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It has been suggested that Ammon Bundy be merged into this article. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2016.

occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge
The headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge (pictured here in 2008) was occupied by militias on January 2, 2016.
Date	January 2, 2016 – present
Location	Harney County, Oregon, United States (30 miles south of Burns, Oregon)
Status	Ongoing
Parties
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Oregon State Police Harney County Sheriff's Office Citizens for Constitutional Freedom 3 Percenters Various anti-government protesters
Lead figures
Richard Evans (Oregon State Police) David Ward (Harney County Sheriff) Ammon Bundy Ryan Bundy Brian Cavalier Blaine Cooper LaVoy Finicum Ryan Payne Jon Ritzheimer Neil Wampler
Number
FBI - unknown Oregon State Police - unknown Harney County Sheriff's Office - 5 personnel ~32 personnel from other departments Burns Paiute Tribal Police - unknown 40 (Los Angeles Times estimate) Several dozen (The Washington Post estimate) 20 to 25 (The Oregonian estimate) 150 (militia claim)
Casualties and losses
1 killed
Show map of OregonShow map of the United States

On January 2, 2016, the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge were occupied by armed members of rump militias who had split off from an earlier peaceful march in protest of the prison sentences for ranchers Dwight Hammond and his son, Steven Hammond. The two were convicted of arson on federal land, were ultimately sentenced to five years imprisonment, and are now seeking clemency from the U.S. president.

Ammon Bundy, a car fleet manager from Phoenix, son of notable anti-government protester Cliven Bundy, and the leader of the group now calling themselves Citizens for Constitutional Freedom, said he began leading the occupation after receiving a divine message ordering him to do so. The militant group has demanded that the federal government cede ownership of the refuge, and have expressed willingness to engage in armed conflict. For their part, the government and police have not engaged directly with the militia, so as to avoid armed confrontation as was the case in the 1993 Waco siege. The ranchers at the heart of the case have disavowed the militia.

On January 26, authorities arrested Ammon Bundy, his brother Ryan, and three others involved in the occupation. One person was killed.

Some see the militia as defenders against federal overreach, while others view them as provocative and dangerous. The takeover has also sparked a debate in the U.S. on the meaning of the word "terrorist" and on how the media and law enforcement treat situations involving people of different ethnicities or religions. The Harney County Sheriff's Office has officially determined the militants to be criminals engaged in trespassing and Oregon Governor Kate Brown announced the occupation is costing about $100,000 a week.

Background

Location

Harney County is a rural county in southeastern Oregon. The county seat is the City of Burns. Although it is one of the largest counties in the United States, its population is about 7,700, and cattle outnumber people 14-to-1. About 75 percent of the county's area is federal land, variously managed by the United States Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau of Land Management, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Forest Service agencies. Besides ranching and farming, forestry and manufacturing are important industries in the county.

The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR), located in Harney County, was established in 1908 by President Theodore Roosevelt, a conservationist. Located in the Pacific Flyway, it has "staggering avian resources" and is "one of the premiere sites for birds and birding in the U.S.", according to the National Audubon Society. Tourism, especially birding, injects $15 million into the local economy annually.

Cattle ranching in Harney County

Cattle ranching in Harney County predates the 1908 establishment of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, with some cattle trails, including those used by the Hammond family, dating to the 1870s. Disputes between cattle ranchers and the federal government over management of the MNWR have gone on for "generations" and the situation has regularly deteriorated to taunts and threats directed at federal officials from ranchers since at least the early 1970s.

In an effort to address concerns of neighboring landowners and interests, the recent completion of a 15-year management plan for the refuge heavily involved various stakeholders, including ranchers, in its development process. The plan was completed in 2013 and won praise from some area ranchers for its collaborative approach.

Hammond arson case

Dwight Hammond, a cattle rancher in Harney County, owns 12,000 acres (4,900 ha) of land, much of which borders public land.

