Its modus operandi is to deploy a more fearsome Black militia wherever white militias dare to appear. Grandmaster Jay told The Atlanta Black Star that the group stood guard to prevent a repeat of the 1979 Greensboro Massacre, in which five people in North Carolina were shot and killed by Nazis and Klansmen as citizens gathered for the start of an anti-racism protest. State wanton endangerment charges were dropped. One of the biggest shows of arms and unity from the NFAC came on July 4, 2020, Americas Independence Day. [7] The Disturbing History of the So-Called Boogaloo Bois, Blackout Day 2020: What You Need to Know About the Economic Boycott, Patriot Act: What to Know About Your Privacy & Web History, anti-racism rally outside the U.S.Embassy in London, explaining to Roland Martin in a July interview. A court date has been scheduled for April 25. By arresting Jay, the government took him out of circulation as a militia leader. Grandmaster Jay, leader of the NFAC. I was caught up in all thatI, too, was waving signs and chanting, he said. He said yes, but I pressed him to continue. You figure that part out, youll figure out everything that Im talking about.. The U.S. government is going around cleaning up all of those other organizations, he said. He was busted down to the lowest rankprivateand drummed out of the Army with an other than honorable discharge. Im still here because I was cured in a way that defies medicine and changed my entire brain structure. He began eating differently, and drinking alkaline water to reactivate his pineal gland and scrub his system of impurities that were impeding higher abilities. His drink orderSan Pellegrino or filtered tap waterhad spiritual implications. Meanwhile, Jay acquired a record of violence. Thats not what we do., With the NFAC united under his guidance, he describes the groups ethos asan element that has always existed within America, as heshared with The Atlanta Black Star last month. Among the small armory of assault rifles, they also found a prodigious amount of marijuana. Twenty-twenty is a great example. No one seems to have noticed the coalition then, amid some 600 other counterprotesters. [5] [6] It denies any connection to the Black Panther Party or Black Lives Matter. He claimed to have enlisted the Niger Delta Avengers, a militant group that has been blowing up pipelines and other infrastructure in Nigeria, as part of his coalition, which will eventually be the military backbone of the UBKN. Johnsons case in front of a grand jury was expected on June 21, but was delayed to the week of July 12 to allow further review. There was a problem saving your notification. Right-wing militias stormed Michigans capitol and were not arrested. John Fitzgerald Johnson, also known as Grand Master Jay, is facing state and federal charges for allegedly pointing a gun at Louisville Metro Police Members of the Black paramilitary group attend protests heavily armed. John Fitzgerald Johnson, also known as Grandmaster Jay, was arrested on Dec. 3 and charged with five counts of wanton endangerment. His group, armed with guns, moved into Louisville twice in the wake of Breonna Taylor's death for what they described as peaceful formations: Once in July and again the day before the 2020 Kentucky Derby in September. "At that moment I thought it was time for us to stand up (and) stop talking about it, because apparently there was some other program running in America that we didn't get the memo on. (If he is wrong, its only because a Black militia that attempted to storm Congress would have been fired upon by law enforcement long before it penetrated the Capitol.) Too much talking. Complex Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Kelly Clarkson's Home Collection Is Up to 74% Off During Way Day Deals, The Best Wayfair Way Day Deals 2023 Starting at $30. 22, 2021 at 11:37 AM PDT. He is due back in court in February. Case against militia leader 'Grandmaster Jay' heads to Jefferson County grand jury. Johnson served in the Virginia National Guard and the Army from 1989 to 2006, leaving at the rank of private. Grandmaster Jay says he didnt knowingly point weapons at anyone. He lost to Donald Trump and concluded, like most independent candidates, that America had rigged politics against him. They joined a group that promised to take a bite out of the Earth and reserve it for Black people. Jay described its recruiting strategy: You must be Black, he said. We live in a world where racism is appearing to rear its ugly head again the way it did back in the Jim Crow days, he tells Complex via Zoom. Led by Grandmaster Jay (John Fitzgerald Johnson), the NFAC has been posited as an eye for an eye organization, in opposition to those aforementioned organizations, and hasloudly called for Black citizens to arm themselves in the face ofwhite supremacy. 