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Indybay Feature

Private prison corporations profit from civil unrest in Washington D.C.

by Lynda Carson (tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com)
Letter From Nancy Pelosi To The Impeached President Donald J. Trump:
06.04.2020.letter_to_president_trump_2.pdf_600_.jpg
Private prison corporations profit from civil unrest in Washington D.C.

By Lynda Carson - June 5, 2020

In a June 4, 2020, letter from the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, to the impeached President Donald J. Trump, in part it states, “We have seen soldiers on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. We have witnessed Bureau of Prisons officers in Lafayette Square. We have seen National Park Service officers hassling peaceful protesters. Several states have deployed members of their national Guard to D.C. This is in addition to the FBI and other security forces operating in our nation’s capital.”

That’s right, Nancy Pelosi is referring to the activated brutal prison guards who are members of the Special Operations Response Teams (SORT) while working for federal and private prison corporations, including the publicly traded private corporate prison companies such as Core Civic (formerly Corrections Corporation of America), and the GEO Group.

Indeed, the private corporate prison profiteers are currently profiting from the use of the corporate prison guards who are members of the Special Operations Response Teams (SORT), that have been unleashed to suppress the Constitutional rights of the American public, and registered voters protesting against police brutality, and killers cops in Washington D.C.

That's right! You do not have to be locked up in a prison to be abused and kicked around by prison guards!

The federal and private prison guards with the Special Operations Response Teams (SORT), have reportedly been unleashed in our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C. Additionally, they are also reportedly being used by Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE), in the private corporate prisons that have reportedly been brutalizing migrant workers being held as prisoners.

Presently, one of the profiteers making lots of money from his private prison guard members with the Special Operations Response Teams (SORT) in Washington, D.C., is George Zoley, the CEO of the GEO Group. The GEO Group, Inc., Political Action Committee presently has $644,249 in total receipts.

Another corporate profiteer making lots of money from his private prison guard members with the Special Operations Response Teams (SORT) operating in Washington, D.C., is Damon T. Hininger, CEO of CoreCivic. Presently, the CoreCivic Inc., Political Action Committee (CORECIVIC PAC) has around has $162,329 in total receipts.

Both CoreCivic, and the GEO Group are public trading corporations with stock priced at more than $13 a share presently.

Reportedly, prison operator shares have risen due to the policies of the impeached President Donald J. Trump.

The GEO Group has reportedly made huge profits thanks to the efforts of the impeached President Donald J. Trump.

Reportedly, “Government contractors are prohibited from donating to federal elections.But on August 19, 2016, GEO Corrections Holding, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the private prison company GEO Group, donated $100,000 to the pro-Donald Trump super PAC Rebuilding America Now. At the time, Vice Presidential Candidate Mike Pence was touting donations to the PAC as “one of the best ways” to help put Trump in office. The donation came one day after then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates issued a memo directing the Bureau of Prisons to gradually end the use of private prisons, tanking GEO’s stock prices. The GEO subsidiary donated an additional $125,000 in the November before the election, for a total of $225,000 in illegal contributions to the Trump campaign.”

With the private prison guards of the GEO Group who are members of the Special Operations Response Teams (SORT), that have been unleashed in Washington D.C., to suppress the rights of the American public protesting against police brutality and killer cops, the GEO Group is even profiting more because of Trump’s brutal policies.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com

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Links to secret police & paramilitary units unleashed in Washington, D.C.

Below are a few links to help uncover the secret police and paramilitary units unleashed in Washington, D.C., to suppress the Constitutional rights of the American public protesting against police brutality, killer cops.

-Lynda Carson

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Prison guards in Washington that are Special Operations Response Team (SORT) members

https://twitter.com/saraecook/status/1268323711460896768

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Lafayette Park Protesters Aren’t Federal Prisoners, But Prison Riot Teams Are There Anyway
By Matt Shuham
|
June 4, 2020 3:53 p.m.

Among the alphabet soup of federal law enforcement agencies patrolling the streets of Washington, D.C. in recent days, a deployment of “crisis management” teams from the Federal Bureau of Prisons stuck out like a sore thumb. 

That’s because the federal prison guards don’t typically deal with unincarcerated people, let alone protesters calling for an end to police brutality. 

And yet, on Wednesday, photos from the demonstrations in D.C. showed men in riot gear on the city’s streets without identifying information on their uniforms. Eventually, the Bureau of Prisons confirmed to MSNBC that the men were “SORT” — Special Operations Response Teams.

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/lafayette-park-protesters-arent-federal-prisoners-but-prison-riot-teams-are-there-anyway

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What We Know About the Federal Officers Bill Barr Sent Into D.C.’s Protests

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3enyy/what-we-know-about-the-federal-officers-bill-barr-sent-into-dcs-protests

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Trump administration deploys unmarked paramilitary units in Washington, D.C.
By Zac Thorton 
5 June 2020

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/06/05/gfdc-j05.html

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Who Are They? Unmarked Security Forces in DC Spark Fear

Mistaken for mercenaries, armed personnel from federal agencies refuse to identify themselves to street protestors and media.

Katie Bo Williams,
Defense One
June 4, 2020

https://www.govexec.com/defense/2020/06/who-are-they-unmarked-security-forces-dc-spark-fear/165912/

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March 16, 2020
David Sundberg Named Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Field Office

https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/david-sundberg-named-special-agent-in-charge-of-the-new-haven-field-office


Special Operations Response Team

In 2020, SORT teams deployed to American cities, including Washington, D.C. as a part of the response to the George Floyd protests in Washington, D.C. and Miami, during the June 2020 unrest that followed after the murder of George Floyd. The SORTs in question did not wear identifying clothing or respond to questions about their affiliation. This lead to some politicians and journalists decrying the use of unidentifiable federal law enforcement officers due to a lack of accountability. The SORTs were described by some as an "American secret police." The attorney general defended their use.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Operations_Response_Team

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Officers special-trained to stop prison riots are facing off with DC protesters. Here's how they're trained for crises.

David Choi
Jun 4, 2020, 3:22 PM

https://www.businessinsider.com/officers-special-trained-prison-riots-face-off-with-dc-protesters-2020-6

https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/a-look-back-at-the-1991-talladega-prison-riot

https://www.bop.gov/resources/pdfs/sob92.pdf

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Outsourcing High Liability (Tactical) Training in Corrections

Sidney Lopez, Chief Instructor T.O.G.-US

Chief Instructor T.O.G.-US
Posted on Feb 19, 2020

https://guardianrfid.com/blog/outsourcing-high-liability-tactical-training-in-corrections

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ICE’s Immigration Detainees Protested Lack of Coronavirus Precautions — and SWAT-like Private-Prison Guards Pepper-Sprayed Them

José Olivares

May 5 2020, 6:00 a.m.

At Stewart, which is operated by the private prison giant CoreCivic https://www.corecivic.com/ , there is a special unit of correctional officers tasked with suppressing detainee disturbances. Akin to a SWAT team, the pepper-spraying unit is known as the Special Operations Response Team, or SORT. The SORT unit, which has not been previously reported on, is trained to use riot shields, helmets, pepper spray, and pepper-ball ammunition.

https://theintercept.com/2020/05/05/ice-stewart-immigration-detention-coronavirus-protest-pepper-spray/?comments=1


Lack of Correctional Services: The Adverse Effect on Human Rights

Both the Corrections Corporation of America and the ... more challenging types of prisoners, the operational flaws and deficiencies that critics ... prisoners had been beaten and abused by a “Special Operations Response Team” wearing ...

https://www.corecivic.com/facilities/marion-county-jail-ii

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SORT - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1VXZv_tFAE

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SORT - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRH9vSFOYM0

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Operations Section Chief - Specialty Unit Commanders - Unit Commanders - Assistant Commanders

Special Operations Response Team (SORT) (New York)
There are currently five regional teams: Capital, Central, North, South, and West.

Each Troop also has .308 Riflemen who are available to work with the SORT as Snipers/Observers in certain critical incidents. In addition to the .308 Riflemen, each Troop also has enhanced K9 Handlers who are cross trained to assist SORT in a variety of situations along with their K9 partners.

https://troopers.ny.gov/Specialized_Services/Special_Operations_Response_Team/

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Special Operations and Response Teams (SORT)

byEric Sof
Jan 2, 2013

https://special-ops.org/federal-bop-special-operations-and-response-teams-sort/

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Special Operations Response Team

https://www.americanspecialops.com/photos/law-enforcement/special-operations-response-team.php

Minnesota - SORT

http://www.doc.state.mn.us/DocPolicy2/html/DPW_Display_TOC.asp?Opt=301.155.htm

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Line of Duty Death - Response Handbook

https://www.fws.gov/policy/LODD.pdf

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1.1 Required Minimum Qualifications:

1.1.1 Special Operations Response Teams (SORT) and Rapid Response Teams (RRT): Prior to being assigned to either a SORT or RRT team, all potential members must have at least twelve (12) months of experience as a certified Correctional Officer, which may be waived with prior military, law enforcement, or corrections experience. SORT and RRT members must pass a physical training test prior to team assignment, basic and complete a 40-hour SORT/RRT training class,which will be scheduled as needed. This class will provide specialized training for each team. (4-4089)

http://www.doc.sc.gov/policy/ADM-17-07.htm.pdf


SORT

https://www.looptt.com/taxonomy/term/80078


SORT - Guide Book

https://ntrl.ntis.gov/NTRL/dashboard/searchResults/titleDetail/PB99136871.xhtml

CCA - Security Practices

Emergency Response and Special Operations Response Teams
Emergency Response involves teams who serve as first responders to a variety of incidents.  For more specialized response, Special Operations Response Teams (SORT) at each facility address critical, high-risk situations, natural disasters, search and rescue operations.  These areas may also include fire, hazardous material/chemical spill, bomb threat, escape, hostage takeover, medical emergency and evacuations.  They undergo boot camp-style training that features firearms competence, non-lethal techniques, entry tactics and intense physical conditioning.

http://www.correctionscorp.com/security-operations/security-practices

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Surveillance: George Floyd protests/protesters are under surveillance

(LC)

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(Military sees protesters as battlefield insurgents)
The Military and FBI Are Flying Surveillance Planes Over Protests

Motherboard tracked high-tech aircraft previously used in warzones, as well as flights from other agencies above protesting cities.

by Joseph Cox
Jun 3 2020, 9:39am

On Tuesday night, more protesters marched across U.S. cities to push back against police brutality and the killing of unarmed Black man George Floyd by a white police officer. And overhead, in cities such as Las Vegas, Washington DC, and Portland, the National Guard and law enforcement flew surveillance planes, according to flight data reviewed by Motherboard.
The data shows that flying high-tech and traditionally military-focused aircraft above protesting cities is becoming a norm at this time.

"Military surveillance planes over America's cities are a rare visible indicator of tectonic increases in surveillance quietly underway," John Scott-Railton, a security researcher who has also been tracking some of the surveillance aircraft flights, told Motherboard.
For several hours last night, authorities flew an RC-26B aircraft over Washington DC, making dozens of circles above the city, according to data Motherboard reviewed from ADS-B Exchange, a repository of unfiltered flight data. Authorities also flew a RC-26B over Las Vegas Tuesday night, as spotted by Scott-Railton. The aircraft made repeating circles around different areas of the city, according to flight data reviewed by Motherboard. Tuesday protests in Las Vegas were peaceful according to local media reports, but on Monday police shot and killed one person who was armed. After that, authorities announced the Nevada National Guard would join law enforcement on future protests.
The RC-26B is a reconnaissance plane carrying infrared and electro-optical cameras, and has been used on counter-narcotic missions and in Iraq and Afghanistan. Authorities also deploy the aircraft for assistance during floods or other disasters.


"The aircraft is uniquely qualified as the only fixed-winged aircraft to have Title 32 authority to conduct domestic surveillance while maintaining the ability to conduct Title 10 missions abroad," a 2018 letter from several members of Congress addressed to the House Armed Services Committee reads.

Click below for more…

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/y3zvwj/military-fbi-flying-surveillance-planes-george-floyd-protesters

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Army, DC Guard Investigating After Military Helicopters Buzz Protesters in DC
June 3, 2020

Also Monday, Defense Secretary Mark Esper ordered about 1,600 active-duty troops from the XVIII Airborne Corps to deploy outside D.C. if needed. The deployment consists of an infantry battalion from the 82nd Airborne Division; the 16th Military Police Headquarters out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and the 91st MP Battalion out of Fort Drum, New York.
Defense officials did not name the infantry battalion in a Tuesday night announcement, but the unit is designated as Task Force 504.
In addition to the active-duty units, the D.C. Guard has been fully activated, and more troops have been sent to the District from Utah, New Jersey, Indiana, South Carolina and Tennessee to support local law enforcement. In total, more than 20,000 Guard troops have been deployed across the country in response to civil unrest.
Walker ordered the investigation of the low-flying helicopter maneuvers "to ensure all involved complied with applicable procedures and safety regulations," the release states.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/06/03/army-dc-guard-investigating-after-military-helicopters-buzz-protesters-dc.html

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Why ANG RC-26s Were Spotted Over D.C., Vegas During Civil Unrest
June 5, 2020 | By Jennifer-Leigh Oprihory

An Air National Guard RC-26 aircraft that was tracked over the nation’s capital this week amid civil unrest following George Floyd’s Memorial Day killing in police custody belonged to the West Virginia Air National Guard, ANG spokesperson Lt. Col. Devin Robinson told Air Force Magazine on June 5.
The aircraft—whose presence over the District of Columbia prompted Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) to take to Twitter in search of answers—“is responding to a District of Columbia National Guard request to provide airborne situational awareness of key lines of communication and critical infrastructure within the District,” Robinson wrote in response to a query from the magazine. 
“The RC-26, which was operating in/around Las Vegas, Nev., from 2-4 Jun was from the New Mexico Air National Guard, and provided pre-planned, National Guard Counterdrug Program support,” Robinson wrote. 
As of the morning of June 5, 41,506 National Guard personnel from 33 states and D.C. had been activated to help law-enforcement authorities respond to civil disturbances that broke out across the country after Floyd’s death, according to the NGB release. This reflects an approximately 9,100-troop and one-state jump from the previous day.
Between May 31 and June 5, ANG C-130H, C-130J, KC-135, and C-17 aircraft from various ANG wings flew 53 missions in support of unrest-related efforts, transporting at least 2,987 people and more than 299 tons of cargo, Robinson wrote.


https://www.airforcemag.com/why-ang-rc-26s-were-spotted-over-d-c-vegas-during-civil-unrest/

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DEA is spying on George Floyd protesters

https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6935297-LEOPOLD-DEA-Memo-George-Floyd-Protests.html

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Attorney General William Barr statement to go after George Floyd protesters

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/attorney-general-william-p-barr-s-statement-death-george-floyd-and-riots

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(Military Times)
Video: National Guard, top Pentagon officials on DC streets for protests

https://www.militarytimes.com/video/2020/06/02/national-guard-top-pentagon-officials-on-dc-streets-for-protests/

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(Military Times)
DC mayor asks Trump to withdraw troops and federal police, Guardsmen to leave hotels
Kyle Rempfer
17 hours ago

The mayor of Washington, D.C., is asking that the president remove all military and federal law enforcement from the city, following several nights of peaceful protests.

President Donald Trump said Monday he was "dispatching thousands and thousands of heavily armed soldiers, military personnel, and law enforcement officers” to tamp down on protests and riots in D.C. over the weekend. Since then, the protests have gone on without incident and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has ended the District’s state of emergency.
“The protestors have been peaceful, and last night, the Metropolitan Police Department did not make a single arrest," Bowser wrote in her letter to the president. “Therefore, I am requesting that you withdraw all extraordinary law enforcement and military presence.”

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/06/05/dc-mayor-asks-trump-to-withdraw-troops-and-federal-police/


Mayor Bowser letter to trump

https://twitter.com/MayorBowser/status/1268895206713307138

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DC Mayor asks Trump to 'withdraw all extraordinary' law enforcement and Guard troops from city
By Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN

Updated 5:54 PM ET, Fri June 5, 2020

Among them are personnel from the National Guard, US Secret Service, US Park Police, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Drug Enforcement Administration, US Marshals Service, Bureau of Prisons, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Federal Protective Service and the Transportation Security Administration.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/05/politics/dc-mayor-requests-trump-remove-troops/index.html

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Pentagon disarms guardsmen in D.C., in signal of de-escalation
June 5, 2020 at 12:08 pm Updated June 5, 2020 at 3:55 pm

WASHINGTON – The Pentagon has told National Guardsmen deployed to the nation’s capital not to use firearms or ammunition, and has issued orders to send home active-duty troops that the Trump administration amassed outside the city in recent days, a sign of de-escalation in the federal response to protests in the city.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper made the decision to disarm the guard without consulting the White House, after President Donald Trump ordered a militarized show of force on the streets of Washington to quell demonstrations that were punctured by an episode of looting Sunday, two senior administration officials said. Trump had encouraged the National Guard to be armed.
Initially, a small group of guardsmen deployed in the city had been carrying guns while standing outside monuments, but the bulk of the forces, such as those working with federal park police at Lafayette Square in front of the White House, didn’t carry firearms out of caution. Now, all of the roughly 5,000 guardsmen deployed to Washington from the District of Columbia and 11 states have been told not to use weaponry or ammunition.

Click below for more…

https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/pentagon-disarms-guardsmen-in-d-c-in-signal-of-de-escalation/

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‘Don’t be proud’: Trump urges states to call up National Guard for weekend protests
By Tara Copp and
Michael Wilner
June 05, 2020 02:24 PM , Updated June 05, 2020 06:04 PM

WASHINGTON
President Donald Trump is calling for an increase in National Guard forces across the country ahead of large marches expected this weekend spurred by the death of George Floyd, while Washington’s mayor publicly rebuked him over the military presence in the nation’s capital.
At a Rose Garden event at the White House on Friday morning, Trump offered praise for members of the District of Columbia’s police department, the Secret Service and the National Guard for swiftly clamping down on demonstrators in the city.
Protests reached an inflection point on Monday night, when officers from a number of law enforcement agencies wielded batons and chemical agents to forcibly clear an area north of the White House complex.

Read more here: https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/national-security/article243307046.html#storylink=cpy



https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/national-security/article243307046.html

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(NPR)
National Guard Shuttled To D.C. Protests On Tour Buses, Lodging At Local Hotels

June 4, 2020

https://www.npr.org/local/305/2020/06/04/869535676/national-guard-shuttled-to-d-c-protests-on-tour-buses-lodging-at-local-hotels

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(Defense News)
Congress
Esper, Milley refuse to testify before the House next week
By: Aaron Mehta   13 hours ago


https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2020/06/05/esper-milley-wont-testify-before-the-house/

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(Military Times)
This is why Guardsmen on protest duty were kicked out of a D.C. hotel
Meghann Myers
14 hours ago


https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/06/05/this-is-why-guardsmen-on-protest-duty-were-kicked-out-of-a-dc-hotel/

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(Military Times)
Dozens of troops sounded off on the use of the military to help quell civil unrest. This is what they said.
Meghann Myers
2 days ago


https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/06/03/dozens-of-troops-sounded-off-on-the-use-of-the-military-to-help-quell-civil-unrest-this-is-what-they-said/

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(Military Times)
Guardsman removed from DC mission after FBI said troop ‘expressed white supremacist ideology’ online
Kyle Rempfer
14 hours ago

More than one-third of all active-duty troops and more than half of minority service members say they have personally witnessed examples of white nationalism or ideological-driven racism among the military’s ranks in recent months, according to a survey of 1,630 active-duty Military Times subscribers last fall.

The 2019 survey found that 36 percent of troops who responded have seen evidence of white supremacist and racist ideologies in the military, a significant rise from the year before, when only 22 percent — about 1 in 5 — reported the same in the 2018 poll.

https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2020/06/05/guardsman-removed-from-dc-mission-after-fbi-said-troop-expressed-white-supremacist-ideology-online/

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(Military Times)
Signs of white supremacy, extremism up again in poll of active-duty troops
Leo Shane III
February 6

More than one-third of all active-duty troops and more than half of minority service members say they have personally witnessed examples of white nationalism or ideological-driven racism within the ranks in recent months, according to the latest survey of active-duty Military Times readers.

The poll surveyed 1,630 active-duty Military Times subscribers last fall on their views about political leaders, global threats and domestic policy priorities. It offers a troubling snapshot of troops’ exposure to extremist views while serving despite efforts from military leaders to promote diversity and respect for all races.
The 2019 survey found that 36 percent of troops who responded have seen evidence of white supremacist and racist ideologies in the military, a significant rise from the year before, when only 22 percent — about 1 in 5 — reported the same in the 2018 poll.

https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2020/02/06/signs-of-white-supremacy-extremism-up-again-in-poll-of-active-duty-troops/

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(Marine Corp Times)
The neo-Nazi boot: Inside one Marine’s descent into extremism

https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2019/09/04/the-neo-nazi-boot-inside-one-marines-descent-into-extremism/

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