Dozens wearing symbols of White supremacist group gather in DC on July 4
A group of people wearing symbols of the White supremacist organization Patriot Front gathered and paraded in parts of the nation's capital on July 4.
The group was spotted at Union Station and the Eastern Market metro station in Washington, DC, on Independence Day. The Eastern Market station is one of the closest to the Capitol building.
Videos posted on social media captured the individuals marching in their signature blue shirts, chinos and white face coverings. Several wore hats with the Patriot Front logo. The group marched to a drum beat outside Union Station, the city's main train station, and carried flags that included an upside-down American flag and a Confederate flag in a video shared on social media by WTOP reporter Mitchell Miller.
Photos from Reuters showed the group on the morning of July 4 on DC's metro. The outlet reported that Patriot Front also posted on social media that it arrived in Washington.
The Metropolitan Police Department in Washington tracked "First Amendment activities that occurred this morning in the Eastern Market neighborhood," the department said in a statement to USA TODAY. "MPD recognizes the rights of individuals to peacefully express their views and remains committed to maintaining public safety and security for DC residents and visitors."
The organization previously marched in Washington during the March for Life on Jan. 23, 2026. The March for Life is an annual anti-abortion protest around the anniversary of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision, which was overturned in 2022.
What is Patriot Front?
Patriot Front is a secretive organization founded in 2017 by Thomas Rousseau following the "Unite the Right" rally on August 12, 2017, in Charlottesville, Virginia.
At the rally, counterprotestor Heather Heyer was killed and several people were injured when avowed White supremacist James Fields Jr. rammed his car into them. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of release on hate crime charges.
Rousseau and other former members of the neo-Nazi group Vanguard America formed Patriot Front after the rally, "citing irreconcilable differences between the factions of Vanguard America concerning its messaging and future activities," according to The George Washington University's Program on Extremism.
Since then, Rousseau has promoted himself and Patriot Front "as the protectors of white America, regularly appearing on far-right podcasts and participating in anti-immigrant and anti-LGBTQ+ public demonstrations across the country," the program says.
Patriot Front portrays itself as being merely patriotic and fighting for "traditional" American values. However, internal documents obtained by USA TODAY earlier this year suggest the group is "working to secure a future for White children," read one document, written by an applicant to the group.
Already one of the nation's largest White supremacist groups, Patriot Front is expanding, having added hundreds of members – mainly young men – across 49 states in the past two years, the documents obtained by USA TODAY suggest.
Contributing: Will Carless, USA TODAY
Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dozens wearing symbols of White supremacist group gather in DC on July 4
Reporting by Mike Snider and Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
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Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
This story was originally published July 4, 2026 at 4:53 PM.