Early conflicts with federal land managers

In 1994, Hammond and his son Steve obstructed the construction of a fence to delineate the boundary between the two parcels of property, prompting their arrest by federal agents. According to federal officials, construction of the fence was needed to stop the Hammond cattle from moving along a cattle trail that intersected public land after the Hammonds had repeatedly violated the terms of their permit, which limited when they could move their cows across refuge property. Officials also reported Hammond had made threats against them in 1986 and 1988, including telling one public lands manager that he was going to "tear off his head and shit down his neck". They also contended that Steve Hammond had called them "assholes". Following their release from jail on recognizance, a rally attended by 500 other cattle ranchers was held in support of the Hammonds in Burns, and then-congressman Robert Freeman Smith wrote a letter of protest to the United States Secretary of the Interior, Bruce Babbitt.

In 1995, voters, angry that it had not intervened on the Hammonds' behalf, attempted to recall two members of the Harney County Court, though the recall attempt failed. Charges against the Hammonds were later dropped.

In 1999, Steve Hammond started a fire with the intent of burning off juniper trees and sagebrush, but the fire escaped onto BLM land. The agency reminded Hammond of the required burn permit and that if the fires continued, there would be legal consequences.

Fires for which the Hammonds were convicted

Both Dwight and Steve Hammond later set two fires, one in 2001 and one in 2006, that would lead to convictions of arson on federal land:

• The 2001 Hardie-Hammond fire began, according to Probation Officer Robb, when hunters in the area witnessed the Hammonds illegally slaughter a herd of deer. Less than two hours later, a fire erupted and forced the hunters to leave the area. Later, Steve's nephew Dusty Hammond testified that his uncle told him to start lighting matches and "light the whole countryside on fire." Dusty also testified that he was "almost burned up in the fire" and had to flee for his life. The Hammonds have claimed they started the fire to stop invasive plants from growing onto their grazing fields.
• The 2006 Krumbo Butte fire started out as a wildfire, but several illegal backburns were set by the Hammonds with the intent to protect their winter feed. The backfires were set under the cover of night without warning the firefighting camp that was known to be on the slopes above. According to the indictment, the fires threatened to trap four BLM firefighters, one of whom later confronted Dwight Hammond at the fire scene after he had moved his crews to avoid the threat. Two days later, according to federal prosecutors, Steve Hammond threatened to frame a BLM employee with arson if he didn't stop the investigation.

Mid trial pre-sentencing agreement

In 2012, the Hammonds were tried in federal district court on multiple charges. During a break in jury deliberations, a partial verdict was rendered finding the Hammonds not guilty on two of the charges, but convicting them on two counts of arson on federal land. To have the four remaining charges dismissed and any sentences run concurrently, the Hammonds waived the right to appeal their conviction, with knowledge the trial would proceed to sentencing where the prosecution would seek imposition of the mandatory five-year minimum sentence.

Sentencing hearing, appeals of the sentence, and re-sentencing

At sentencing, the federal prosecutors requested the five-year mandatory minimum under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA). U.S. District Judge Michael Robert Hogan independently decided that sentences of that length "would shock the conscience" and would violate the constitutional prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. On his last day on the bench, October 31, 2012, Hogan instead sentenced Dwight Hammond to three months' imprisonment and Steve Hammond to a year and a day's imprisonment, which both men served. In what was described by one source as a "rare" action, U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall successfully appealed the sentence to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which upheld the mandatory-minimum law, writing that "given the seriousness of arson, a five-year sentence is not grossly disproportionate to the offense." The court vacated the original sentence and remanded for re-sentencing. The Hammonds filed petitions for certiorari with the Supreme Court, which the court rejected in March 2015. In October 2015, Chief Judge Ann Aiken re-sentenced the pair to five years in prison (with credit for time served), ordering that they return to prison on January 4, 2016.

Both of the Hammonds reported to prison in California on January 4 as ordered by the court. A few days earlier, the Hammonds also paid the federal government the remaining balance on a $400,000 court order for restitution related to the arson fires.

Motives for the occupation

Protest leaders Ryan and Ammon Bundy are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon Church). They and some of the other militants have cited the Mormon scripture as justification for defying government authority. After the occupation began, the LDS Church issued a statement, saying that an armed occupation was not sanctioned by the religion. Alex Beam describes the Bundys as "Mormon religious fanatics". Ammon Bundy, the leader of the group now calling themselves Citizens for Constitutional Freedom, said he began leading the occupation after receiving a divine message ordering him to do so.