00:00 / 00:00. He said that the NFAC was born out of the atmosphere created by Donald Trump, not out of a spiritual revelation. The first public appearance of the NFAC was at a KKK rally in Dayton, Ohio, in 2019. Grand Master Jay, or John Fitzgerald Johnson, is accused of pointing an AR-style rifle at federal agents and police officers in downtown Louisville. But the desire for action of some kind, acknowledging that Black people are uniquely menaced, is to be expected. Prosecutors say the flashlight was attached to the barrel of a rifle Johnson was pointing at the officers. (Many still believe this.) I think thats a pretty significant indication There are 57 million of us here. The NFAC formations in Louisville were large, but mostly peaceful and without issue. When they finally admit that we have the capability to time travel, he said, I would love to see one of us go back and meet ourselves five years ago, or 10 years ago. Few paid attention until Jay showed up with dozens of armed followers in Georgia last year, and phrased his new beliefs in a militant idiom. The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox. Copyright 2021 WAVE 3 News. (I wonder how many of them regard Jays fraudulent past the way Trump supporters regard the former presidentsi.e., if such a clown could get this far, he must have divine favor.) (Source: Oldham County Detention Center), Surveillance images that federal authorities say show John Johnson (Grandmaster Jay) pointing a rifle at officers. The Not Fucking Around Coalitionbetter known as the NFACis the latest organization to join the likes of the Boogaloo Bois, Oath Keepers, and the 3 Percenters, the nationwide entitiesthat have taken root amidthe craziness going on right now. Armed self-defense has been around at least since Cyril Briggs, who founded the African Blood Brotherhood in 1919. They then have to give us contact information on them and offer a valid reason why they would want to join our organization. Plenty of Trump supporters believed that their man had a mystical ability to outwit his opponents and bend previously unbendable laws of politics. In Louisville, just two hours from where Jay and I sat, the NFAC first revealed the extent of its capabilities. The organization is young, but has already had a few run-ins that callits motives into question. Grand Master Jay leads the NFAC, a national militia of armed Black people who came into Louisville multiple times in the wake of Breonna Taylor's death. John Fitzgerald Johnson, who also is known as Grandmaster Jay, is the enigmatic founder of the Not Fucking Around Coalition. Somehow, after all of this, Jay reenlisted that December, this time as an Army reservist. Ironically, though, the governments confiscation of his weapons has proved at least one of Jays prophecies. Copyright 2020 WDRB Media. He left the Army in 1997 but despised civilian life. Dressed from mask to shoes in black, he was four hours late to our meeting, and remorseless. But the transformation does not appear coincidental. Hearst Television participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. We didnt create that. A patch on Grandmaster Jays body armor bore the new nations initials, UBKN. (Source: Probable Cause Affidavit / FBI). Like a Rubiks Cube.. According to Grandmaster Jay, the reasoning for the groups formation is simple. Yet it is rarely good news when you learn that a sectarian racist is raising an army, stockpiling weapons, demanding total loyalty, and suggesting that he is a messiah. Jay speaks prophetically, and sometimes apocalyptically. (Don't worry, its temporary), Challenges to books at Ky. libraries tripled in 2022 amid national jump in attempted bans, How the Telugu immigrant community is instilling their culture in the next generation, Richmond, Ind., residents sue owner of property where massive industrial fire occurred, This Mt. Texas News NFAC Grand Master Jay (YouTube) Shortly after a Black militia group, that calls itself the 'Not F**king Around Coalition' (NFAC) made an appearance at Stone Mountain, Georgia, a video of their 'Grand Master' became viral, asking for 'a Black nation'. At that time, LMPD officers at the scene received a radio transmission stating that a group of "six to eight heavily armed individuals" were parked on Armory Place, near a parking garage, according to court documents. The coalition is larger than the older [white] militias. Everythings upside down; the world a year ago is completely 180 degrees from where you are now and people are just blundering through it without realizing that youre living in an alternate timeline. White people decided to act up and show us their true colors, Jay said. He named four but refused to identify the fifth. Were not going to dig into who I am, he said. Amazon Has Uncanny Dupes of CB2's Popular Dining Chair for Hundreds Less. Tommie Shelby, a professor of African American studies and philosophy at Harvard, noted that these ideas have precursors in Black political thought. The first thing they have to do is submit their information to us via email, the Supreme Leader explains. CRAWFORD | Not skipping ahead: Setting the scene for Kentucky Derby 149, will Forte reign? Johnson is accused of pointing a rifle at Louisville Metro Police officers and federal officers the night before the 2020 Kentucky Derby, according to a probable cause affidavit. He is a former soldier, a failed political candidate, a hip-hop DJ, a rambling egotist, and a prolific self-promoter. In one video, as alleged in a criminal complaint against him, he tells his followers to burn government officials homes and murder their children. It recreated itself. Some people come to change the world, he said, and some come to end it all. The latter, he implied, are unwelcome in the NFAC and have to be screened out. Were watching. This strategic stand-down was not entirely voluntary, of course. GMJ STORY. We sat in Jays SUV, which soon filled with pleasant Cajun aromas from the scallops. Because of Jays patrilineal theory of race, he