Hundreds of Illinois parents are working with the group "Awake Illinois" - which appears to be organizing functionally as a right-wing hate group with repackaged messaging.

They lure in new members via carefully crafted messaging which obscures their overall platform. A deeper look into their stated goals reveals theirs shares many of the same ideologies as far-right extremist hate groups we've all seen before.

Example: Those who remember the rapid rise of the "Tea Party," for instance, initially was organized by wealthy wh*te conservatives who promoted it as "grassroots" while being backed by dark money. When more of their members discovered what they had joined up with, their movement lost momentum - because the secret was out and people didn't want to be associated with hate.

Groups such as these are not teaching the same standards of ethical, non-violent grassroots organizing. They are not a true grassroots org. New activists may not yet have the training and discernment to perceive the difference, which many hate groups take advantage of.

Such groups don't tend to teach political action with safety for all, ethics, and a commitment to non-violence in mind like ethical grassroots groups do.

Instead, anti-science, anti-democratic, white nationalist/white supremacist groups teach political disruption organizing style. This means pushing false narratives, propaganda, gaslighting, false fronts, hiding affiliations, and destructive tactics.

Cultivation of volunteers in using increasingly incendiary and public body destabilization insurgency tactics against their own community members in local bodies of government is a hallmark of insurgency organizing.

Hate groups lack transparency, failing to inform their members of their true goals. They aren't about best-practices, good public policy which protects the most vulnerable via vibrant, equitable, transparent democratic organizing.

Due to loss of good objective press coverage, few yet know what such groups do all over the state. They join up, give funds, spread their bland public messaging without responsible inquiry first.

Be careful who you join.

Locally, the people drawn to the wide open hate on the SEJ stalking profile were attracted by the hate living daily on their wall.

The locals believed to be behind the "Sarah Ellen Jonas" Facebook Profile are now being sued in federal district court for cyberstalking, stalking, harassment, intimidation, false light, among other crimes listed in the suit by a journalist.

Those posting on that profile are now part of the federal evidence file forever, where history will judge them after the federal court case plays out.

Will future generations be proud of what is being posted there? Time will tell.

Hate groups looking for new members were attracted to that profile by the hate.

Hate is a lure and a weaponizable psychological vulnerability.

Those falling for the economically destructive action of literally suing their own schools (& tax base!) were attracted to propaganda which targeted their fears and stress. Such propaganda is based upon ignorance and anti-intellectualism, racial, and homophobic/transphobic biases.

Those posting hate in comments on social media are then befriended by outside people seemingly helpful - but who DON'T GIVE A CARE ABOUT ANY OF OUR CHILDREN - and pulled into organizing where they are taught destructive political disruption.

Locals in communities may really believe it's just about the masks (for them), but an internet search reveals the mask/vaccination issue was propagandized by anti-democratic insurgency groups with hate in their platforms designed to attract those willing to shred our ties to each other locally.

They teach tactics of fear, which increasingly incite negative biases based upon irrational, false, or inaccurate information. In some communities, they are already unleashing chaos and an attitude of entitlement for local violence. Harassing school boards is one example.

Then when good people give up being willing to serve on boards, they fund the least-fit types of Q-Anoners like Mary Miller, Marjorie Taylor-Green, or worse for local boards and committees.

This is a warning to please do your own research before joining any group, to ensure you aren't being misled.

The locals raised the 5,000 to help SUE the Macomb School District for their mask mandate. There are many town/gown community members who gave money towards their cause.

Awake Illinois isn't solely a "Parent's Rights" group (as they describe themselves). They are also functioning with multiple, destructive, and racist, homophobic/transphobic sub-narratives, and such activity from any group should be watchdogged in every community because of the structural hate built into such organizing platforms, propaganda, tactics, and strategy.

Many joining in online do not appear to be aware of the history of some who are allegedly funding their rapid rise and influence. We hope journalists will look into their rapid rise and seeming unlimited funding for growth.

We've see this stuff - hate groups or big dark money groups - pulling in people before, like the MAGA or Proud Boys.

Organizing groups targeting people openly expressing hateful ideologies and apparent willingness to commit or support acts of bigotry, hatred, up to and including criminal behavior, even violence NEVER had the ability to spread/pull people in like they can now on social media.

Facebook has greatly limited the ability to bring any accountability to the hate speech against people online.

That must be investigated as possible foreign influence in our elections because they are targeting people's willingness to even run for office.

The SEJ site's owners were encouraged by their hate for our organizing and leaders, and so many have hopped on board that they now are a site that is a ripe hunting ground for insurgents for hate groups.

Those wanting to sow chaos and set us at each other in our communities befriend or pay people like these, or offer validation, positive affirmation, or they hire "influencers" and or "fans" who will offer local content attractive to haters/trolls.

Then the haters posting are invited into progressively more extremist groups until they get to their line where they won't move further.

Our community's leadership silenced us about the rising hate in the community, because they don't see it and don't experience it, so they don't care. But this is a problem book clubs, "Hate has no home here" signs, opt-in anti-violence communication workshops do nothing to address.