Militant occupation

Prelude

After the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the Hammonds' appeal in March 2015, the Hammonds' case returned to federal district court where they were re-sentenced to the statutory minimum of five years, with credit for time served). Meanwhile, the Oregon Farm Bureau circulated a petition seeking clemency from President Barack Obama.

About this time the Hammonds' case attracted the attention of Ammon Bundy and Ryan Payne, who had been looking for a cause to adopt since the conclusion of the Bundy standoff in May 2014. Beginning in early November, Bundy and his associates began publicizing the Hammonds' case via social media.

Over the ensuing weeks, Bundy and Payne met for approximately eight hours with Harney County Sheriff David Ward to detail plans for what they described would be a peaceful protest in Burns, as well as also requesting the sheriff's office protect the Hammonds from being taken into custody by federal authorities. Though Ward said he sympathized with the Hammonds' plight, he declined Bundy and Payne's request. Ward then said that he subsequently received death threats by email. Unbeknownst to Ward, Bundy and Payne were simultaneously planning a takeover of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. By late fall, local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies had become aware that members of anti-government militias had started to relocate to Harney County, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) began circulating a photograph of Ammon Bundy with instructions for staff to "be on the lookout."

Despite several early meetings with Bundy and Payne, the Hammonds eventually rejected their offers of assistance, with Hammond attorney W. Alan Schroeder writing that "neither Ammon Bundy nor anyone within his group/organization speak for the Hammond family." When later asked about the occupation, Susan Hammond, the wife of Dwight Hammond, was dismissive and said, "I don't really know the purpose of the guys who are out there."

By early December 2015, Ammon Bundy and Ryan Payne had set up residence in Burns. The same month, they organized a meeting at the Harney County fairgrounds to rally support for their efforts. At the meeting, a "Committee of Safety" was organized to orchestrate direct action against the Hammond sentences. According to that group's website, the Committee of Safety considers itself "a governmental body established by the people in the absence of the ability of the existing government to provide for the needs and protection of civilized society" (during the American Revolution, committees of safety were shadow governments organized to usurp authority from colonial administrators).

On December 30, 2015, USFWS staff members at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge were dismissed early from work. With tensions rising in nearby Burns, supervisors left staff with the final instruction not to return to the Refuge unless explicitly instructed. Meanwhile, some residents of Burns reported harassment and intimidation by militia members. According to the spouses and children of several federal employees and local police, they had been followed home or to school by vehicles with out-of-state license plates.

On January 1, 2016, a forum held at the Harney County fairgrounds was attended by about 60 local residents and members of militias. A Burns-area resident who organized the event described it as an opportunity to defuse tensions that had been simmering between locals and out-of-town militia in the preceding days. It was unclear how the group should proceed. The event alternated between expressions of sympathy for the Hammonds and suggestions that a peaceful rally could be beneficial.

On January 2, a crowd of about 300 gathered in a Safeway parking lot in Burns. Following speeches, the crowd marched to the home of Dwight and Steve Hammond, stopping briefly en route to protest outside the sheriff's office. The crowd then returned to the Safeway parking lot and broke up. According to KOIN-TV, there was "no visible police presence at any point."

Occupation

First week

Ammon Bundy and Ryan Bundy – along with Jon Ritzheimer and armed associates – separated from the protest crowd at some point during the day and proceeded to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge (MNWR), 30 miles (48 km) away. The militants settled into their occupation and set up defensive positions, while making several proclamations of their demands and calling on other supporters to join them. Law enforcement kept away from the Refuge, but various security measures were taken in surrounding areas. Despite the increased presence in and around Burns, by the end of the day on January 4 no overt police presence was visible in the thirty miles between the town and Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters, seemingly underscoring the cautious, non-confrontational approach by authorities. Federal authorities were thought to "be mindful of prior clashes with people who did not recognize government authority", such as the Ruby Ridge incident in 1992 and the Waco siege in 1993. These events "ended in bloodshed and became rallying cries for antigovernment militants", in contrast to similar standoffs which ended peacefully, such as the 1996 standoff with the Montana Freemen, which was resolved by extended negotiations leading to the group's surrender.

On January 2, the militia leaders claimed to have 150 armed members at the site, while media reports suggested a dozen armed militants were on the site, and "between six and 12." On January 3, The Oregonian said there were roughly 20 to 25 people present and that the militants had deployed into defensive positions. On January 3, Ammon Bundy claimed that they were being supplied by area residents.

