud Boys and The Base are terrorist organizations, making it illegal in New Zealand to fund, recruit or participate in them.

One week before scores of Proud Boys helped lead a pro-Trump mob in a violent assault on the Capitol last year, Enrique Tarrio, the chairman of the group, and some of his top lieutenants held a foul-mouthed video conference with a hand-picked crew of members. The meeting, on Dec. 30, 2020, marked the founding of a special new chapter of the Proud Boys called the Ministry of Self-Defense. The team of several dozen trusted members was intended, Tarrio told his men, to bring a level of order and pr

Prosecutors allege the reservist made "chilling statements" against government officials and people of Jewish descent to an undercover FBI agent.

Capitol Riot Naval Reservist Arrested FILE - Insurrectionists loyal to President Donald Trump breach the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021. Naval reservist who was assigned to an agency that operates spy satellites told an undercover FBI agent that he stormed the U.S. Capitol with members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group, according to court records unsealed on Thursday, June 23, 2022. Naval reservist who was assigned to an agency that operates spy satellites told an undercover FBI agent that he stormed the U.S. Capitol with members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group and has espoused anti-government and antisemitic ideologies, federal authorities said in court records unsealed on Thursday. The FBI says Speed, whose birth name was Daniel Abraham Speed, is a petty officer first class in the U.S. In March, Speed met with with an FBI undercover employee who “presented to Speed as a like-minded individual,” an FBI agent said in a court filing.

The FBI says a U.S. Naval reservist charged with storming the U.S. Capitol told an undercover agent he went there with members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group.

A U.S. Naval reservist who was assigned to an agency that operates spy satellites told an undercover FBI agent that he stormed the U.S. Capitol with members of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group and has espoused anti-government and antisemitic ideologies, federal authorities said in court records unsealed on Thursday. Hatchet Speed was arrested on Wednesday in McLean, Virginia, on misdemeanor charges stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, including disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, court records show. The FBI says Speed, whose birth name was Daniel Abraham Speed, is a petty officer first class in the U.S. Naval Reserves and was assigned to the Naval Warfare Space Field Activity at the National Reconnaissance Office.

Defense attorneys for several of the men argued that their clients couldn’t get a fair trial by an impartial jury so soon after Jan.6 hearings.

Defense attorneys for several of the men argued that their clients couldn’t get a fair trial by an impartial jury so soon after Jan.6 hearings.

Several defendants and prosecutors warned that the planned release of a public report and witness transcripts from the high-profile House investigation into the Jan. 6 Capitol attack could upend trial preparations

A federal judge has agreed to postpone a trial for the former leader of the Proud Boys and other members of the far-right extremist group charged with attacking the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying the Electoral College vote.

Prosecutors and defense lawyers say the high-profile Jan. 6 congressional hearings could jeopardize fairness in upcoming criminal trials.

The third hearing on the attack on the Capitol revealed that the Proud Boys would have killed the Vice-President “if given the chance.”

An Ormond Beach man who was highlighted in a new video released by the January 6 Select Committee last week is asking a federal judge to delay is trial.

The goal was to "maintain control over as select few, but crucial buildings in the DC area for a set period of time, presenting our demands in unity," the memo said.

The goal was to "maintain control over as select few, but crucial buildings in the DC area for a set period of time, presenting our demands in unity," the memo said.

He also noted that the Proud Boys members who disrupted Saturday’s reading event were not believed to be from the San Lorenzo community. “We believe there’s a group connected in San Mateo County, so we believe these people crossed the bay for this event." It was held by the public library & Bay Area drag queen Panda Dulce. Going after drag culture provides cover under the argument that drag queens reading to children is inappropriate or untoward. Contrary to what Drag Queen Story Hour opponents claim, Hamilt said the group isn’t trying to persuade or “indoctrinate” anyone; they exist for the people who want and need them.

Florida leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers were spotlighted during the first televised hearing of the January 6 Select Committee on Thursday.

The House committee investigating January 6 highlighted Donald Trump's role emboldening far-right groups including the Proud Boys.

