Unfortunately, Florida is crawling with white supremacist, fascist, and other hate groups hiding behind “patriot” rhetoric, political platforms, and local influence. They organize in plain sight and show up emboldened by a state that protects their hatred and violence. They even occasionally show up at protests and demonstrations to try to use their presence as a scare tactic against activists. But we’re not here to debate them, we’re here to expose them.
If they want to be loud, we’ll be louder. If they want to hide in the open, we’ll drag them into the spotlight. Know your enemy. Call them out. Organize. Disrupt. Make it impossible for their hate to thrive.
PROUD BOYS
A “Far-Right, Neo-Fascist Militant Organization that promotes and engages in political violence.” Founded by Enrique Tarrio (a non-white male) in 2016, the Proud Boys pledge their allegiance to Donald Trump and are labeled a terrorist group in both Canada and New Zealand. They are known for their anti-leftist, anti-LGBTQIA, anti-feminism, anti-immigration, antisemitism and chauvinistic and authoritarian ideologies. These fascists were a major part of the January 6th attack on the Capitol in 2021 and have been known to intimidate protesters and activists via verbal threats, doxxing, and vandalism. Several of the leaders of this street gang have been convicted of seditious conspiracy due to their blind and unwavering support for Trump. They have known chapters in Miami, Orlando, Tampa Bay, Jacksonville, and are scattered throughout the Panhandle. Florida has one of the largest Proud Boy presences in the country. They have been labeled a hate group by both the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League.
NATIONAL SOCIALIST MOVEMENT
Despite the name, NSM is not a socialist group. Headquartered in Kissimmee and founded by Robert Brannen and Cliff Herrington in 1974, this fascist organization considers themselves “America’s premier white civil rights organization” and advocate loudly for racial segregation and the “reinstatement of white’s rights”. They publicly demonstrate with Nazi symbols and gear, and hand out white supremacist propaganda throughout Florida. So-called leader Burt Colucci, originally from Lakeland, says he runs “the largest Neo-Nazi organization in America” and was indicted on weapons charges after brandishing a firearm at a group of black men outside of a hotel in Arizona in 2022. This group is active and has been designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
PATRIOT FRONT
Patriot Front was founded by Thomas Rousseau in 2017, originally splitting from Vanguard America and are known for spreading fascist, authoritarian, and white supremacist propaganda and imagery across Florida. They’re also known as one of the groups with the largest distribution of this material in the state. While their chapters are currently under investigation for this, the group relies mostly on imagery and intimidation; targeting colleges and similar areas to wave flags and yell about their White Nationalist rhetoric. They are known for pasting their stickers in public places with razorblades stuck to the back of them. The Southern Poverty Law Center explicitly labels them a “White Nationalist hate group” and the Anti-Defamation League has shared these sentiments.
AWD – ATOMWAFFEN DIVISION
Founded by Brandon Russell from Palm Beach, AWD is primarily active in the Tampa and St. Pete areas. This decentralized and messy fascist group has a large concentration of members in Florida and is known as a violent Neo-Nazi Terror group. Russell was convicted of conspiring to attack electoral stations in Maryland in 2023 after pleading guilty to bomb-making and criminal threatening in 2018. While this group is supposedly being monitored by law enforcement, they continue to spread their violent Neo-Nazi rhetoric across the state without consequence.
OATH KEEPERS
This hate group is full of current and former military members, law enforcement and first responders, led by Kelly Meggs (also convicted of seditious conspiracy and previously sentenced to 12 years in federal prison!). They are active across Florida, with affiliates in the Panhandle, Tampa Bay, Orlando, and some more rural counties. Oath Keepers claim to defend the Constitution but function as a far-right militia and right-wing extremist network, usually allying with other larger hate groups such as Proud Boys or Patriot Front at protests and demonstrations and infiltrating law enforcement under the guise of “anti-government” rhetoric. The Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center have both labeled them an extremist group.
THE UNFORGIVEN
The Unforgiven is a white supremacist prison gang with members operating outside in the community. While their members outside of prison are usually known for drug and weapons trafficking, their prison members are known for their rhetoric of racial segregation, collaboration with other racist prison gangs, assault and murder. They run an extensive network and remain an extremely violent hate group.
UNITED SKINHEAD NATION
USN is a smaller Neo Nazi skinhead group in Florida, based in Fort Piece and Palm Beach. This hate group engages in racial-supremacist activity and is known for indoctrinating youth through music scenes and online. Some of their members have previously been or are currently part of the well-known Aryan Brotherhood prison gang.
GDL – GOYIM DEFENSE LEAGUE
Founded by Jon Minadeo II in 2018, known mostly for their online Neo-Nazi rhetoric and their “March of the Red Shirts” event near Orlando in 2023, displaying Nazi flags and salutes, GDL regularly distributes antisemitic and white supremacist propaganda and imagery online through their social media networks. This hate group also distributes anti-Jewish literature and imagery during “neighborhood drops” and collaborates with other Neo Nazi groups at events.
Resistance Support Collective 