Other protest groups took varying positions. On January 2, the Idaho 3 Percenters disclaimed involvement, calling the occupation a small splinter action. A fistfight erupted at the refuge on the evening of January 6 when three members of a group calling themselves Veterans on Patrol attempted to enter the headquarters and convince women and children to leave. Instead, they were repelled by militants, leaving one member of the Veterans on Patrol with a black eye. Later in the week, members of other militias later met with the militants, asking them to establish a perimeter around the occupied area to avoid a "Waco-style situation". A number of other militia and anti-government groups, some armed, arrived and were greeted with mixed reception. On January 8, the 3 Percenters announced it was sending some of its members to "secure a perimeter" around the MNWR compound and prevent a repeat of the Waco siege. Bundy welcomed the arrival of the additional militants.

Ryan Bundy stated that the militant group wants the Hammonds to be released and for the federal government to relinquish control of the Malheur National Forest. On January 3, Ammon Bundy said the ultimate goal of the militants was to "get the economics here in the county revived" for logging and outdoor recreation. On January 4, the militants announced they had organized into an umbrella group called Citizens for Constitutional Freedom.

On January 4, Steve Grasty, the judge-executive of Harney County, emailed Ammon Bundy requesting that he leave the refuge. Ammon Bundy's brother, Ryan, said that he and the other militants would leave the property "if the county people tell us to". Sheriff David Ward then requested that the Bundys and others to leave. In response, Ryan Bundy said he wasn't convinced Ward spoke for the county. In a public meeting held on January 6 at the Harney County fairgrounds, nearly every attending person, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting, raised their hands on a question asking if the militants should leave. Ward then offered to escort the militants to the county line if they would depart voluntarily.

On January 7, Sheriff Ward and other local sheriffs met with Ammon Bundy and Ryan Payne 20 miles from the site of the occupation. Sheriff Ward repeated his earlier offer to escort the militants out of the county. Bundy rejected the offer, saying he and his confederates would hold out until the federal government had surrendered all of its land holdings to local residents.

Meanwhile, on January 4, Dwight and Steve Hammond voluntarily reported to begin serving the remaining four years of their prison sentences.

Second week

On January 9, the Pacific Patriots Network, a separate militia, arrived to secure a perimeter around the refuge, but were not welcomed and withdrew. However, other groups, such as the 3 Percenters, remained. By January 10, to the apparent exasperation of local officials, an influx of armed groups and individuals was rotating through Burns, with some declaring they were there to support the armed occupation, others to try to convince the militants to quit, and still others with undefined purposes. Some militants, meanwhile, left the occupation completely.

On 11 January, the militants demolished a stretch of fence between the refuge and an adjacent ranch, apparently to give the adjacent ranch access to land that had been blocked for years. However, the ranch owners did not want the fence taken down and have since repaired it. The militants began searching through government documents stored for proof of government wrongdoing toward local ranchers.

Ward expressed concern that the militants were intimidating federal employees, including following individuals home and observing them there.

On January 12, Bruce Doucette, the owner of a computer repair shop in Denver and self-proclaimed judge, announced he would convene a citizen grand jury to charge government officials with various crimes. During a previous militia rally in 2015, Doucette, who has not attended law school nor ever held judicial office, referred the Denver Post to his Facebook page when asked for documentation of his magistracy. Doucette's claims to be a judge are consistent with legal frauds often practiced by the sovereign citizen movement and other anti-government movements. The Southern Poverty Law Center noted a similarity between Doucette's planned trials and the false trials held by the Montana Freemen group in the 1990s. On January 15, it was revealed that the militants had been filing false legal documents and threatening local officials they view as being uncooperative with their "grand jury" proceedings or charges of treason.

January 15 saw the first arrest of a militant with a man apprehended while driving a vehicle stolen from the refuge facility.

Third and fourth weeks

Militant numbers continued to grow to "several dozen" according to one report or about 40 in another. On January 16, the Oath Keepers anti-government militia group threatened "a conflagration so great, it cannot be stopped, leading to a bloody, brutal civil war" if the situation declined to violence, and reiterated demands for the federal government to cede ownership of the wildlife refuge.