Capitol Riot Investigation An activist holds a sign next to a line of people waiting to enter the Cannon Building, Thursday, June 9, 2022, in Washington. The House select committee will have its first public hearing in its investigation of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The hearing is expected to reveal the findings of a year-long investigation. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said "the world is watching" the U.S. response to the panel's yearlong investigation into the Capitol riot and the defeated president's extraordinary effort to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden's election victory. The hearing also featured accounts from Trump aides and family members, interviewed behind closed doors.

Capitol Riot Investigation U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger talks to a U.S. Capitol Police officer as he walks on Capitol Hill, Thursday, June 9, 2022, in Washington. The House select committee will have its first public hearing in its investigation of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said "the world is watching" the U.S. response to the panel's year-long investigation into the Capitol attack and the defeated president's extraordinary effort to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden's election victory. The 1/6 panel's yearlong investigation will begin to show how America's tradition of a peaceful transfer of presidential power came close to slipping away. Instead, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ushered the creation of the 1/6 panel through Congress over the objections of Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

The former Florida leader of the Proud Boys pleaded not guilty to seditious conspiracy charge in the Capitol Riot in the Washington, D.C. courtroom Thursday.

The first public hearing of the U.S. House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack put a spotlight on two far-right extremist groups whose members are accused of plotting for weeks to stop the peaceful transfer of power.

Capitol Riot Investigation The Targets FILE - Rioters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. It will reconstruct how Trump refused to concede the 2020 election, spread false claims of voter fraud and orchestrated an unprecedented public and private campaign to overturn Biden's victory. The result of the coming weeks of public hearings may not change hearts or minds in politically polarized America. But the committee's investigation with 1,000 interviews is intended to stand as a public record for history. Emotions are still raw at the Capitol, and security will be tight for the hearings.

The seditious conspiracy charges are among the most serious filed so far.

The House panel investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol will open a prime-time hearing Thursday with a focus on far-right extremists who broke into the building that day.

The former Florida leader of the Proud Boys, alongside other leaders of the far-right group, is charged with conspiracy charges in the Capitol Riot as of Monday, court documents show.

Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and his codefendants are the second group indicted on the most serious charge brought in the sprawling investigation of the Jan. 6 riots.

The former top leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group and other members have been charged with seditious conspiracy for what federal prosecutors say was a coordinated attack on the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral victory.

The former top leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group and other members were charged Monday with seditious conspiracy for what federal prosecutors say was a coordinated attack on the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral victory. The latest indictment against Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, the former Proud Boys chairman, and four others linked to the group comes as the U.S. House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot prepares to begin public hearings this week to lay out its findings.

A federal judge has ruled that former Proud Boys national chairman Henry “Enrique” Tarrio must remain jailed while awaiting trial on charges that he conspired with other members of the far-right extremist group to attack the U.S. Capitol.

New documents show a former Apopka police officer charged for his involvement in the Capitol Hill riot served as a leader of a local Proud Boys chapter at the time of his arrest.

A North Carolina man has become the second member of the Proud Boys to plead guilty to conspiring with other members of the extremist group to stop Congress from certifying the Electoral College vote.

Proud Boys leader Henry “Enrique” Tarrio has pleaded not guilty to charges that he remotely led a plot to stop Congress’ certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 victory.

A leader in the far-right Proud Boys extremist group will remain jailed until his trial on charges that he remotely led a plot to stop Congress’ certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential victory.

A leader in the far-right Proud Boys extremist group will remain jailed until his trial on charges that he remotely led a plot to stop Congress’ certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential victory.

A leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group was arrested Tuesday on a conspiracy charge for what federal prosecutors say was his role in a coordinated attack on the U.S. Capitol last year.

Three Central Florida members of the Oath Keepers group will still go to trial in April for their alleged roles in the Capitol Hill riot, according to federal court documents, despite a new indictment being handed down.

A federal judge has refused to throw out an indictment charging four alleged leaders of the far-right Proud Boys with conspiring to attack the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s electoral victory.

A New York man has pleaded guilty to storming the U.S. Capitol with fellow members of the far-right Proud Boys.

