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==Introduction== | '''Main Argument:''' | ||
== Introduction == | |||
'''Formation of the White Power Movement:''' | '''Formation of the White Power Movement:''' | ||
* The white power movement united a wide array of groups and activists previously at odds. | * The white power movement united a wide array of groups and activists previously at odds. | ||
* They were thrown together by tectonic shifts in the cultural and political landscape. | * They were thrown together by tectonic shifts in the cultural and political landscape. | ||
* Narratives of betrayal and crisis cemented their alliances. | * Narratives of betrayal and crisis cemented their alliances. | ||
'''Attitudes towards the State and National Identity:''' | '''Attitudes towards the State and National Identity:''' | ||
* The white power movement did not seek to defend the American nation, even when it celebrated some elements of U.S. history and identity. | * The white power movement did not seek to defend the American nation, even when it celebrated some elements of U.S. history and identity. | ||
* Instead, white power activists increasingly saw the state as their enemy. | * Instead, white power activists increasingly saw the state as their enemy. | ||
* Many pursued the idea of an all-white, racial nation, transcending national borders to unite white people from the US, Canada, Europe, etc. | * Many pursued the idea of an all-white, racial nation, transcending national borders to unite white people from the US, Canada, Europe, etc. | ||
'''Erosion of Confidence in the State:''' | '''Erosion of Confidence in the State:''' | ||
* At the end of the 1970s, many Americans lost faith in the state that they had trusted to take care of them. | * At the end of the 1970s, many Americans lost faith in the state that they had trusted to take care of them. | ||
* Loss in the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal undermined their confidence in elected officials. | * Loss in the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal undermined their confidence in elected officials. | ||
* White power activists responded to Reagan's first term with calls for a more extreme course of action, plotting to overthrow the government. | * White power activists responded to Reagan's first term with calls for a more extreme course of action, plotting to overthrow the government. | ||
'''Extent and Nature of the Movement:''' | '''Extent and Nature of the Movement:''' | ||
* While white power was certainly a fringe movement, it surpassed earlier mobilizations. | * While white power was certainly a fringe movement, it surpassed earlier mobilizations. | ||
* Membership alone is a poor measure, with records often destroyed or hidden. | * Membership alone is a poor measure, with records often destroyed or hidden. | ||
* Estimates suggest about 25,000 "hard-core members" in the 1980s, with additional attendees at rallies and events. | * Estimates suggest about 25,000 "hard-core members" in the 1980s, with additional attendees at rallies and events. | ||
'''Relationship with Conservatism and Political Ideology:''' | '''Relationship with Conservatism and Political Ideology:''' | ||
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* White power religious radicalism emerged from Cold War perceptions of communism as a threat to Christianity. | * White power religious radicalism emerged from Cold War perceptions of communism as a threat to Christianity. | ||
* Many believed in white supremacy as a component of religious faith, integral to the movement's broader revolutionary character. | * Many believed in white supremacy as a component of religious faith, integral to the movement's broader revolutionary character. | ||
* Christian identity and other white theologies fueled the belief in ridding the world of the unfaithful. | * Christian identity and other white theologies fueled the belief in ridding the world of the unfaithful. | ||
'''Evolution and Impact:''' | '''Evolution and Impact:''' | ||
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* White power capitalized on broader cultural paramilitarism, intertwining masculinity with militancy for violent ends. | * White power capitalized on broader cultural paramilitarism, intertwining masculinity with militancy for violent ends. | ||
* Through unity, revolutionary commitments, and organizing strategies, white power represented something new, not merely a resurgence of earlier Klan activity. | * Through unity, revolutionary commitments, and organizing strategies, white power represented something new, not merely a resurgence of earlier Klan activity. | ||
* It encompassed a wider range of ideologies and operated both in public and underground. | * It encompassed a wider range of ideologies and operated both in public and underground. | ||
'''Response to Changing Societal Dynamics:''' | '''Response to Changing Societal Dynamics:''' | ||
* White power also responded to evolving meanings of state, sovereignty, and liberal institutions, particularly after the 1960s. | * White power also responded to evolving meanings of state, sovereignty, and liberal institutions, particularly after the 1960s. | ||
* Dwindling economic prospects became intertwined with cultural backlash. | * Dwindling economic prospects became intertwined with cultural backlash. | ||