So, what are community leaders actually doing about this rapidly growing problem? It's time to demand real action to confront the anti-CRT racists, the anti-government sentiment, the ignorant hateful opposition to standards-based, science-informed best practices comprehensive sex education.

We must ask ourselves where the actions of groups organizing to attack local bodies of government for CRT, against COVID protections for children, against teaching healthy body image, consent, and autonomy will lead our communities.

Outsider bad actors online are reaching out to local haters and seeking to gaslight them to set them on a path of risk, harm, and potential violence in our communities.

We're seeing local teens attacking us with hate speech online (and at our protests last year), and now it's escalating since there is no accountability.

And some of these teens and adults have also been hanging out like the KKK in the parking lot at Macomb's closed Kmart, with their hate symbols (confederate flags), apparently secure in the knowledge that they can continue growing their numbers with no apparent concern nor expectation of any peaceful but visible, passionate pushback from this nice wh*te peaceful community.

Beware of those organizing around hateful ideology.

Some community members may look like just a nice parenting group anti-vaccine crunchy attachment parenting Mom, but online is a dedicated homophobic/transphobic/racist/troll and cyberstalker/hater online but not in person. So her friends in the community don't know, yet her victims online know all too well, and are left without witness, validation, support, justice.

Members of these groups are each just a link in the chain of insurgency, and most don't have any idea they are a part of a bigger chain of cultural disruption.

Their undercurrents of hate aren't hard to see once you look at their messaging.

Microaggressions to outright hate towards others is a sign online that someone isn't organizing for healthy interaction towards vibrant inclusive democracy.

Good people can be misled by messages which use terms we associate with good living, such as "patriotism", "freedom", "choice" - but the context of these words don't always mean the same thing to all people.

Good people can fall prey to those committing #AffinityFraud. That is, just because someone is in a parenting group with you and also expresses support for suing your own school district does not mean they share your goals.

They may not care, for instance, that a lawsuit means much more money going to lawyers in other communities instead of band, or softball, or clubs, or more staff, more services, more classes, more resources.

They may just be there just to take those resources FROM our community - inciting locals to take action which harms a community.

It may be because they then use those resources to fund even MORE such hate, paying far more people to "influence" for the causes of bigotry, racism, hate, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, anti-intellectualism, anti-democratic, authoritarianism in their own communities.

Social media corporations rake in the money while allowing the hate to be the vehicle insurgents ride into our communities.

We need to find a way to make people aware that taking down hate sites and NOT allowing hate on any wall will slow this down.

We need more curation options, and real consequences for social media platforms allowing hate.

Certain ad-hominem when combined with community reporting for hate should mean loss of access. We need laws to hold corporations like Facebook accountable.

A lot of these people aren't experienced activists, so don't realize what they're getting into.

Far too many lured into these types of groups are casual joiners, or lacking vetting skills so they don't even realize their signing onto a culture of anti-government, fascist white nationalism that isn't just anti-mask/anti-vaccine mandates.

People need to look at the whole body of work and ensure they agree.

People can join whatever groups they wish, but they should not be lied to nor manipulated into it.

Whether it's a fearful anti-vaxxer, or a homophobe or purity culture fan enraged at comprehensive sex education, or a bigoted farmer enraged over CRT, you can bet they find plenty of like-minded "friends" here on Facebook as they lead otherwise isolated lives.

The thing is, some of these types of groups are already are so emotionally invested they encourage youth to commit acts putting them at risk. So, where is their line?

What will they stop at?

It's getting worse, and our governments, especially republicans, are not well prepared to speak about this and confront it. Especially because most in red counties are still desperately pretending all is well.

Our children are being targeted for cultivation aby right wing extremists online, and we have dozens of wh*te teenagers interacting and being encouraged publicly to attack women and groups like ours trying to educate our communities on these issues. That is a fact.

Some of these youth are using hate speech on our wall.

Those parents should be warned of the long-term consequences to these young people's lives.

Locally leaders can pretend it's no big deal, but those posts can carry long-term consequences.

Remember, good people often aren't knowingly playing into insurgency tactics. Education can help them use better discernment.

Before joining up with any group, ask:

• Who is at the top?

• Are they paid? By whom?

• Who are they tied to?

• Are they diverse in leadership?

• Are they consistent with public messaging versus what they tell their members

• What impact will their actions have on the community?

You'll know groups are insurgency groups by the hateful triad in their platforms:

• - Anti-CRT (Critical Race Theory)

• - Anti-Comprehensive Sex Ed (homophobia/transphobia/anti-body-autonomy)

• - Anti-COVID mitigation, no matter what it'll be (masks, vaccinations; this is a white anti-government, ableist narrative)

Spread the word. Talk to your friends, neighbors, community leaders. We must work together or the suffering will get worse.

Who is funding these groups attacking school boards? Learn more here.¹

#BlackLivesMatter #CRT #RacialJustice

1. A look at the groups supporting school board protesters nationwide | NPR | Oct. 26, 2021
https://www.wglt.org/2021-10-26/a-look-at-the-groups-supporting-school-board-protesters-nationwide?