The Atomwaffen Division (meaning "Atomic Weapons Division" in German) is a paramilitary neo-Nazi and anti-democratic terrorist organization based in the United States. Founded in 2015, the group's main base of operations is in Florida, but has members in other states. Consisting mostly of younger members, the Atomwaffen Division has been active on university campuses recruitment postering. The San Antonio, Texas chapter is listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.[1][2] The group has drawn from and is affiliated with the alt-right,[3][4][5] but has criticized parts of the movement for not being radical enough.[6][7][4]
The ultimate aim of the organization is a violent overthrow of the United States government by use of terrorism and guerrilla warfare. The organization has been affiliated with 5 killings since 2017.[8][9][10]
Background
The group announced its creation on the neo-Nazi website IronMarch.org in October 2015.[11] According to the Chicago Maroon, the Atomwaffen Division describe themselves as a “very fanatical, ideological band of comrades who do both activism and militant training. Hand to hand, arms training, and various other forms of training. As for activism, we spread awareness in the real world through unconventional means."[11]
During 2016, the group gained attention on university campuses across the country due to its recruitment poster campaigns, urging students to "Join Your Local Nazis!" and saying "The Nazis Are Coming!" The Atomwaffen Division posted recruiting posters at the University of Chicago, the University of Central Florida, the Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, as well as Suffolk University and Boston University in Boston, Massachusetts.[12][11][13][14][15] This campaign was noted by the Jewish watchdog group the Anti-Defamation League, who noted a wider alt-right focus on university recruitment.[16] An Atomwaffen Division member protested outside the ADL's Houston, Texas office with a sign reading "Mary's Life Mattered", in reference to Mary Phagan.[17]
Criminal charges
Devon Arthurs
Some members of the group were sympathetic towards Salafi Islam. The leader of Atomwaffen Division, Brandon Russell, is alleged to have described Omar Mateen, who pledged allegiance to ISIS and perpetrated the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting, as "a hero." A member of Atomwaffen Division, Stephen Billingsley, was photographed at a vigil in San Antonio, Texas for the victims of the Orlando shooting, with a skull mask and a sign saying "God Hates Fags."[18][17][19][20]
One 18-year-old member, Devon Arthurs, converted to Islam and described himself as a "Salafist National Socialist." In May 2017 Arthurs allegedly killed two of his roommates and fellow Atomwaffen Division members in retaliation for ridiculing his conversion. Arthurs was arrested following a hostage situation, during which he told police he shot 22-year-old Jeremy Himmelman and 18-year-old Andrew Oneschuk earlier that day.[21][22][20]
Brandon Russell
After Arthurs' arrest, his third roommate and fellow Atomwaffen Division member, a 21-year-old, Brandon Russell, was arrested by the FBI and Tampa Police Department, who found in Russell's garage an explosive compound known as hexamethylene triperoxide diamine which has been used by other groups in improvised explosive devices such as the 2016 New York and New Jersey bombings. The police bomb experts were drawn to Russell's bedroom due to the presence of thorium and americium, radioactive substances. Russell, a former student at the University of South Florida and a Florida National Guardsman, had a framed photograph of Timothy McVeigh, the perpetrator of the Oklahoma City bombing, in his bedroom.[23][24]
Samuel Woodward
In January 2018 Samuel Woodward was charged in Orange County, California with killing Blaze Bernstein, an openly gay Jewish college student who went missing earlier in the month while visiting his family. Woodward is an avowed neo-Nazi and a member of the group who had attended Atomwaffen Division events and training camps, according to ProPublica.[9] According to chat logs subsequently published by ProPublica, one member wrote of the killing "I love this," and another praised Woodward as a "one man gay Jew wrecking crew." The new logs suggest there are around 20 Atomwaffen cells across the U.S., that some members have taken part in weapons training, and show members praising Timothy McVeigh, responsible for the Oklahoma City bombing, Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof, and Norwegian mass-murderer and white supremacist Anders Breivik. Bernstein’s was the fifth killing tied to the Atomwaffen group.[25]
References
External links
Vorlage:Alt-right Vorlage:Neo-Nazism Vorlage:Portalbar
- ↑ Active Hate Groups 2016 In: Intelligence Report, Southern Poverty Law Center, February 15, 2017. Abgerufen im August 8, 2017 (englisch).
