Ammon Bundy Launches New Antigovernment Organization That Takes on Coronavirus Restrictions
Antigovernment extremist Ammon Bundy, known for his participation in multiple armed standoffs against the U.S. government, has a new venture. The group appears to be aimed in part at what Bundy considers government restrictions on personal liberties.
People鈥檚 Rights seeks to build a nationwide network of right-wing, often antigovernment activists that can be called upon to quickly mobilize against perceived threats, according to the group鈥檚 website and the descriptions by its national and regional leaders.
The group held an open meeting April 9 and created a Facebook page on April 13. It is headquartered in Idaho, where Bundy now resides.
The group鈥檚 message, which has been shared across social media platforms, is that the U.S. government poses a great threat to the freedom and liberties of 鈥渢he people,鈥� who need to be armed and ready to fend off these supposed tyrannical forces. The group has already staged several protests at government meetings, shutting down at least one proceeding.
People鈥檚 Rights recruits nationwide and has at least seven chapters with over 27,000 members, according to Bundy鈥檚 and the group鈥檚 social media pages.
For Bundy, whose prior acts of extremism have been grounded in his belief that the government is tyrannical, the need to fight it is already here. People鈥檚 Rights is his newest vehicle to do so.
People鈥檚 Rights has approximately 22,000 followers on social media. The group hasn鈥檛 been linked to specific violent incidents, but Bundy鈥檚 history and the organization鈥檚 rise in the midst of an increase in right-wing backlash to public health policies as well as uncertainty during a pandemic may .
People鈥檚 Rights uses an approach similar to that of the Kenosha Guard militia in Wisconsin, sending supporters regular calls to action.
The Kenosha Guard militia may have played a role聽in the shootings of three Kenosha Black Lives Matter (BLM) protesters Aug. 25, two of whom died. Self-described militia member Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, has been charged with murder in the shootings.
The Kenosha Guard militia invited individuals via Facebook to come armed and meet at Civic Center Park in Kenosha, the site of the BLM protest. The Facebook invite garnered some 700 RSVPs.
As a result, citizen vigilantes with firearms showed up to patrol. Some walked the street while others stood atop a rooftop, in sniper positions. Police say Rittenhouse opened fire, killing Anthony Huber, 26, and Joseph 鈥淛ojo鈥� Rosenbaum, 36, both of Kenosha, and injuring another protester.
The Kenosha killings point to tensions across the U.S., which have ratcheted up as armed militia and Patriot groups challenge lawmakers over coronavirus guidelines and confront and intimidate Black Lives Matter protesters in American cities, and as boogaloo bois plot violent acts against government facilities.
Such tensions may end up benefitting Bundy鈥檚 organization, making it more dangerous for the country at large.
According to details shared at People鈥檚 Rights meetings, individuals who sign up are added to the organization鈥檚 database, which sends out alerts for various calls to action. In the past, these have included requests for people to protest at state houses, a hospital, a sheriff鈥檚 office and the homes of their opposition. The database provides the group with an opportunity to reach and unite a large cross-section of extremists via texts or emails. They can then be mobilized quickly to hit the streets to oppose protesters or public officials.
Since April, the organization has hosted and participated in more than a dozen activities, including armed protests, disruptions to public proceedings and criminal behavior. Based on the group鈥檚 model and its leader Bundy, a full-time provocateur, a scenario akin to what happened in Kenosha is not out of the realm of possibility.
One of Bundy鈥檚 main goals is expansion. He told an audience at a June 19 Idaho People鈥檚 Rights meeting, 鈥淏efore we are done, we will have a network all over Idaho and hopefully all over the United States that will have some pretty strong capabilities to support this network on multiple levels.鈥�
Bundy has also said he wants to spread their message throughout the world.
鈥淭here will be a great network across Idaho that can act immediately in the defense of somebody鈥檚 liberties,鈥� he said at an Idaho People鈥檚 Rights meeting held April 9.
Hatewatch reached out to Bundy via email, but received no response.