The District of Columbia has filed a civil lawsuit seeking harsh financial penalties against far-right groups Proud Boys and Oath Keepers over their role in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump.

The U.S. Marshals Service says suspects being held in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection do not need to be removed from the District of Columbia jail despite their complaints about conditions there.

A federal judge has held the director of the District of Columbia’s Department of Corrections and the warden of the city’s jail in contempt of court.

Nearly three weeks after armed far-right and far-left protesters violently clashed in the streets of a diverse neighborhood in Portland, Oregon, the city’s mayor says the lack of police intervention was “not the right strategy.”.

The leader of the Proud Boys extremist group, Enrique Tarrio, has been sentenced to five months in jail.

Opposing rallies that drew hundreds of people in Portland, Oregon, are sparking clashes Sunday.

An Orange County sheriff’s deputy has been cleared of any wrongdoing following the arrest of her husband, a self-described member of the Proud Boys who was arrested for allegedly taking part in the January riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Former President Donald Trump’s lies about a stolen 2020 election united right-wing supporters, conspiracy theorists and militants on Jan. 6.

A federal judge has ordered two Proud Boys organizers to return to jail after revoking their bail on charges in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol building in Washington, D.C.

A federal judge has ordered two leaders of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group to be arrested and jailed while awaiting trial on charges they planned and coordinated an attack on the U.S. Capitol to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s electoral victory.

ORLANDO, Fla. – A Proud Boys member who made his way inside the Senate chamber and took a selfie there during the U.S. Capitol riot earlier this year was arrested in Central Florida, according to federal authorities. Jackman was also seen with Joseph Biggs, a Proud Boys organizer who was also taken into custody in Central Florida, records show. He said he and the other Proud Boys were not there to infiltrate the Capitol and it was not a sanctioned Proud Boys event. According to the report, the Proud Boys members who attended went incognito instead of wearing their signature black and yellow polo shirts. AdAmong the most notable local suspects are a Sanford firefighter, a Proud Boys organizer and a Marion County man who was previously convicted of attempted murder.

In this Jan. 6, 2021, photo, Proud Boys including Joseph Biggs, front left, walks toward the U.S. Capitol in Washington, in support of President Donald Trump. The Proud Boys even have counted some law enforcement officers among their ranks, including a Connecticut police officer and a Louisiana sheriff’s deputy. AdThe FBI would not comment on why agents were meeting with Biggs or why the bureau was trying to solicit information about antifa through the Proud Boys. Biggs, 37, of Ormond Beach, Florida, wouldn't be the first Proud Boys informant. Proud Boys members describe themselves as a politically incorrect men’s club for “Western chauvinists.” Vice Media co-founder Gavin McInnes, who founded the Proud Boys in 2016, sued the Southern Poverty Law Center for labeling it as a hate group.

AdTarrio hasn't been charged in connection with the riots, but the latest indictment refers to him by his title as Proud Boys' chairman. Nordean, 30, of Auburn, Washington, was a Proud Boys chapter president and member of the group’s national “Elders Council.” Biggs, 37, of Ormond Beach, Florida, is a self-described Proud Boys organizer. Proud Boys members, who describe themselves as a politically incorrect men’s club for “Western chauvinists,” have frequently engaged in street fights with antifascist activists at rallies and protests. Vice Media co-founder Gavin McInnes, who founded the Proud Boys in 2016, sued the Southern Poverty Law Center for labeling it as a hate group. Several Proud Boys also entered the Capitol building itself after the mob smashed windows and forced open doors.

In this Jan. 6, 2021, photo, Proud Boys including Joseph Biggs, front left, walks toward the U.S. Capitol in Washington, in support of President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)ORLANDO, Fla. – An organizer for the right-wing extremist group the Proud Boys is facing federal charges in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. According to the indictment, Biggs is a self-described organizer of certain Proud Boys events. The indictment indicates Biggs was among the first group to breach the Capitol building, fighting with Capitol police. While inside the Capitol, Biggs and others went into the Senate chamber, according to the indictment.

The Proud Boys' social media channels quickly responded, calling auxiliary groups such as Proud Boy's Girls or Proud Girls “ridiculous ideas.” “Don't ride our coattails,” one post read. Mothers of Proud Boys have posted about Proud Boys gatherings they hosted for their sons. Prosecutors allege in a court filing that William Chrestman, whom they described as the leader of Kansas City Proud Boys cell, “readily recruited” Felicia Konold and her brother, Cory Konold, from Arizona to join the Kansas City Proud Boys. AdThe Proud Boys have been known to incite street violence with counterprotesters. Conspiracy theorists, such as followers of QAnon, tend to be popular with women, but Proud Boys supporters and QAnon supporters come together at these types of protests.

Thompson has sued former President Donald Trump, alleging Trump incited the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. A Trump senior adviser, Jason Miller, said in a statement that Trump did not organize the rally that preceded the riot and “did not incite or conspire to incite any violence at the Capitol on Jan. Additional suits could be brought by other members of Congress or by law enforcement officers injured while responding to the riot. That process was temporarily interrupted when Trump supporters broke into the Capitol. Trump encouraged supporters at a rally preceding the riot to “ fight like hell,” but lawyers for the former president adamantly denied during the impeachment trial that he had incited the riot.

Enrique Tarrio, the chairman of Proud Boys, called the terrorist designation “ridiculous.”"There is no basis for it. All the Canadian Proud Boys have ever done is go to rallies,” Tarrio said in a phone interview. He estimated there are between 1,000 and 1,500 Proud Boys in Canada. Sending money to the organization or buying Proud Boys paraphernalia would also be a crime. On January 6, 2021, the Proud Boys played a pivotal role in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.”The government calls the Proud Boys a neo-fascist organization with semiautonomous chapters located in the United States, Canada, and internationally.

In its annual report set to be released Monday, Feb. 1, 2021, the Southern Poverty Law Center said it identified 838 active hate groups operating across the U.S. in 2020. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)The Southern Poverty Law Center recently released its 2020 Hatewatch list, showing 838 hate groups being tracked across the U.S. In 2020, SPLC tracked 838 hate groups that spread bigotry and hate in our communities. Learn about hate in your state — view our hate map pic.twitter.com/1xYamRp0Qs — Southern Poverty Law Center (@splcenter) February 1, 2021The Hatewatch list shows there are at least 10 hate groups with chapters in Central Florida. Central Florida has seen a decline in the number of hate groups taking root here.

In its annual report, released Monday, the Southern Poverty Law Center said it identified 838 active hate groups operating across the U.S. in 2020. AdThe Montgomery, Alabama-based law center said many hate groups have moved to social media platforms and use of encrypted apps, while others have been banned altogether from mainstream social media networks. White nationalist organizations, a subset of the hate groups listed in the report, declined last year from 155 to 128. The number of anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim and anti-LGBTQ hate groups remained largely stable, while their in-person organizing was hampered by the coronavirus pandemic. People who support or express hatred and bigotry are not always card-carrying members of far-right groups.

The Department of Justice announced Friday, Jan. 29, 2021, two New York men identified as members of the Proud Boys have been indicted on federal conspiracy and other charges in the Jan. 6, Capitol riot. Pezzola and William Pepe were arrested earlier in the month on federal charges including illegally entering a restricted building. (FBI via AP)NEW YORK – Two men identified as members of the Proud Boys have been indicted on federal conspiracy and other charges in the Capitol riot as prosecutors raise the stakes in some of the slew of cases stemming from the Jan. 6 insurrection. The two, both from New York state, have now been indicted in Washington on charges that newly include conspiracy. AdThe Justice Department said both Pepe and Pezzola have gone to Proud Boys gatherings and have tactical vests emblazoned with the group's logo.