would presumably recognize a smaller number still.). During the period after the First World War, when white mobs were shooting Black people and burning their businesses, many Black people considered peaceful protests (such as those organized by the NAACP) inadequate. Some sources say he is as young as 50, others as old as 59. His life sometimes seems like a long disinformation campaign about itself. He could say anything, do anything, and somehow survive. The Ohio Newsroom: A Public Media Collaboration, Reds TV changes could come by end of this week, Updated report shows Springfield Township officer's speed in deadly March crash, O'Bryonville changes its name to O'Piggyville. Leader of the NFAC John Jay Fitzgerald Johnson, also known as Grand Master Jay, gives direction to members of the NFAC at G.G. But when you return to your timeline, nothing has changed! He continued. Surely, though, there must be limits to what Jays followers can accept. Two photos were included in the court filing that allegedly shows Johnson aiming his firearm at the officers. Adding to his frustrations was the racism Grandmaster Jay says appeared during the Trump Administration. Last summer, Grandmaster Jay laid out the groups goals for WVXU. A Jefferson County grand jury will now decide whether to indict the leader of an armed militia for allegedly pointing his gun at officers during protests in Louisville. LOUISVILLE, Ky. John Johnson, the leader of the NFAC also known as Grandmaster Jay, appeared in federal court for sentencing Wednesday morning. Background: Case against militia leader 'Grandmaster Jay' heads to Jefferson County grand jury. (At some point, he repudiated the Black Lives Matter slogan. NFAC leader Grand Master Jay saw a major victory in court this week. The NFAC then runs a background check on the potential member. GMJ MIXES & SONGS. He will be formally arraigned Monday. WebJohn Jay Fitzgerald Johnson aka: Grand master jay, John Johnson, John Fitzgerald. According to prosecutors with the Commonwealth's Attorney, the charges stem from Johnson and the militia taking part in a protest on Sept. 4, is 2020, in Louisville. Updated: 5:01 PM EST November 9, 2022. The NFAC leaders real name is John Fitzgerald Johnson. When Grandmaster Jay walked into Millions Crab, a seafood joint in suburban Cincinnati, the waitstaff looked alarmed. He wore his trademark body armor and sunglasses in the summer heat and spoke grandly of self-defense, Black empowerment and the creation of a Black nation. LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The leader of the Black militia group known as the NFAC pleaded not guilty to federal charges in court on Friday. Millions Crab is a family restaurant, and on that placid November evening, Jaythe supreme commander of the Not Fucking Around Coalitionwas wearing body armor rated to take a pistol round directly to the chest. Compare the NFACs military-style discipline, Jay said, with white militias. From that point on, he was spitting knowledge on social media, much of it about alien spacecraft (visitors) and odd phenomena he noticed in the sky. Amid explosive racial tensions, the vast majority of the NFACs visibility is a product of social mediaparticularly Instagram. Jay told me that he already had to vet his recruits carefully. The far-right patriot movement has long been a fringe factor in American politics, as racial upheaval, police brutality, and a not-so-hidden agenda from President Donald Trump have paved the way for wide-scale growth of the ideological militia movement. Part of the process of creating a new country (under a treaty known as the Montevideo Convention) is demonstrating that enough people are eager to live there permanently and can administer the new state. Jay previously argued that Black people, exercising their constitutional rights to speak and pack heat, would be treated differently from white people doing the same. (By contrast, aerial photos suggest that the white militiamen present that day could have fit in a small school bus.) But my goodness, the weaponryAR-15s galore, sniper rifles with scopes and bipods, high-capacity magazines, and enough tactical clothing to resupply an Army-surplus store. COMPLEX participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means COMPLEX gets paid commissions on purchases made through our links to retailer sites. WebJohn Fitzgerald Johnson, also known as Grand Master Jay and John Jay Fitzgerald Johnson, claims leadership of the group and has stated that it is composed of "ex military shooters." Year: 2020: ONE Super Series [28] Afterwards, the group marched and left. You wont get that from me. He said he wasnt from the Midwest. And we appear to be the target of an undeclared domestic war against African Americans.". The NFAC also appears to have tapped into a kind of modish authoritarian magical thinking. He later claimed to have worked as the director of a global cloud-integration practice and solutions architect. He tried a career as a hip-hop DJ, which took an embarrassing turn when stars including Grandmaster Flash and DJ Jazzy Jeff accused him of plagiarism and rsum exaggeration. Jay said, If I assemble 1 million legal guns, I have the fifth-largest ground army on the planet. You may have seen him and members of his group in cities where African Americans have died at the hands of police and others. The NFAC formations in Louisville were large, but mostly peaceful and without issue. In the July gathering, three people were wounded when a firearm was accidentally discharged ahead of the march. After basic training, the Army assigns every soldier a military occupational specialty, or MOS: 11B is an infantryman, 94S is a Patriot system repairer, 12K is a plumber. (Right-wingers, gun enthusiasts, and ex-military types on social media ridicule Jay for his and his followers poor weapons discipline.). The best evidenceincluding court recordssuggests that he turned 57 in December. Unless you have a deep, personal, hands-on experience with the past.. WebGrand Master Jay explains in 2016 interview why he was at the trump rally #NFAC. When Jay orders his people into motion, they go. RELATED: NFAC leader 'Grandmaster Jay' facing state charges after allegedly pointing gun at officers Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Eventually, it intends to establish a racially pure country called the United Black Kemetic Nation. In early December, the FBI raided his apartment and arrested him on charges that, during a September demonstration in Louisville, he pointed a rifle at federal agents, blinding them with its mounted light. Ive studied the documents. According to the documents, the FBI reviewed the surveillance video from the incident, which consisted of real-time crime center camera footage. Grandmaster Jay, the leader of a Black militia called NFAC (Not F-cking Around Coalition) a name he says denotes the group's attitude spoke to Atlanta His attorney argued that Johnson was using the light on his gun to see who was on the roof, but the judge says evidence shows he was aware it was police.In Jefferson County, Johnson is facing five counts of wanton endangerment, one for each person on the roof at the time. HE POINTED A RIFLE AT LOUISVILLE POLI OCEFFICERS. We dont understand why we have to be anti-somebody because we love our people. WebGrandmaster Jay, the outspoken leader of the NFAC, has been convicted. The Ohio Newsroom: A Public Media Collaboration, Reds TV changes could come by end of this week, Updated report shows Springfield Township officer's speed in deadly March crash, O'Bryonville changes its name to O'Piggyville. The filtered water must have lowered his inhibitions, because over the next two hours Jay became more garrulous. In 2020 and its aftermath, however, there is a greater-than-usual demand for someone who seems to have at least a little skill at propitiating the angry gods. WebThe Not Fucking Around Coalition ( NFAC) is a black nationalist militia part of the militia movement in the United States. Updated: Jun. But I knew he lived near Cincinnati: I had staked out his apartment that afternoon. I thanked Jay for his time, and he thanked me for mine. Grandmaster Jay is clear when saying his group doesn't protest. WebGrandmaster Jay, the outspoken leader of the NFAC, has been convicted. In one of Jays videos, he tells his followers that he intends to meet each and every last one of you face-to-face, to conduct an interrogation to screen out fakes, wannabes, snakes, and spiders. Jay says he will swear people in after they have put your life on the line by standing armed in an NFAC formation, in a situation where other armed groups might start trouble. Jay is satisfied with how the government has handled the January 6 investigation and glad the Oath Keepers leader has been charged. He has also seemed to flirt with Holocaust denial. The cops took his rifles too. John Johnson, a.k.a. In the July gathering, three people were wounded when a firearm accidentally discharged ahead of the march.In just two days, May 28, it will be the one year anniversary since protests first filled the streets of Louisville in response to the deaths of Taylor, George Floyd and more. Grandmaster Jay says beyond trying to "police ourselves," he would like to work with local governments and community groups. How did we get here? Prior to his life in the militia, Jay was a rapper, producer, and DJ, as well asan Army veteran. He's delivering life-saving stem cells, Women In Government: A conversation between Kristie Dukes Davis and Victoria Parks, DHL tug and ramp workers at CVG say yes to the Teamsters, How to vote in Ohio's special primary election May 2 or check if you need to vote at all. The group, for the most part, is well run (some use an accidental firearm discharge as an example of its lack of organization), with all of its public actions being coordinated with law enforcement and local governments, which has resulted in no known violence. All lives!). John "Grandmaster Jay" Johnson is the founder and leader of the "Not F***ing Around Coalition," or NFAC. Stories worth watching 16 videos. I saw that I had been socialized to believe that I was second-class, that there was something criminal inherent about me, he said. Someone has said before, Well, if it had been you guys there would have been bodies on the front lawn. I said, Well, its not so much whether or not it would be us, its how does the United States handle this and appear fair and equitable in the eyes of all citizens?' Eleanor Harvey is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of JOHN JOHNSON. 