The Age of Insurrection

April 15, 2023
A trenchant analysis of the many dangers of the far right. In the days following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol--planned by "paramilitary claques who spearheaded the attack, and supported by...conspiracy theorists, Christian nationalists, and far-right street brawlers"--the GOP made noises about disavowing the insurrection and its actors. No more. As Neiwert, author of Red Pill, Blue Pill and Alt-America, writes, instead of "breaking the fever of right-wing extremism, the event ushered in "an age in which insurrection is celebrated, seditionists are defended as 'patriots, ' and the politics of menace and violence are woven into our everyday discourse and interactions." Fueling this are all manner of White supremacist complaints, including the fearful view that immigrants and minorities will "replace" the White majority or the "accelerationist" notion that modern civilization itself is a poison and that fascism is the antidote. Neiwert ranges widely to look at actors major and minor, from the tea party members who paved the way for the angrier, more militant radical right of the sort that we saw in Charlottesville to mouthpieces like Tucker Carlson, who "endorsed the idea that Republicans are being forced to abandon democracy and eventually embrace fascism because of liberal hegemony." Well reported and well written, Neiwert's book also exposes allies that one wishes the radical right didn't have--e.g., local police departments such as those of Portland, Oregon, whose leaders saw the Proud Boys as less alien than the left-wing protestors; and even the senior echelons of the Department of Homeland Security, who exhibited "authoritarian incompetence" throughout the Trump years. As long as Trump and Trumpism are on the political stage, there will be more to come, with the Jan. 6 insurrectionists hailed as heroes and "political prisoners" and QAnon bleatings about pedophilia and evil drag queens still common coin among the retrograde set. Politics watchers will find Neiwert's book illuminating--and frightening.

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April 10, 2023
Journalist Neiwert (Red Pill, Blue Pill) offers a brisk and searing history of right-wing extremist groups in America from the 1970s to the January 6 Capitol riot. As a reporter in northern Idaho in the 1970s and ’80s, Neiwert witnessed the arrival of the Aryan Nations from their former base of operations in Southern California. Noting that the white supremacist group “terrorize the local population with waves of violent hate crimes” and “slowly alter the local demographics by attracting scores of fellow far-right extremists to the region,” Neiwert traces the ripple effects to the 1992 Ruby Ridge raid, in which Aryan Nations “convert” Randy Weaver refused to surrender to the FBI on weapons charges, leading to the deaths of his wife and son; the launch of the Patriot militia movement, which “spread like wildfire” after the 1993 raid on the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Tex.; and the emergence of the Oath Keepers, the Proud Boys, and other paramilitary groups that played roles in the January 6 insurrection. Though not much new ground is broken, Neiwert offers visceral descriptions of these groups’ intimidation tactics; astutely analyzes the overlaps between Christian nationalism, white supremacism, the sovereign citizen movement, and other aspect of their ideology; and sheds light on the right-wing media’s “mind-bending efforts to help Republicans avoid accountability for the January 6 insurrection.” It’s a disturbing look at how hard extremism is to stamp out.

Starred review from June 1, 2023

Award-winning investigative journalist Neiwert (Red Pill, Blue Pill) chronicles, defines, and thoroughly documents the rise of alt-right ideologies in the U.S. This impressive narrative spans the 1970s through the present and is a good primer to all of the figures and terms of the alt-right: the great replacement conspiracy theory, accelerationism, Alex Jones, QAnon, the Oath Keepers, the Proud Boys, the boogaloo movement, the evolving definition of a patriot, neo-Nazi alliances, Christian nationalists, Michael Flynn, COVID deniers, rhetoric about another U.S. civil war, and critical race theory. The book notes that the alt-right's seemingly small groups contribute pieces to a larger movement, and a long-embedded threat to democracy emerges. A history of disruption, violence, and racism is abundantly clear in this work, which depicts authoritarian personalities, social dominance orientation, and the demise of accountability. Neiwert insists that readers take notice as alt-right adherents fill roles in law enforcement and local and federal government. VERDICT Equal parts enlightening and terrifying, this is imperative reading for anyone in the United States.--Tina Panik

Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from May 1, 2023
"The January 6 insurrection was an attack on the hallmark of American democracy: the peaceful transfer of power," writes journalist Neiwert (Red Pill, Blue Pill, 2020). Now in his fifth decade of reporting on rightwing extremism in the U.S., this expert on authoritarianism warns that the taste of power will propel extremists to continue their assault on democracy. Drawing extensively on his own investigations for the Southern Poverty Law Center and numerous publications, Neiwert catalogs the myriad groups and operatives of the self-proclaimed patriot movement, fully examining the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, deranged QAnon believers, and many others. In this comprehensive look at what makes these far-right extremists tick, the author delves into their actions and plans and digs deep into the psychology of authoritarianism. From street brawlers to conservative media, conspiracy theorists, and the GOP, Neiwert considers the violent rhetoric of eliminationism employed by the radical right and tracks the many aspects of the sustained offensive against democracy, inclusion, and the rule of law. Well-written, impeccably researched, easy to digest, and vivid in its profiles of far-right radicals, The Age of Insurrection is a key source for readers trying to make sense of it all.

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