* White power qualified as a social movement through central features like inner circle figures, public displays, and wide-reaching social networks. | * White power qualified as a social movement through central features like inner circle figures, public displays, and wide-reaching social networks. | ||
* White power activists used a shared repertoire of actions to assert collectivity, often attempting to hide their activity. | * White power activists used a shared repertoire of actions to assert collectivity, often attempting to hide their activity. | ||
* They rallied openly, formed associations, and self-published writings to spread their message. | * They rallied openly, formed associations, and self-published writings to spread their message. | ||
'''Impact and Confrontation:''' | '''Impact and Confrontation:''' | ||
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* The story of white power as a social movement exposes broader enduring impacts of state violence in America, echoing the catastrophic ricochet of the Vietnam War. | * The story of white power as a social movement exposes broader enduring impacts of state violence in America, echoing the catastrophic ricochet of the Vietnam War. | ||
''' | '''Chapter 2: Building the Underground''' | ||
*Louis Beam in 1977 purchased 50 acres of swampland using the Texas Veterans Land Board Grant | *Louis Beam in 1977 purchased 50 acres of swampland using the Texas Veterans Land Board Grant | ||
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==Chapter 7: "Race War and White Women"== | ==Chapter 7: "Race War and White Women"== | ||
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Women were central to the white power movement. White women played a crucial symbolic and practical role in the white power movement of the 1980s. This was exemplified during the 1988 Fort Smith sedition trial of movement leaders. | Women were central to the white power movement. White women played a crucial symbolic and practical role in the white power movement of the 1980s. This was exemplified during the 1988 Fort Smith sedition trial of movement leaders. | ||
'''Background''' | '''Background''' | ||
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*In the 1980s, the white power movement emphasized the symbolic importance of white women's reproduction and the creation of a white homeland in the Pacific Northwest. | *In the 1980s, the white power movement emphasized the symbolic importance of white women's reproduction and the creation of a white homeland in the Pacific Northwest. | ||
*Symbolically, the white power movement invoked the purity and vulnerability of white women to justify its ideology and violence. Leaders portrayed the movement as necessary for the defense of white women from the threats of interracial relationships, non-white birth rates, and government/Zionist betrayals. | *Symbolically, the white power movement invoked the purity and vulnerability of white women to justify its ideology and violence. Leaders portrayed the movement as necessary for the defense of white women from the threats of interracial relationships, non-white birth rates, and government/Zionist betrayals. | ||
*White women were instrumental to the movement's operation and growth. They created important social ties through marriage, supported paramilitary activities, and spread propaganda. | *White women were instrumental to the movement's operation and growth. They created important social ties through marriage, supported paramilitary activities, and spread propaganda. The framed their roles as wives and mothers of the white race. Mothers of future Aryan warriors. | ||
'''White Women as Symbols''' | '''White Women as Symbols''' | ||
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*The movement placed importance on white women as reproductive vessels for the race. | *The movement placed importance on white women as reproductive vessels for the race. | ||
*The white power movement strategically leveraged existing cultural ideas about protecting white female purity and fertility as a call to action and as a way to widen its appeal. The symbolic white woman helped to unify and motivate the movement. | *The white power movement strategically leveraged existing cultural ideas about protecting white female purity and fertility as a call to action and as a way to widen its appeal. The symbolic white woman helped to unify and motivate the movement. | ||
'''Women's Activism and Support Roles''' | '''Women's Activism and Support Roles''' | ||
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*Women attended and even co-owned paramilitary training camps. While the men focused on weapons and combat training, women learned survivalist skills like canning food, making supplies, and preparing for nuclear war. | *Women attended and even co-owned paramilitary training camps. While the men focused on weapons and combat training, women learned survivalist skills like canning food, making supplies, and preparing for nuclear war. | ||
*Women provided support | *Women provided support work to enable the men's violent activities. This included disguising male activists, driving getaway cars, destroying evidence, transporting people and weapons, designing group medallions, and proofreading major movement writings. | ||