Hate in the Prairie State: Extremism & Antisemitism in Illinois
Additional Extremist Activity
Illinois is Home to the Nation of Islam
Headquartered in Chicago, the Nation of Islam (NOI) is a notoriously antisemitic Black nationalist organization that has maintained a significant global presence for decades. Established in Detroit, Michigan, in the 1930s by W. Fard Muhammad, it relocated its headquarters to Chicago under his successor, Elijah Muhammad. Louis Farrakhan has headed the group for more than 40 years.
Muhammad Mosque No. 2, commonly called Mosque Maryam, is located on Chicago’s South Side and has served as the NOI’s headquarters since the 1970s. Chicago is frequently the site of some of the group’s most high-profile antisemitic activities. The group broadcasts weekly sermons from Mosque Maryam, often delivered by Student National Assistant Minister Ishmael Muhammad or other prominent NOI figures. The NOI’s weekly newspaper, The Final Call, is produced in Chicago and distributed both locally and around the country. NOI members regularly host programs or appear as guests on various local radio stations.
Large annual events, including Saviours’ Day in late February and the Holy Day of Atonement in October, also often take place at Mosque Maryam or other local venues, such as Wintrust Arena or the United Center in Chicago, or Allstate Arena in Rosemont. Regularly drawing tens of thousands of supporters in person and online, the keynote speeches and plenary sessions at these events serve as a significant platform for disseminating a wide range of antisemitic, conspiratorial, anti-LGBTQ+ and other bigoted views. For example, at these events, Farrakhan and other speakers have rationalized Hitler’s genocidal actions against Europe’s Jews, characterized Jews as satanic, blamed Jews for 9/11, claimed that Jews control the U.S. government, accused Jews of condoning pedophilia and more.
Louis Farrakhan delivering his annual Saviours’ Day address in February 2023 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.
Examples of the antisemitism and bigotry shared in recent years by prominent Nation of Islam figures during sermons and other events in Chicago:
- “Somebody has to take on the Synagogue of Satan…They’re gathering their forces. We cannot let them take the country…They got a stranglehold on America and the government.” — Louis Farrakhan, Saviours’ Day 2023 keynote address (“The War of Armageddon Has Begun”), 2/26/2023
- “The Synagogue of Satan is the real enemy. And they are the ones that exercise power and control over government and the people of our planet. And it is this wicked synagogue that falsely charges our Minister Farrakhan with all kinds of ugly labels. Because they oppose anyone that exposes them.” — Ishmael Muhammad, “Satan: The Real Enemy (Part 2)”, 12/4/2022
- “There are some things that come with [being labeled an antisemite]…You start to find things happening with your bank accounts. Things suddenly appear on and off your taxes. You see? So, we’re dealing with a very, very wicked Satan right here.” — Ilia Rashad Muhammad, Saviours’ Day 2021 plenary session (“Defending Farrakhan”), 2/27/2021
Despite the group’s long, well-documented history of hate, the NOI continues to be given a measure of legitimacy by some elected officials, celebrities and others who choose to highlight the group’s efforts to support the Black community while minimizing or ignoring the NOI’s antisemitism and bigotry.
Anti-Government Extremism
The sovereign citizen movement is a loosely organized collection of groups, networks and individuals who believe that virtually all existing government in the U.S. is illegitimate and has no jurisdiction over them. Adherents frequently employ a variety of harassment and intimidation tactics against the government and other forms of authority and occasionally even resort to violence. Sovereign citizens remain active across Illinois, hosting seminars to spread their conspiratorial, anti-government beliefs and occasionally running into legal trouble.
- In March 2022, Springfield-based sovereign citizen Derick Turner filed documents with the county recorder’s office in which he named three Sangamon County prosecutors as “debtors” and placed liens totaling $100,000 on their homes and other property. In May 2022, the lawyers filed a civil lawsuit against Turner, alleging he had tried to intimidate them when he placed the liens against their homes earlier that year. Turner is also facing a felony charge for one of those false liens. This lawsuit is an unusual effort by county-level government officials in Illinois to discourage “paper terrorism.”
- In December 2022, Tim Dever, of Downers Grove, and two other individuals were indicted in North Carolina on 62 counts of interstate threatening communications and one count of conspiracy to kidnap for sending phony writs of execution to elected officials. In spring 2020, Dever was one of the co-founders of the People’s Bureau of Investigation (PBI), a QAnon-influenced sovereign citizen group that seeks to “expose” and investigate government corruption in the United States by instructing members to “serve” fictitious writs against public officials.