FILE - In this Sept. 26, 2020, file photo, Proud Boys leader Henry "Enrique" Tarrio wears a hat that says The War Boys during a rally in Portland, Ore. Police in the nations capital on Jan. 4, 2021, arrested the leader of the Proud Boys, who is accused of burning a Black Lives Matter banner that was torn down from a historic Black church in downtown Washington in December 2020. (AP Photo/Allison Dinner, File)The leader of the Proud Boys, who was arrested in Washington shortly before the Capitol riot, previously worked undercover and cooperated with investigators after he was accused of fraud in 2012, court documents show. The Proud Boys is a far-right, male chauvinist extremist group that seized on the Trump administration’s policies and was a major agitator during earlier protests and the Capitol riot on Jan. 6. The Proud Boys have railed against a “deep state” and work to break down the current government system, and so the revelations of Tarrio as a federal informant came as quite a surprise. When police pulled Tarrio over, officers found two unloaded magazines emblazoned with the Proud Boys logo in his bag that had a capacity of 30 rounds each, authorities said.

(AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)The Proud Boys have only been around for a few years, but in that time they have grown to become one of America’s most well-known hate groups. Notably, a former member of the Proud Boys, Jason Kessler, was among the organizers of the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. The Southern Poverty Law Center has designated the Proud Boys as a hate group. The Proud Boys began during the presidential election in 2016, according to SPLC, and were founded by Gavin McInnes. Several people with ties to the Proud Boys have been arrested following the siege on the Capitol.

I was in my home.”Two self-described members of the Proud Boys spoke to the county board last March in support of a pro-Second Amendment resolution the panel adopted. “The only thing I know about them (Proud Boys) is when they came and spoke to us," Clous said. “I am not a member of Proud Boys,” Hentschel said Wednesday. “But I do know a few Proud Boys. I’ve met Black Proud Boys, I’ve met multi-racial Puerto Rican Proud Boys and they inform me they also have gay Proud Boys.

FILE - In this Sept. 26, 2020, file photo, Proud Boys leader Henry "Enrique" Tarrio wears a hat that says The War Boys during a rally in Portland, Ore. Police in the nations capital on Jan. 4, 2021, arrested the leader of the Proud Boys, who is accused of burning a Black Lives Matter banner that was torn down from a historic Black church in downtown Washington in December 2020. (AP Photo/Allison Dinner, File)WASHINGTON – A judge has banned the leader of the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group, from the nation’s capital after he was accused of vandalizing a Black Lives Matter banner at a historic Black church and found with high-capacity firearm magazines when he was arrested. Tarrio was arrested Monday by the Metropolitan Police Department and accused of burning a Black Lives Matter banner that was torn down from a historic Black church in downtown Washington last month. A large Black Lives Matter sign was ripped from Asbury United Methodist Church property, torn and set aflame in December. Tarrio was seen with the sign in video of the incident posted on YouTube, according to a police report.

FILE - In this Sept. 26, 2020, file photo, Proud Boys leader Henry "Enrique" Tarrio wears a hat that says The War Boys during a rally in Portland, Ore. Police in the nations capital on Jan. 4, 2021, arrested the leader of the Proud Boys, who is accused of burning a Black Lives Matter banner that was torn down from a historic Black church in downtown Washington in December 2020. (AP Photo/Allison Dinner, File)WASHINGTON – Police in the nation’s capital on Monday arrested the leader of the Proud Boys, who is accused of burning a Black Lives Matter banner that was torn down from a historic Black church in downtown Washington last month. By nightfall, vandals tore down a Black Lives Matter banner and sign from two historic Black churches in downtown Washington and set the banner ablaze. Tarrio told The Washington Post he had participated in the burning of the Black Lives Matter banner and said he would plead guilty to destruction of property and pay the church the cost of the banner. Another video showed men removing a Black Lives Matter sign at the Metropolitan A.M.E. Church.

(AP Photo/Susan Walsh)WASHINGTON – Bracing for possible violence, the nation's capital has mobilized the National Guard ahead of planned protests by President Donald Trump's supporters in connection with the congressional vote expected Wednesday to affirm Joe Biden's election victory. Now with downtown D.C. businesses boarding up their windows, Mayor Muriel Bowser has requested a limited National Guard deployment to help bolster the Metropolitan Police Department. Because D.C. does not have a governor, the designated commander of the city’s National Guard is Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy. The D.C. Guard will provide specialized teams that will be prepared to respond to any chemical or biological incident. But the official said there will be no D.C. Guard members on the National Mall or at the U.S. Capitol.