Nicholas Ramlow, a Libertarian candidate for the Montana House of Representatives in District 7, is a regional People鈥檚 Rights leader. Ramlow has said the group wants to 鈥渆stablish an 鈥楿ber-like鈥� militia response system that can be mobilized at any time,鈥� , which monitors extremist activity.
Casey Whalen, a People鈥檚 Rights leader in Washington with a large YouTube following, has said the group is 鈥渃reating a communications network to dispatch people to assist local business owners or families being oppressed by tyrannical government.鈥�
The group posts propaganda-style videos and memes online that often feature pictures of nuclear families along with slogans about defending themselves from perceived threats, usually from the government.
One reads: 鈥淲ho would you call if your family was in danger? What if they were in danger from the government? Protect Your Loved Ones.鈥�
Thus far, the group and its members have heavily capitalized on the coronavirus pandemic, using it for recruitment, promotion and a way to protest in the streets.
Bundy has said on social media that he believes coronavirus is real, but People鈥檚 Rights has equated quarantine restrictions to tyranny, protesting mask mandates and stay-at-home guidelines in such places as Boise and Caldwell, Idaho, as well as Vancouver, Washington.
Bundy鈥檚 first People鈥檚 Rights event was held in Boise on April 12. He hosted an Easter service on his property to protest church closings during COVID-19 lockdowns, claiming religious liberty. Failed 2014 Idaho state Senate candidate Diego Rodriguez, who works with Freedom Man PAC, gave the sermon from behind a makeshift pulpit with a sign that read, 鈥淒efy Martial Law.鈥�
In Meridian, Idaho, on April 21, Bundy and several group members showed up to protest at the home of the police officer who had arrested Sara Brady, a woman who garnered national media attention when she was detained for refusing to leave a playground that had been shut down by the state during coronavirus lockdowns.
The officer鈥檚 name and photo were聽shared by the Libertarian think tank Idaho Freedom Foundation, a
On May 8, Montana candidate Ramlow suggested 聽if they enforced coronavirus restrictions, writing on his Facebook page, 鈥淚f you are a business owner in Kalispell and you open your business, contact me immediately if a government official comes to you to enforce Governors [sic] DIEO,鈥� referring to Montana Gov. Steve Bullock鈥檚 directive implementing executive orders regarding COVID-19. 鈥淩eport it to me as a Criminal Complaint under Title 18 u.s.c, Section 242 and I will arrest them properly,鈥� Ramlow said, though he has no authority to do so.
On June 13, People鈥檚 Rights supporters joined a who鈥檚 who of antigovernment activists at the Liberate America event, held in Coeur d鈥橝lene, Idaho.
Speakers and attendees included a who鈥檚 who of the antigovernment and conspiracy-driven right, including John Jacob Schmidt of Redoubt News. He spoke at the event, and was joined by far-right Washington State Republican representative Matt Shea, who was expelled from the state GOP caucus after a congressional investigative report revealed his links to domestic terrorism.
Agenda 21 propagandist Tom DeWeese of the American Policy Center聽was also there, along with representatives of the Idaho Light Foot Militia, which in 2020 has supported People鈥檚 Rights, who provided security for the event. Joey Gibson, leader of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer, attended, along with members of the hate group Proud Boys聽and the far-right conspiracy theorist group John Birch Society.
On June 22, armed members of People鈥檚 Rights appointed themselves as 鈥渃rowd control鈥� at the Idaho State Capitol, where far-right lawmakers were calling for a special legislative session about the state鈥檚 coronavirus guidelines. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to make sure that legislators don鈥檛 have any trouble and everybody is good and peaceful,鈥� Bundy shared, . Asked about the possibility of an armed takeover at the Idaho Capitol, Bundy answered, 鈥淚 sure hope it doesn鈥檛 have to go to that level.鈥�
On June 22, July 2 and July 6, the Washington People鈥檚 Rights chapter, led by 聽Kelli Stewart, held multiple rallies in front of a city attorney鈥檚 home and at City Hall in Vancouver, Washington. At least one was held in coordination with Patriot Prayer鈥檚 Joey Gibson. The group was .
