VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A white supremacist group that marched at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront on Saturday sparked outrage in the community, condemnation from the NAACP, and a response from the city's police department.
"Patriot Front" is a group that says it rejects diversity, favoring the creation of a white ethnostate in the United States, according to the Program on Extremism at George Washington University (GWU). During demonstrations, members within the group are known to wear white masks — specifically balaclavas — in an attempt to avoid direct identification. Patriot Front was founded after the deadly "Unite the Right" rally back in Aug. 2017 in Charlottesville.
"Patriot Front is known for its propaganda campaigns, including distributing flyers, staging marches, and defacing public art, all aimed at spreading its white nationalist message," GWU's Program on Extremism wrote about the white supremacist group.
Videos circulating online show members of Patriot Front marching around the Oceanfront on Saturday. The members were spotted wearing white balaclavas, with several seen carrying Confederate flags, the Betsy Ross version of the American flag, and the Patriot Front's specialized flag, which features the “fascio” — a symbol used in Italy under Benito Mussolini’s fascist regime.
The Virginia Beach Police Department (VBPD) confirmed to News 3 that the marchers were members of Patriot Front. It was also noted by VBPD that the group posed no threat to public safety and that their choice to wear masks was an assertion of their First Amendment rights. This is despite a Virginia law that made it unlawful for anyone over the age of 16 to wear a mask with the intent to conceal their identity in a public place.
The Virginia Beach NAACP issued a statement in response to the Patriot Front presence at the Oceanfront over the weekend.
It reads, in part: "Over the weekend, our branch received numerous communications from concerned residents and visitors regarding the group’s presence at the Oceanfront. Many shared feelings of fear, discomfort, and intimidation. Some community members even reported changing their plans entirely—choosing not to visit or enjoy the Oceanfront because they no longer felt safe or welcome in those spaces.
While the group may not have shouted words during their march, they carried instruments and symbols of hate in the flags and imagery they displayed. Silence does not erase the message being communicated. The symbolism associated with extremist organizations is designed to intimidate, divide, and remind marginalized communities that hatred still exists openly in public spaces."
Back in June 2022, authorities arrested 31 Patriot Front members near an Idaho pride event after they were found packed into the back of a U-Haul truck with riot gear. All 31 were charged with conspiracy to riot, which is a misdemeanor.
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