The New Republic: The Era of Disaster Militiaism in America - September 15, 2020

“The citizen preservation militias now go by the more anodyne title ‘Community Preparedness Teams,’ a deliberate part of the Oath Keepers’ base-building efforts and attempts not to look like a militia group. ‘In Oregon, the Oath Keepers have been building a grassroots movement, partly based on community service work and the creation of emergency-based response teams,’ according to a 2016 report by Political Research Associates, who monitor far-right groups, and the Rural Organizing Project. The national Oath Keepers leadership promoted the Oregon chapter’s service approach, with founder Stewart Rhodes encouraging members to join, in their own communities, ‘volunteer fire departments,’ ‘neighborhood watch groups,’ and ‘search and rescue and other first responder groups.’”

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