- Sovereign citizen guru Bobby Lawrence, who teaches sovereignty with a QAnon bent, taught the “American State National” seminar in Elmhurst in October 2022.
Sovereign citizens are not the only anti-government extremists active in Illinois. Chicago radio station WBEZ reported in June 2021 that Joshua Ellis of Antioch owned MyMilitia, an online forum for far-right anti-government militia supporters. Ellis gained control of the site in 2020 when its creator handed it over to him. Ellis had previously been involved with We The People Three Percent, an Illinois-based militia group, and was active in anti-lockdown protests in 2020. For a time, the site was a place where people interested in participating in the militia movement could meet like-minded individuals, learn about militias in their vicinity and consume far-right propaganda and conspiracy theories. The site also hosted tactical guides and manuals for building weapons. Some users were arrested for making threats. However, since the January 6 insurrection, the site has become a virtual ghost town, with users migrating to other sites and/or extremist causes.
According to a published database, 883 Illinois residents have paid membership dues to the Oath Keepers, a large right-wing organization that has been part of the militia movement, since the group’s founding in 2009. A Center on Extremism analysis of this information published in September 2022 found that this list included three individuals holding or running for public office as of August 2022, 21 individuals believed to be active members of law enforcement, two believed to be active members of the military and ten believed to be first responders.
Anti-LGBTQ+ Activity Targets Illinois
Since the start of 2022, there has been a national wave of bigoted action against the LGBTQ+ community perpetrated by extremists and those espousing conspiracy theories such as the baseless, dangerous groomer narrative. Extremists have mobilized across the country to disrupt Pride celebrations, and in November 2022, a shooting at an LGBTQ+ club in Colorado left five people dead.
Between the start of 2022 and June 2023, ADL has tracked ten anti-LGBTQ+ incidents in Illinois. These include:
- In March 2023, a fire hydrant, already painted in the colors of the Pride flag, was graffitied with the word “rope,” a death threat referencing a hanging.
- In January 2023, an unknown individual posted an anti-LGBTQ+ and antisemitic threat in a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ Jewish students at the University of Illinois.
- In December 2022, a Chicago school received a bomb threat after a video published by the right-wing group Project Veritas alleged that the school was “grooming” and “indoctrinating” kids.
- In July 2022, an individual shattered the windows of UpRising Bakery and Café, a local cafe in Lake in the Hills, the night before it was to host an all-ages drag show. The perpetrator wrote slurs – including “groomers” and “pedophiles” – on the walls. He pleaded guilty to a hate crime in August 2023.
One group that has actively been pushing an anti-LGBTQ+ agenda is Awake Illinois, which describes itself as a grassroots “anti-woke” group seeking to combat “gender grooming ideology.” The group garnered attention for several anti-LGBTQ+ campaigns, including targeting the UpRising Bakery and Café for hosting a drag brunch (mentioned above) and harassing the Downers Grove Public Library for hosting a drag queen bingo event. The café ultimately was the victim of an anti-LGBTQ+ act of vandalism and closed permanently in June 2023 with an individual recently pleading guilty for a hate crime. The library ultimately canceled its event after receiving threats, including a bullet.
Vandalism at the UpRising Bakery and Cafe in Lake In the Hills (CBS Chicago)
Illinois also has a chapter of the New Independent Fundamental Baptist (New IFB) movement, a loose network of independent churches connected by their belief in certain religious doctrines and a shared brand of deeply anti-LGBTQ+, antisemitic and other bigoted teachings. New IFB pastors frequently call for LGBTQ+ people to kill themselves or be killed by the government and make other disparaging remarks about the LGBTQ+ community. Their antisemitic beliefs include claiming that Jewish people today worship Satan and are not “true” Jews.
Liberty Baptist Church in Rock Falls, led by antisemitic pastor Tommy McMurtry, is affiliated with the New IFB. In recent years, the New IFB movement has faced internal turmoil as some pastors have chosen to split from prominent New IFB pastor Steven Anderson. However, they maintain their religious doctrines and bigoted beliefs. McMurtry is part of the faction that no longer associates with Anderson, though McMurtry regularly associates with other extremists and conspiracy theorists both within and outside the movement.
QAnon Targets Chicago Hospital
QAnon is a decentralized, far-right political movement rooted in a baseless conspiracy theory that the world is controlled by a cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles known as the “Deep State,” which can only be stopped by former President Trump. The movement has been linked to a wide range of violent acts and harassment.
In September 2021, a Chicago hospital was inundated with threats and harassing phone calls after a local QAnon supporter they were treating for COVID-19 died from the virus.
The patient, Veronica Wolski, was known for displaying QAnon-themed and anti-vaccine banners from a bridge in Chicago. After being diagnosed with COVID-19 and suffering complications, her supporters demanded the hospital treat her with ivermectin or release her from their care.
The harassment campaign peaked on September 12, when disgraced attorney and QAnon conspiracist Lin Wood urged his followers to call the hospital and demand they release Wolski so she could be transferred to another facility. Wood even posted a video of him calling the hospital, informing the employee on the line that he was a lawyer, and that the hospital would be “guilty of murder” if Wolski died in their care. The hospital and local law enforcement were flooded with calls demanding Wolski’s release, and hospital staff reportedly called police in response to bomb threats. Several individuals also arrived at the hospital in person to demand Wolski’s release. Wolski ended up dying later that night.
Veronica Wolski in August 2021. Source: Telegram
Extremist Sects Within the Black Hebrew Israelite Movement
The Black Hebrew Israelite (BHI) movement is a fringe religious movement whose adherents believe that people of color are the descendants of the biblical Israelites. The movement includes both non-extremist sects and extremist sects. Several Jewish institutions are recognized non-extremist affiliates of the BHI movement, including Congregation Beth Shalom Bnai Zaken in Chicago. Beth Shalom is a member of the ADL Midwest Signature Synagogue Program, and head Rabbi Capers Funnye is a recognized member of the Chicago Board of Rabbis.
Extremist BHI sects typically express a range of bigoted beliefs, including alleging that Jewish people are imposters and not “real Jews,” promoting bigoted beliefs about LGBTQ+ and Muslim people and claiming that Jewish people and white people are satanic. These beliefs are shared on social media, in organized street teaching activities and through propaganda distribution.
Prominent extremist BHI groups with active local chapters in Illinois include the New York-based Israel United in Christ (IUIC), the Pennsylvania-based Israelite School of Universal Practical Knowledge (ISUPK) and the California-based Sicarii Hebrew Israelites (aka Exodus 1715). These groups regularly engage in street preaching and offer livestreamed classes and other events.
Since late 2022, local extremist BHI chapters, like their counterparts nationwide, have attempted to capitalize on the high-profile antisemitism voiced by Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) and Kyrie Irving by promoting increased antisemitism on their social media accounts and in their street preaching. In November 2022, IUIC’s Chicago chapter tweeted: “These fake Jewish people stole our identy [sic], funded our slavery and fund these industries that teach our people to destroy each other.” During a street preaching session shared on social media in December 2022, a Sicarii Chicago member described the “so-called Jewish man” as the “most disgusting man on the planet.” In March 2023, an ISUPK Chicago member stated in a street preaching session: “The so-called Jewish man, he is not the real Jew. The Jewish man is an imposter. The Jewish man is the devil that the Bible speaks of…They are the synagogue of Satan.”
Islamist Extremists Arrested for Targeting Shi’ite Mosque in Chicago
Since a peak in 2015, the number of individuals arrested in the U.S. in connection to crimes motivated by Islamist extremism have fallen thanks to a variety of factors, including the collapse of the so-called Caliphate’s territorial holdings and improved counterterrorism techniques. However, ADL Center on Extremism data finds that the U.S. faces a continuing threat posed by violent Islamist extremists. These cases include a plot from February 2022 involving 19-year-old Maine resident Xavier Pelkey and two teens – one of whom lived in Chicago – who had been planning to carry out an ISIS-inspired attack on a Shi’ite mosque in the Chicago area. The trio reportedly communicated via Instagram and plotted to enter the mosque, separate children from the adults and murder the adults in the name of the Islamist extremist group. If they weren’t apprehended, the group planned to repeat the attack at another Shi’ite mosque or a synagogue until they were eventually killed by law enforcement. Following search warrants executed at the plotters’ homes, officials recovered multiple firearms, homemade explosives and homemade ISIS flags. In April 2023, Pelkey pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.
