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White supremacists and far-right militias have infiltrated police departments in every region of the US.
A timely report + warning from @BrennanCenter: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/aug/27/white-supremacists-militias-infiltrate-us-police-report
A timely report + warning from @BrennanCenter: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/aug/27/white-supremacists-militias-infiltrate-us-police-report
In addition to active police officers with direct links to far-right groups + white supremacist organizations, there have been hundreds of examples of law enforcement exposed making explicitly racist + bigoted remarks, and expressing sympathy for hate groups and movements.
In Kenosha, police said "We appreciate you being here" to armed militias, giving them water. Police let the shooter leave. The police chief blamed protesters for violating curfew, saying the gunman was "involved in the use of firearms to resolve whatever conflict was in place."
This has happened across the country at protests this summer - police photographed + filmed openly supporting far-right groups, in some cases directly collaborating with them during protests. In Orange County, Chicago, Olympia, Philadelphia, Oregon + more...
Over the years, the FBI and DHS have acknowledged that this is a significant problem, warning that militia groups the FBI is tasked with investigating often have “active links” to law enforcement. But there is no strategy to address this or active effort to uncover infiltrators
This can of course have deadly consequences: “The most violent elements within these far-right groups believe that their conduct is sanctioned by the government and are much more willing to come out and engage in violence against protesters."