The group also took part in a tent revival titled 鈥淩age Against the State in Belgrade and Livingston, Montana鈥� from July 3-4. The event was led by former white nationalist and antigovernment activist Roger Roots.
Later in July, members of People鈥檚 Rights were invited by Whalen to join him at the Kootenai County courthouse in Coeur d鈥橝lene, Idaho. Whalen was there defending himself against a criminal citation for taking down signs at a beach in Hayden, Idaho, that indicated that people from out of state should quarantine. The order was enforced by the sheriff鈥檚 department, which Whalen claimed was usurping people鈥檚 rights and acting tyrannical.
Whalen did not show up for his July court appearance. He was arrested on Aug. 29. He has since said that he would commit the same crime again, and he believes he would have more people doing it with him.
People鈥檚 Rights has also disrupted public meetings.
On July 16, 聽in Caldwell, Idaho. The meeting agenda, which included responses to the coronavirus including a possible mask mandate, could be watched by the public over the virtual platform Zoom. Bundy鈥檚 group wanted to go inside the building without masks. They were barred from entry, and Bundy shoved an employee. The police were called, but no one was arrested.
Two weeks later on Aug. 1, People鈥檚 Rights members descended on the sheriff鈥檚 office in Nezperce, Idaho, to protest the detainment of Bundy supporter Sean Anderson, who was 聽in Ferdinand, Idaho, on April 18. Anderson had attended the Bundy standoff at the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in 2016, where he was one of the last holdouts.
Bundy himself has been arrested twice while working with People鈥檚 Rights, both times for disrupting the legislative process at the Idaho State Capitol.
Lawmakers met in a special session to discuss bills related to voting and coronavirus civil liability. People鈥檚 Rights opposed RS28049, the civil liability bill that would provide immunity to individuals, private and public entities during the pandemic.
As an example of how People鈥檚 Rights mobilizes, the group sent out an Aug. 23 call to action on Facebook inviting people to march at the Idaho capitol building the next day. 鈥淭his march will demonstrate WE are AGAINST GOVERNMENT AGENTS BEING IMMUNE WHEN THEY INFRINGE UPON PEOPLE鈥橲 RIGHTS. What are Idaho government agents planning?鈥�
The next day, People鈥檚 Rights protesters forced their way into the Idaho House Gallery, breaking a glass door. Bundy addressed lawmakers in the Lincoln Auditorium during an open comment period. 鈥淲e are tired of government force and we will only take it for so long,鈥� he said.
Protesters, including Bundy, were back at the Idaho Statehouse on Aug. 25. This time, Bundy refused to leave. He was eventually dragged out, still seated in his chair, and charged with resisting and obstructing officers and trespassing, all misdemeanors.
After his release, Bundy returned to the Idaho Statehouse the next day. He used the Idaho Senate Gallery as the site of his protest, and resisted requests to leave. He was carried out of the building in a wheelchair and charged with trespassing. He has now been barred from the building for the next year.
People鈥檚 Rights protesters have broken laws, including outright defiance of those dealing with the coronavirus lockdown and trespassing. They have also forced the cancellation of at least one public meeting and caused chaos to erupt at the Idaho State House over multiple days.
In a letter to supporters about his arrests, which he posted on the Freedom Man blog on Aug. 26, Bundy wrote: 鈥淎t this moment in time it is evident that our own government and our own law enforcement agencies are truly the greatest threat to our freedom. They must be reformed. They must be stopped from abusing the people.鈥�
As the : 鈥淚f Bundy is not held to account, it鈥檚 only going to get worse. Just look at his record.鈥�
Editor's note:聽An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the Idaho Freedom Foundation shared the contact information of a local police officer. Spokesman Dustin Hurst said the group shared the officer鈥檚 name and photograph on its Facebook page, something they now regret. Hurst said IFF is not a supporter of Ammon Bundy. They disagree with some of Bundy鈥檚 tactics, Hurst says, but don鈥檛 disavow him,聽鈥渂ecause he is a human being.鈥濃��
