“If we do not stop Jade Helm 15 there may be no future for our children.” This is the title of a video posted to the YouTube channel of the patriot/militia movement Internet radio show known as “The Liberty Brothers Show” in May 2015. It suggests a common line of thought in the patriot/militia movement: the federal government is actively conspiring to steal the liberty—even the lives—of Americans, and patriots must act now to defend themselves.
This paper provides a primer on conspiracy theories in the patriot/militia movement. After introducing the movement, it describes the basic features of conspiracy theories. It then walks through several prominent and pervasive antigovernment conspiracy theories, including those focusing on gun control, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the United Nations as key components of the threat posed to the lives and liberty of Americans by the federal government. It does not cover racist conspiracy theories (for example, those positing that Jews control the federal government, referred to as ZOG [Zionist Occupied Government or Zionist Occupation Government]) or the more bizarre ones (for example, those positing that the world is controlled by a race of subterranean reptilians who sometimes take human form). In closing, it offers some thoughts on why conspiracism plays an important role in the patriot/militia movement.