The Order (white supremacist group)

The Order
FormationSeptember 1983 (1983-09)
DissolvedDecember 1984 (1984-12)
TypeWhite supremacist, Christian Identity, neo-fascist, neo-Nazi, white separatist, white nationalist, domestic terrorist, insurrectionist
PurposeParamilitary fomenting white supremacist revolution against the "Zionist Occupation Government", establishment of an all-white homeland in the Pacific Northwest, and genocide against blacks, Jews, "race-mixers", and other perceived enemies
Location
  • United States
Key people

The Order, also known as the Brüder Schweigen (German for Brothers Keep Silent or Brothers' Silence) and Silent Brotherhood,[1] was a Neo-Nazi terrorist organization active in the United States between September 1983 and December 1984.[2][3][4] The group raised funds via armed robbery. Ten members were tried and convicted for racketeering, and two for their role in the 1984 murder of radio talk show host Alan Berg.[5]

The Order's main objective was to start a white supremacist revolution against the United States, after which blacks, Jews, "race mixers", and other perceived enemies would be exterminated. Inspired by The Turner Diaries, the organization declared war on the federal government, which they called the "Zionist occupied government".[6][7] The Order drew up a hit list of enemies, and on June 18, 1984 radio talk show host Alan Berg was murdered in front of his home by Bruce Pierce, assisted by other members of The Order.[8] Berg was number two on The Order's list.[9]

In December 1984, authorities were able to track Mathews down to a house on Whidbey Island where he refused to surrender.[10] During a shootout, the house was ignited by incendiary flares and became engulfed in flames, and Mathews was killed.[10] Mathews is considered a martyr by some white nationalists.[11][12]

  1. ^ Martz, Ron. "Klan marching staunchly to ultra-right". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
  2. ^ Byman, Daniel (2022). Spreading Hate: The Global Rise of White Supremacist Terrorism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-753761-9.
  3. ^ "American Front" (PDF). www.adl.org.
  4. ^ Jimison, Robert (August 17, 2017). "How the FBI smashed white supremacist group The Order". CNN. Retrieved February 8, 2024.
  5. ^ "Order, The". TRAC Terrorism. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  6. ^ Turner, Wallace; Times, Special To the New York (February 7, 1986). "5 NEO-NAZIS GET STIFF SENTENCES FOR CRIME SPREE". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  7. ^ "Oregon professor founded National Alliance hate group". Deseret News. June 10, 2006. Archived from the original on November 11, 2023. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  8. ^ "Death List Names Given to US Jury". New York Times. September 17, 1985. Archived from the original on November 14, 2007. Retrieved August 25, 2007.
  9. ^ Morris Dees and Steve Fiffer. Hate on Trial: The Case Against America's Most Dangerous Neo-Nazi. Villard Books, 1993. page xiiv
  10. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference SPLC-law was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ "Robert Jay Mathews Last Letter". Archived from the original on December 1, 2005. Retrieved March 7, 2006.
  12. ^ National Vanguard Archived March 8, 2012, at archive.today

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