- ↑ Kristine Phillips: A neo-Nazi with explosives and a framed photo of Timothy McVeigh is not a threat, judge rules In: Washington Post, June 11, 2017. Abgerufen im August 8, 2017
- ↑ Report: Suspect in Penn Student’s Murder Has Neo-Nazi Ties In: Philadelphia Magazine, 29. Januar 2018. Abgerufen am 15. Februar 2018 (amerikanisches Englisch).
- ↑ a b Christopher Mathias: The Maniac Neo-Nazis Keeping Charles Manson's Race War Alive.: „Even within the alt-right — a loose association of white supremacists and fascists — the Atomwaffen Division is considered extreme.“
- ↑ Christopher Mathias: 1 Neo-Nazi Group. 5 Murders In 8 Months. In: Huffington Post, 31. Januar 2018. Abgerufen am 15. Februar 2018 (amerikanisches Englisch).
- ↑ Alt Right Groups Target Campuses with Fliers. In: Anti-Defamation League. Abgerufen am 27. Dezember 2017 (englisch).
- ↑ ADL: White Supremacist Group Redoubling Hate Fliering Efforts On Campus. In: Anti-Defamation League. Abgerufen am 27. Dezember 2017 (englisch).
- ↑ Atomwaffen Division (AWD). In: Anti-Defamation League. Abgerufen am 28. Januar 2018 (englisch).
- ↑ a b A.C. Thompson, Ali Winston, Jake Hanrahan: California Murder Suspect Said to Have Trained With Extremist Hate Group — ProPublica In: ProPublica, 26 January 2018. Abgerufen im 27 January 2018 (amerikanisches Englisch).
- ↑ Swenson, Kyle (January 29, 2018) "Suspects in five killings reportedly linked to macabre neo-Nazi group" The Washington Post
- ↑ a b c Adam Thorp: Militant Neo-Nazi Group Claims Credit for Hanging Hitler Portrait, Swastikas on Campus Building In: Chicago Maroon, 5 December 2016
- ↑ Neo-Nazi group claims responsibility for Hitler poster on U of C campus In: WGN-TV, December 6, 2016. Abgerufen im August 8, 2017
- ↑ Mariel Hemingway: Nazi Organization Recruitment At Boston University? Poster Discovered Inside Campus [VIDEO] In: University Herald, 2 May 2016
- ↑ Derek Lowe: UCFPD Investigating Multiple Nazi Symbols, Fliers at UCF In: Knight News, 17 November 2015
- ↑ Campus Reacts After Fascist Group Fliers Posted at ODU Campus In: Mace and Crown, 29 March 2016
- ↑ Alt-Right Groups Target Campuses with Fliers In: Anti-Defamation League Las Vegas, 7 December 2016
- ↑ a b Donning the Mask: Presenting 'The Face of 21st Century Fascism' In: Southern Poverty Law Center, June 20, 2017. Abgerufen im August 8, 2017 (englisch).
- ↑ Brian Chasnoff: Racist at vigil sends online message In: Express News, 17 June 2016
- ↑ Neo-Nazi Nerds Recruiting Students At Top Universities To Carry Out ISIS Attacks In: Radar Online, 17 January 2017
- ↑ a b Christopher Matthias: The Enemy Of My Enemy Is My Friend: What Neo-Nazis Like About ISIS In: Huffington Post, 26 May 2017
- ↑ Allie Conti: Gruesome Florida Murders Show How Neo-Nazis Turn into Jihadists In: VICE, 25 May 2017
- ↑ Ellie Hall: A Neo-Nazi Who Converted To Islam Allegedly Killed His Roommates Over Religion In: BuzzFeed, 23 May 2017
- ↑ Noor Al-Sibai: FBI busts 'Atomwaffen' Neo-Nazi in Florida for making explosives — and finds radiation materials In: RawStory, 22 May 2017
- ↑ Howard Altman: How did Florida National Guard miss soldier's neo-Nazi leanings? In: TBO, 23 May 2017
- ↑ A.C. Thompson, Ali Winston, Jake Hanrahan: Inside Atomwaffen As It Celebrates a Member for Allegedly Killing a Gay Jewish College Student, ProPublica, February 23, 2018