On the same day, militants began to vandalize the property, which local community leaders characterized as an attempt to provoke violent confrontation. A video released by the militants showed them rifling through Native American artifacts held in storage at the refuge.

Ammon Bundy and several members of the militant group unexpectedly attended a community meeting in Burns, Oregon; many attendees spoke of their desire to see the militants leave and Judge Steven Grasty directly addressed Bundy with the statement "It is time for you to go home", provoking cheers from the crowd.

The Sheriff's office also confirmed that militant Duane Kirkland, of Hamilton, Montana, had been arrested on charges of "felon in possession of a firearm".

On January 21, Bundy met with the FBI and discussed with them about relinquishing federal government control of the refuge as well as the releases of Dwight and Steven Hammond. He agreed to meet with the FBI again on the next day, but when the meeting occurred, Bundy left when the agent present declined to negotiate in front of the media.

On January 26, federal authorities arrested Ammon Bundy and others.

People involved

Main figures

Ryan Bundy

Ryan Bundy, 43, is the brother of Ammon Bundy. As he was being arrested in January 2015 in Cedar City, Utah, on a warrant for interfering with a law enforcement officer, Ryan allegedly resisted arrest and was given additional charges.

Brian Cavalier

Brian Cavalier, who goes by the names "Fluffy Unicorn" and "Booda Bear", falsely claimed to have served in the U.S. Marines. Cavalier had a long rap sheet of past criminal activity, including several arrests for driving under the influence. In the 1990s, he was arrested several times in Santa Clara, California for unspecified offenses. More recently in 2014, Cavalier pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft of property; he was given an unspecified sentence by the Prescott Valley Municipal Court in Prescott Valley, Arizona. While away from the refuge, Cavalier was arrested in Arizona on an outstanding warrant.

Blaine Cooper

Stanley Blaine Hicks, known as Blaine Cooper, was a member of the Praetorian Guard, a rump militia based in Arizona, many of whose members are military contractors and active-duty personnel in the U.S. Armed Forces. He is a former U.S. Marine Corps recruit who enlisted through the Delayed Entry Program; according to service records, he never reported for Marine recruit training. He has been convicted in Arizona of felony aggravated assault. In 2013, during a town hall meeting hosted by U.S. Senator John McCain, Cooper called for McCain to be arrested for treason.

LaVoy Finicum

Robert LaVoy Finicum is a neighbor of Cliven Bundy, though he lives in Arizona. Finicum is a rancher whose cattle graze on BLM land, and he maintains that he owns grazing rights on that land through natural law. Finicum is the author of a book entitled Only by Blood and Suffering: Regaining Lost Freedom. The Finicums are foster parents to many children, who have all been removed from their care due to their involvement in the standoff; Finicum complained that this took away his and his wife's main source of income and labor for their ranch. Finicum was dubbed #TarpMan by MSNBC for sitting outside at night in a rocking chair, covered completely in a blue tarp and with a gun in his possession underneath.

Neil Wampler

Neil Sigurd Wampler, 68, of Los Osos, California, is a camp cook. He was convicted in 1977 of murdering his father. He has frequently protested what he perceived as the prohibition of his ability to own firearms.

People arrested

• Duane Eugene Kirkland, of Hamilton, Montana, was arrested by the Oregon State Police for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
• Kenneth Medenbach, 62, of Crescent, Oregon, was apprehended in Burns on January 15 while driving a vehicle stolen from the refuge facility; a second vehicle stolen from the wildlife refuge was also recovered at the scene. Both vehicles bore altered markings of "Harney County Resource Center" on the doors, the unofficial name the militants have used for the refuge since shortly after the takeover.Mendenbach previously had a history of troubles with the law, including a prior conviction for illegal occupation of government land that included setting up a makeshift shelter with booby traps and a stockpile of explosives, and was on bail awaiting trial for a similar charge from 2015. It was reported that Medenbach used many legal quirks and filed legal documents in a way consistent with the anti-government sovereign citizen movement ideology. Medenbach had previously told news reporters that "the Lord's telling me to possess the land, and I can legally do it, because the U.S. Constitution says the government does not own the land."
• Ammon Bundy, leader of the occupation, was arrested by federal authorities on January 26 during a traffic stop. Other militants were also arrested, including Ryan Bundy, Ryan Payne, Joe O'Shaughnessy, and Brian Cavalier.