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You all are living in an alternate timeline. A lot of times when people talk about time travel, they always run into the paradigm If you change something in the past, then youll screw up your present. Jay shook his head. Thursday, December 3, 2020 For Immediate Release U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Kentucky LOUISVILLE, Ky. John F. Johnson, aka, Grandmaster Jay has been charged via criminal complaint with assaulting federal task force officers, announced United States Attorney Russell Coleman. He also advises them to destroy police body cameras if they assault cops, to remove evidence. The location of this new country is negotiable, and as a model he considered Wyoming, because of its cheap land. Federally, he's charged with one count of assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers or employees and one count of brandishing a firearm in relation to a crime of violence in relation to the same incident. "We respond to situations where there's been a killing within our community, and law enforcement nor the legislature seem reluctant to give us the same level of assistance they give to people of other demographics in a timely fashion.". Its leader, Grandmaster Jay, whose real name is John Fitzgerald Johnson, retained the cocky, steel-eyed confidence that has made him a messiah to tens of thousands of Black Americans. NFAC shows up and decide they want to wipe us all outwere gone in seconds., These are volatile situations, Amy Iandiorio, an investigative researcher for the Anti-Defamation Leagues Center on Extremism, told me when I asked her about the NFAC. Through these efforts, the NFAC encourages Black citizens with the means and ways to take advantage of the Second Amendment and their right to responsible gun ownership. He visited Auschwitz, he said, and was indelibly influenced by what he saw. In 2008, according to the Anti-Defamation League, there were more than 500 militia groups, and the uptick in heavily armed protesters sincehas resulted in clashes aroundthe COVID-19 pandemic, keeping Trump in office, and police brutality. Watching a mob storm the Capitol with a Confederate battle flag should freak out any American who hates racism, and inspire such a person to seek a radical cure for a deep political sickness. Grandmaster Jay. Dalton Godbey joined WDRB News as a general assignment reporter in 2019 after spending two years reporting in Bowling Green. PublishedFebruary 2, 2022 at 4:24 AM EST. They include defending the Black community, being responsible firearms owners and educating and fostering unity. WebJohn Fitzgerald Johnson aka The Grand Master Jay has been targeted by the US Govt. According to the documents, the FBI reviewed the surveillance video from the incident, which consisted of real-time crime center camera footage. Someone asked me the other day, they said, How is it that youve managed to do in six months what other people have not been able to do for 60 years? I would simply say that knowing the future doesnt help. Two federal officers and three LMPD officers then went to the top of the nearby Jefferson County Grand Jury Building to watch the group, but were blinded by a flashlight when they leaned over the roof, the affidavit claims. As the founder and commander of Americas largest all Black militia, his organization has stood up to the powers to be in the face of such atrocities as the In August 2003, according to the affidavit, Jay entered Fort Bragg and threatened to kill his wife (who was also a soldier) and her platoon sergeant at a recognition ceremony. Time for the action, he said. Very interesting, Jay said, speaking slowly and deliberately for the first time since his performance that night had begun. In a probable cause hearing on Wednesday, a judge decided that the state case surrounding that incident should head to a grand jury. The crime he is now charged with is a real onepointing guns at cops is illegal and wrongbut poor muzzle discipline and poor judgment are universal at armed protests, and I suspect that other armed protesters have performed equally negligent acts and gotten little more than a dirty look and a chewing out from the cops. Below, weve put together a quick rundown of the organization and its Supreme Leader, why hate group doesnt apply to it, and why you shouldnt confuse the NFAC with Black Lives Matter. If the NFAC had done what these folks did, Jay said, theyd still be bringing the body bags out of the Capitol. In meetings prior to the incident, FBI Public Corruption and Civil Rights Task Force Sergeant Chris Lane said Johnson had been told multiple times officers would be on rooftops and to not point firearms, as it would be perceived as a threat. Self-financed and focused, the NFAC,Grandmaster Jay says, is neither protesters nor demonstrators, explaining to Roland Martin in a July interview, We are a Black militia. Grandmaster Jay has gone out of his way to make it known that the NFAC has no affiliations or ties to Black Lives Matter. Grand Master Jay grand jury presentation delayed, LMPD officer Nickolas Wilts recovery takes huge step forward, JCPS middle school student taken to hospital after eating suspected medicated gummies, LMPD: Man killed in wrong-way head on crash on Preston Highway, Spencer County High School student dies in crash, Scooters Coffee offers free coffee to healthcare workers in honor of Appreciation Day, Great Steamboat Race is full steam ahead on Wednesday, Operation Return Home alert issued for missing girls, ages 14 and 13. He was an independent candidate for U.S. president in 2016 and has stated:
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