Chasing Shadows The Alpha The Failed Attempts to Assassinate MLK, Jr.
11 snips
Jan 29, 2024 
Stuart Wexler, a historian and author specializing in extremist movements, delves into the complex interactions between black militant groups and white supremacists. He reveals how Christian Identity infiltrated mainstream militia culture and exploited racial tensions for recruitment. Wexler discusses the FBI's aggressive tactics against civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and the operations designed to undermine him. The chilling history of militarized groups and their legacies illustrates the uneasy dynamics of race and extremism in America.
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Panthers' Marxist Rationale
- The Black Panthers fused Marxist analysis with racial liberation and rejected capitalism as irredeemably unequal.
- Stuart Wexler explains they saw capitalism as a system that purposely divided races to preserve inequality.
Asymmetric Awareness Between Camps
- Christian Identity groups viewed Black militants as major enemies and tracked them closely while Panthers largely ignored Christian Identity factions.
- Wexler notes the ideological asymmetry shaped who each movement prioritized as threats.
Minutemen Co-opted By Christian Identity
- The Minutemen attracted hardcore Christian Identity leaders who covertly steered the movement toward racial holy war.
- Wexler describes senior Minutemen as Christian Identity zealots exploiting a broader anti-government rank-and-file.