Reactions

Media

Due to the presence of members with connections to hate groups and violent anti-government groups, The Daily Beast dubbed the event "Wingnut Woodstock", referencing a militant who would only identify himself as "Captain Moroni" (in an apparent reference to a Mormon legend) who told media outlets, "I didn't come here to shoot. I came here to die."

Pacific Standard Magazine published a detailed analysis of many of the historical claims made by the militants in their public statements and in an "open letter" addressed to Harney County Sheriff David Ward. The magazine rates the claims as "libertarian fairy tales" and "revisionist history", noting that "you can tell the story of Harney County as a morality tale about the evils of big government only if you leave most of it out. And so they do."

Anti-government activists

Cliven Bundy, the father of Ammon and Ryan Bundy, said he was not involved in organizing the takeover of the MNWR facilities and added that it was "not exactly what I thought should happen".

Asked about the incident, Mike Vanderboegh, a founder of the 3 Percenters militia, described the militants as "a collection of fruits and nuts", described Jon Ritzheimer as a "fool", and said Ammon Bundy had "a John Brown complex".

The group Oath Keepers (of which Jon Ritzheimer was formerly a member) in a statement published on its website prior to the seizure of the MNWR facilities, said, "e cannot force ourselves or our protection on people who do not want it. Dwight and Steven Hammond have made it clear, through their attorney, that they just want to turn themselves in and serve out their sentence. And that clear statement of their intent should be the end of the discussion on this." The group's leader later took back their statements and threatened "bloody, brutal civil war" if the situation did not end peacefully with the group's demands met.

Residents

The New York Times reported that "esidents expressed sympathy with the underlying complaints, but elected officials criticized the armed protesters as an outsider militia group whose actions had thrown their community into a harsh national glare." Former Burns mayor Len Vohs said, "The majority of us support the Hammonds, but we don't need outsiders telling us what to do." He criticized the tactics used by the militiamen, saying that it was "anarchy" and "might is right" thinking. Harney County commissioner Dan Nichols, a neighbor of the Hammond family, made similar comments, saying that he shared frustrations about federal land policy but strongly disagreed with the involvement of armed outsiders.

In a meeting held on January 6, local residents nearly unanimously agreed they wanted the militants to leave in a show of hands to a question from Harney County Sheriff David Ward, although some expressed agreement with the concerns raised by the militia group over land use issues.

Federal, state, local, and tribal governments

On January 4, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said, "ltimately this is a local law enforcement matter and the FBI is monitoring the situation and offering support to local law enforcement officials." Earnest added that President Barack Obama was aware of the situation.

In a statement issued January 7, Governor Kate Brown of Oregon said, "I agree that what started as a peaceful and legal protest has become unlawful. It was instigated by outsiders whose tactics we Oregonians don't agree with. Those individuals illegally occupying the Malheur Wildlife Refuge need to decamp immediately and be held accountable."

In a statement posted to its website on January 4, the Harney County Court said that "the Refuge is under federal jurisdiction. The County Court will stay engaged within the limits of our legal authority. The Hammond family is well respected in Harney County, motivation of the militia groups that have descended on Harney County goes far beyond the troubles of the Hammond family as demonstrated by their actions at the Refuge." The court went on to announce it had ordered increased security at the county courthouse. Harney County Judge Steve Grasty announced that the Bundy group would be billed the security costs incurred by the county as a result of the occupation, estimated at $60,000 to $70,000 per day.

The governing council of the Burns Paiute Tribe, an Indian nation in Harney County, declared the militants were endangering the tribe's history by their presence and called on them to leave. Tribal chair Charlotte Rodrique went on to explain that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was the protector of traditional Burns Paiute religious and archaeological sites in the area and that the displacement of federal authorities put such locations at risk.

State Representative Cliff Bentz, who represents the region in the Oregon House of Representatives, said that the outside groups do not represents Burns or Harney County, explaining, "They're trying to use the misfortune of the Hammonds to further the interests of the Bundys."

U.S. Representative Greg Walden of Oregon said in his speech on the floor of the House that "I am not condoning this takeover in any way. I want to make that clear. I don't think it is appropriate. There is a right to protest. I think they have gone too far. But I understand and hear their anger."

