Pro-Trump Extremists Targeting the Education System and Subverting Democracy
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Key Findings
Far-right extremists are focusing on local elections and targeting school boards with false accusations of grooming.
It is difficult to distinguish one group from another as they all serve the same purpose of subverting democracy, with varying degrees of violence and harm.
Offline disruptions have escalated in school board assembly meetings
Anti-LGBT protesters from Saticoy Elementary Parents crossed over from their side of the street to pick a fight. They were able to stomp on a homeless gay person. Police did little to intervene. The pro-LGBT side was forced to retreat. The assembly went forward as planned that morning.
The Precinct Strategy, a grassroots initiative by partisan Republican strategists, is connected to far-right extremist efforts to subvert the educational system.
Far Right extremists relied on their Precinct strategy network and used deception to organize on mainstream social media platforms.
Suggestions include monitoring social media platforms for far-right extremist content related to local elections, researching the tactics and strategies used by far-right extremists, and conducting an audit of individuals who were present on January 6th, 2021, and still have an active mainstream social media account.
Introduction
This intel bulletin identifies the tactics used by far-right extremists to subvert democracy and target the educational system in the United States. It also provides a case study on grey area content, hybrid threats & their connection to the Precinct Strategy, which we’ll cover in the next paragraph. This strategy adds to the challenge of addressing extremism tangibly.
Far-right extremism in America increasingly assumes the form of legitimate discourse and activism. Extremists seek to gain more visibility, embed themselves in popular culture, glom onto figures like Kanye West & political icons like RFK, and repurpose memes from television and video games. The mainstreaming of far-right extremism makes attributing accountability increasingly complex and holding far-right extremists responsible for their violent actions and efforts to intimidate is near impossible. Far-right intimidation and harassment campaigns often get dismissed, despite their impact on local school board elections and marginalized communities.
In The Glitterpill team’s written expert testimony submitted to the United States House Select Committee on the January 6th Attack, we explained The Precinct Strategy. The Precinct Strategy is a proposed initiative by partisan Republican strategists after January 6th, 2021, based on disinformation surrounding the 2020 election. It involves recruiting volunteers to run for precinct office positions to influence local elections and promote conservative ideals. This initiative aims to build a grassroots network of supporters who believe the election was stolen and are dedicated to advancing their agenda at a local level. Social media platforms’ community features, notably Facebook, enable a hybrid threat of conspiratorial networks that contain extremists and the conservative elite. Gephart’s connection to Roger Stone and Pinellas County Patriots presents one hybrid threat aimed at the educational system during Pride Month.
Gephart and Simmons organized Trump’s Birthday Party through newsletters linking to a Facebook event. Their rhetorical cloak is anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric. The following instance of mobilization for “Trump’s Birthday Party '' shows President Trump's lengths to deflect from accountability for taking highly national security documents. President Trump’s birthday party provides an emerging federal template enabling extremists to further embed themselves in electoral politics. This network’s actions, while framed in the context of anti-grooming narratives, are part of a broader extremist effort to subvert the educational system.
Investigation
Extremists are targeting K-8 schools during Pride month. It is part of a persistent trend among self-described pro-Trump patriots to subvert the educational system by pairing Trump rally events with school board disruptions. The extremists have extended the concept of grooming to include school boards, continuing prior disruption efforts seen with Reopen events during the pandemic and Anti-Critical Race theory initiatives. While anti-grooming narratives often serve as a pretext for organizing, this time, it was Trump.
On June 10th, our analysts received a series of private event flyers shared via email inviting others to Donald Trump's Birthday Rally. It was one day after his second indictment was announced. The website listed on the flyers was redirected to a Facebook event page. Though the event page listed Bicentennial Park as the location, the exact address provided was Madeira Beach Fundamental K-8 School, a school part of the Pinellas county school district. Schools within Pinellas County have partnered with Sandy Hook Promise to develop early warning systems to prevent school shootings. The school board has struggled with institutional racism and has had DeSantis-backed candidates elected to the school board.
Evasion Tactics
Gephart & Simmons, who organized Trump’s Birthday Party, were conscious of their manipulations. They took extra precautions to obscure Facebook event information in the flyer circulated among pro-Trump newsletters. They intended to target and intimidate the school under the guise of celebrating Trump’s birthday.
