Armed with rifles, tactical equipment and floral equipment, a handful of self-identified “boogaloo boys” held a demonstration outside the Capitol in Lansing, under the supervision of the police and the Michigan National Guard.
Timothy Teagan, 22, said the January 17 rally had been planned for weeks, but most attendees caught their attention after news of an FBI bulletin warned that groups were planning to storm state capitals across the country . About 20 members of the ‘boogaloo’ movement answered questions from the media and stood around the Capitol lawn for a few hours before leaving without incident.
Researchers who follow extremist groups describe the “boogaloo boys” as a loosely affiliated network of activists united by their contempt for the government and the feeling that the US is heading for a violent civil war.
On Sunday around 1:30 p.m., most of the group they identified as ‘boogaloo boys’ left the state Capitol. Only a small group of protesters remained. Lt. Michael Shaw, Michigan police, said no arrests were made Sunday.
Michigan police increased their security at Capitol State last week after a crowd broke into the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overthrow the presidential election. The FBI is coordinating with local police to respond to threats related to the inauguration of Pres. Joe Biden on January 20th.
The Michigan legislature will not meet next week because of “credible threats” of violence. The legislature closed the day after the January 6 riots in Washington, DC due to a bomb threat and threats also closed legislative offices when Michigan’s elections on December 14, 2020 cast their votes for Biden.
Teagan, who carried an AR-15 and six ammunition magazines on his chest, said the protest was intended to create a forum for people in the political spectrum to discuss their views.
“We do not want a civil war at all,” Teagan said. ‘I would like to see a peaceful revolution, keyword peaceful. I do not want to see bloodshed in my country. I do not want to see our cities break and burn and people die. I feel like one of the best ways to do that is to stand up for the rights of everyone, no matter if you agree with it. ”
Yet Teagan said members of the boogaloo movement see civil war as “closer to inevitability.”
Less than a block away, National Guard armored vehicles lined up on the west side of the Capitol building. Uniformed Michigan State Police troopers patrol downtown streets, and at least two helicopters can be seen flying above them.
Shaw said the increased police presence was accompanied by other “unseen measures” around Lansing city center.
Several others who were at the event did not want to share their name with MLive reporters. Some said they had been contacted by the FBI before Sunday.
Erick Spencer, a 49-year-old Ingham County resident, is not affiliated with the Boogaloo group. He is a Trump supporter who visited the Capitol to check out the demonstration, which he said gave people the opportunity to deceive Republicans into ‘violent criminals and terrorists’.
“They flipped the script,” Spencer said. ‘It is not appropriate to storm the Capitol or businesses and burn down buildings. That is why we were not the Democratic country. ”
Spencer said the event was organized on Jan. 6 and that it “was not the president’s speech that incited it, because it’s going to happen no matter what.”
The lack of protesters surprised Spencer, who said people may have thought it was a setup by far-left groups. He places himself at the center of the political spectrum, although he supports Trump. Spencer does not believe that recent events will support the number of people who support the Republican Party.
“You are not going to convey your message if you act violently,” Spencer said. “I did not come here for a militia rally, I am not interested in that, because it is just an example of armed violence that will not solve anything before you end up in a civil war.”
Another member of the Boogaloo movement in Michigan gave reporters a false name and identified him as a man from Maryland who was killed by police during a raid last year. The man, who said he was from Flint, expressed grievances about the election, COVID-19 orders and ‘tyrants’ in government.
The Flint man was carrying an AR-15 and a Glock pistol. He said he understood why people were afraid of protesters with a gun, but said he saw himself in a similar role to the police who were tasked with keeping the events safe.
“Just because they have the badge does not make them any different from me,” he said.
Anthony Longo, 30, in Lansing, visited the Capitol on Sunday out of curiosity about the protest. Longo said he was not convinced the presidential election was fair, but did not agree with the tactics of ‘insurgents’ who stormed the Capitol earlier this month.
Longo carried pepper spray in his jacket pocket. He said he understands why people may be concerned about the potential for political violence.
“Nobody’s talking, that’s the point,” he said.
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