In a January 6 press release, the Western State Sheriffs Association (WSSA), an organization representing 800 sheriffs in the Western United States, said its mission was to "promote the office of Sheriff and to assist our member Sheriffs on issues of mutual concern" and that it had offered Harney County Sheriff David Ward to organize out-of-state resources to send to Oregon if requested. The WSSA statement went on to note that it did not "support efforts of any individual or groups who utilize intimidation, threats or fear in order to further an agenda."

Organizations

The Oregon Cattleman's Association, while maintaining it still supported the Hammonds, released a statement that declared it did "not support illegal activity taken against the government. This includes militia takeover of government property, such as the Malheur Wildlife Refuge."

In a January 4 statement released by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church leaders said they "strongly condemn the armed seizure of the facility and are deeply troubled by the reports that those who have seized the facility suggest that they are doing so based on scriptural principles. This armed occupation can in no way be justified on a scriptural basis."

The group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) launched a publicity stunt on January 5 by sending a delegation to the area to give vegan jerky to militia members.

The Audubon Society of Portland, in a written statement, said that the "occupation of Malheur by armed, out of state militia groups puts one of America's most important wildlife refuges at risk. It violates the most basic principles of the public trust doctrine and holds hostage public lands and public resources to serve the very narrow political agenda of the militants."

Other

The militants were mocked on social media, with commentators ridiculing the groups as "Y'all Qaeda" (in reference to American dialectical Y'all and the group al-Qaeda). Twitter hashtags such as "#OregonUnderAttack," "#VanillaISIS" (a portmanteau of Vanilla Ice and ISIS), "#Yeehawdists" (Yeehaw and Jihadists), "#Yokelharam" (Yokel and Boko Haram), and #Talibundy (Taliban and the Bundy surname) were used.

Some self-identified Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) supporters expressed support for the takeover on social media with one tweeting that "these rebels have military experience and are trained in warfare. They may be able to degrade and destroy their corrupt, evil, and oppressive government, or at the least severely damage its operations."

Ridiculing requests for supplies like food and fuel, members of the public sent the militants numerous packages of glitter and sex paraphernalia in protest.

Writer Ursula K. Le Guin, a resident of Oregon, penned an op-ed condemning newspaper The Oregonian's apparent bias in covering the events as "inaccurate" and "irresponsible", and the militants as "bullyboys" and "a flock of Right-Winged Loonybirds."

Debates over the definition of terrorism

In the midst of the occupation, there has been considerable traditional and social media coverage considering how the media and law enforcement describe and have reacted to the militia occupation. The reaction to the white and Christian militants has been contrasted with that to black protesters, e.g. around the Ferguson protests and the Black Lives Matter movement, or to Muslims. Some commentators have described decisions not to label the militants as terrorists as an example of white privilege.

The militants themselves have drawn the comparison with the Black Lives Matter and other anti-racist demonstrations, with one occupier saying, in contrast to most media reports, they have been more harshly treated than Black Lives Matter protesters. Ammon Bundy was initially reported to have tweeted comparing himself to Rosa Parks, but the post was later reported to have been sent by a hoax account, although other involved militants have made a comparison with Parks.

See also

• Occupation of Alcatraz
• Posse Comitatus
• Sagebrush Rebellion
• Utah Transfer of Public Lands Act
• Wounded Knee incident