The Organizers’ Rhetorical Strategies
Dawn S. Simmons and Cliff Gephart organized the event targeting a K-8 school. Cliff Gephart is tied to Roger Stone. A local source that prefers not to be identified stated that a few years ago, Gephart opened a Conservative Grounds Coffee Shop, a Trump-themed coffee shop that is mostly empty. Gephart hosted many rallies before January 6th, 2021, and was present on January 6th, 2021, but made the distinction that he did not go inside the building. Like Roger Stone and the Proud Boys, Gephart is mindful of optics. The play on words “grounds” implies a double meaning as both coffee shop and rally point. The items are priced at $17.76. The 1776 Returns document outlined the strategic takeover of U.S. Government buildings on January 6th, 2021, and was circulated among the extremist group the Proud Boys. Conservative Grounds are also linked to Pinellas Patriots, who had email chains encouraging others to attend Trump’s birthday party.
Implications
These findings suggest that an individual’s presence on January 6th, 2021, independent of whether or not they entered the building, increases the likelihood of violence in local events they attend, organize or disrupt. For this reason, it is crucial for Trust and Safety professionals to conduct an internal audit of individuals who were present on January 6th, 2021, and still have an active mainstream social media account.
The Day of Trump’s Arraignment
On June 13th, Trump went to court, and a host of professional instigators posing as investigative journalists, Laura Loomer, Baked Alaska, and Luke Rudkowsi, attended. Baked Alaska, a far-right streamer and former Proud Boy, used it as a networking opportunity to get closer to Rudkowski. Members of Bikers For Trump, who engaged with Roger Stone’s Super PAC Instagram account before President Trump’s arraignment, were also in attendance at the arraignment. During this event, no rumblings on Proud Boy Telegram occurred. Active Clubs were also silent. Other extremists in Telegram compared the anticipated turnout, ~50,000, to last summer’s arrest of Patriot Front Members as they attempted to target Idaho Pride and saw it as part of an FBI sting they wanted to avoid. The Glitterpill team has spearheaded prior reports on RFIs, Pride Month and Active Clubs, and adversarial shifts among Proud Boys.
As of June 19th, 2023, Rudkowski’s channel has been demonetized on youtube for promoting conspiratorial content from Robert F. Kennedy.
Analysis
Although Glitterpill’s research suggests that the momentum is suspected to have slowed, as the news of Trump’s legal woes dominates the media, Trump and his networks will continue to search for ways to maximize his visibility and garner more support. June can be considered a test case to see what organizing strategies can be effective later in the election cycle.
The Glitterpill Team discovered an emerging network where participants are tied to the precinct strategy, local events, and extremists. The Anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, school board intimidation campaigns, and precinct strategy are interconnected and part of the post-January 6th efforts to subvert democracy. It is difficult to distinguish one group from other groups as all groups serve the same purpose. The group who attended Trump’s rally and the groups disrupting school board meetings are part of a concerted push to subvert democracy. Understanding how the Precinct strategy relies on decentralized networks and narratives requires additional behavioral data, which we at Glitterpill can provide to comprehend the scope and magnitude of the situation fully.
Implications for Trust and Safety Professionals
Trust and security professionals should take note of the continued threat posed by these groups, especially in local elections and school board meetings. Even if the initial turnout for June 2023 was low, it is essential to continue monitoring social media platforms for extremist content and conducting audits of individuals who were present on January 6th, 2021, and still have an active mainstream social media account. It is crucial to understand the tactics and strategies used by these groups, such as the Precinct Strategy, to counter their efforts effectively. Trust and security professionals should be aware of the potential for hybrid threats of conspiratorial networks that contain both extremists and the conservative elite, as seen in this report, and understand how to identify and counter these threats.
Suggestions
Monitor social media platforms for extremist content related to local elections, school boards, and stores serving as Patriot meeting grounds.
Research the tactics and strategies used by extremists, such as the Precinct Strategy, and provide recommendations on how social media companies can identify and counter these efforts on their platforms.
Conduct an audit of individuals present on January 6th, 2021, and still have an active mainstream social media account.
Be one step ahead of extremists who are mindful of optics and how they publicly portray themselves.
For more on an overview of the current state of Trumpism, read our latest Glitterpill Insight. For additional data adjacent to this intel report, contact us here.
Timeline of Events Surrounding Trump Arraignment
June 8th, 2023: A federal jury indicts Trump for the mishandling of classified documents
June 9, 2023: Flyers are distributed in email networks inviting others to Trump’s birthday rally.
June 9th, 2023: Cliff Gephart organizes An Evening with Roger Stone on Facebook. Twenty-eight people are listed as attending.
June 13th, 2023: A crowd of approximately 300 Pro-Trump supporters show up outside of the courthouse.
June 13th, 2023: Trump visits Café Versailles, treating his federal indictment as a publicity stunt
June 13th, 2023: Trump gives a speech in Bedminster, New Jersey & encourages pro-parent groups.
-Glitterpill LLC
