Bad actors can also be found on the ground with a variety of violent fascist and neo-Nazi groups including chapters of the Proud Boys, Patriot Front, American Blackshirts Movement, and various regional 'Active Clubs' attempting to co-opt the tragedy for recruitment and propaganda purposes. All of these groups are, to varying degrees, acting as de-facto far-right militias or freikorps styled vigilante fighting groups. Many of the Proud Boys leadership are currently serving long prison sentences for sedition and other serious crimes committed during the January 6th, 2021 insurrection. The Active Clubs, Patriot Front, and various other more openly neo-Nazi groups are actively conducting paramilitary and martial arts training in furtherance of an imagined race war that will bring about an end to civil society and enable them to establish an all-white ethno-state.
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Natural disasters provide a perfect opportunity for extremist groups to prey upon desperate and traumatised communities by providing emergency supplies and manpower while spreading their disinformation and propaganda. The distribution of food and water and clearing of fallen tree limbs is part of a broader tactic aimed at laundering their undeniably vile ideological foundations and genocidal ambitions. Mutual aid is a critical component to these communities' recoveries, but the organised and established social media networks which these groups rely on for recruitment will disproportionately claim credit as 'white saviours.'