References

1. ^ Zaitz, Les (January 3, 2016). "Militia continue occupation of Oregon refuge, police keep low profile". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. ISSN 8750-1317. Archived from the original on January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
2. ^ Stack, Liam (January 2, 2016). "Militiamen Occupy Oregon Wildlife Refuge in Protest of Ranchers' Prison Terms". The New York Times. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
3. Moore, Wanda; Lerten, Barney (January 4, 2016) . "Militia leader explains takeover, says group has name: Calling selves 'Citizens for Constitutional Freedom'". Bend, Oregon: KTVZ. Archived from the original on January 4, 2016. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
4. Flowers, Shaunee. "Ammon Bundy Met With Harney County Sheriff, Refuses To Leave Malheur National Wildlife Refuge". The Inquisitr. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
5. Valdes, Manuel (January 9, 2016). "Armed Group Not Ready to End Wildlife Refuge Occupation". ABC News. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
6. Bult, Laura (January 5, 2016). "Ryan Bundy, one of the leaders of the armed militia occupying the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, says locals support them". Daily News. New York. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
7. ^ Gibbons-Neff, Thomas (January 4, 2016). "Meet the veterans who have joined the Oregon militiamen". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
8. ^ "Militia takes over Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters". Oregon Live. January 2, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
9. "Sheriffs respond to Harney County's call for help". Portland Tribune. January 6, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
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11. KEZI 9 News (January 26, 2016). "UPDATE: Shots Fired During Arrest of Ammon Bundy, One Person Killed". KEZI 9 News. Retrieved January 26, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
12. ^ Johnson, Alex; Blankstein, Andrew (January 26, 2016). "Oregon Occupation Leaders Ammon and Ryan Bundy Arrested, One Dead". NBC News. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
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14. ^ Baumann, Lisa (January 20, 2016). "Malheur standoff leader attends meeting, hears chants of 'go'". Statesman Journal. Associated Press. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
15. Thomas, Judy L. (January 6, 2016). "Experts: Oregon standoff may be small, but it's just the tip of a growing militia iceberg". Kansas City Star. Retrieved January 20, 2016. The rally was peaceful, authorities said....But afterward, a group of armed militants split off, went to the wildlife refuge 30 miles away and took it over. Ammon Bundy has been acting as the group's leader, and they say they won't back down until the government relinquishes the federal refuge to the people.
16. Terhune, Katie (January 6, 2016). "Inside the Hammonds' arson case at the center of the Oregon occupation". KTVB Oregon. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
17. Bailey, Jr., Everton (January 4, 2016). "Oregon ranchers begin new prison term, hope to receive rare presidential clemency". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
18. Nagourney, Adam (April 24, 2014). "A Defiant Rancher Savors the Audience That Rallied to His Side". The New York Times. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
19. ^ Binder, Melissa (January 4, 2016). "Oregon militants: Why the Bundys' Mormonism matters". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
20. ^ "Mormon Faith Serves As Powerful Symbol For Oregon Protesters". NPR. January 4, 2016. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
21. Petty, Terrence; Valdes, Manuel (January 6, 2016). "Oregon Tribe: Armed Group 'Desecrating' Their Land". ABC News. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
22. Williams, Jennifer (January 5, 2016). "The Oregon militia standoff, explained". Vox. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
23. Altman, Alex (January 4, 2016). "Why the Feds Have Not Ended the Oregon Militia Standoff". Time. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
24. "Oregon ranchers reject Cliven Bundy family occupation". CBS News. Associated Press. January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
25. Lowery, Wesley (January 3, 2016). "What spurred the armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in southeast Oregon". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
26. "Armed militia takeover in Oregon sparks debate on meaning of "terrorist"". CBS News. January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
27. "FBI monitoring Oregon refuge seized by armed men". BBC News. January 5, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
28. "With no 'immediate threat,' cops leaving militia alone". CBS News. Associated Press. January 5, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
29. "Harney sheriff details recent incidents; law enforcement, hospital preps". KTVZ. January 19, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
30. Manning, Rob (January 20, 2016). "Oregon Gov. Brown On Burns: 'Spectacle Must End'". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
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32. ^ Harney County Transportation System Plan: Revised Final Draft, Harney County Planning Department (June 2001), pp. 9-10.
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40. Parks, Randy (January 18, 2012). "Malheur wildlife refuge drafts CCP with the help of diverse stakeholders". Burns Times Herald. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
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45. "Read: U.S. attorney statement on Oregon standoff". January 4, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
46. ^ "United States of America, Plaintiff, V. Steven Dwight Hammond and Dwight Lincoln Hammond, Jr., Defendants" (PDF). October 7, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
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50. Manning, Jeff (January 18, 2016). "Judge: 'Sentence grossly disproportionate to the severity of the offenses'". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
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56. KOIN News Staff (January 4, 2016). "Hammonds report to CA prison for arson". KOIN-TV. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
57. ^ Boorstein, Michelle (January 4, 2016). "Why the Oregon occupiers are citing the Book of Mormon's 'military stud muffin'". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
58. