‘Unite the Right’
Patriot Front is an offshoot of another neo-fascist organization, Vanguard America, now reportedly defunct. Vanguard, which at its height was estimated to have around 200 members, was one of several racist groups that rioted during the 2017 “Unite the Right” rally, where anti-racist protester Heather Heyer, 32, was murdered. The perpetrator, James Alex Fields, who received a life sentence for killing her in July 2019, was photographed marching with Vanguard members, though they claimed he was not a member. Nevertheless, the violence in Charlottesville (and subsequent bad press) led to the splintering of Vanguard. Orchestrating the breakup was former Vanguard member Thomas Rousseau, who would go on to found Patriot Front in the weeks after the rally.
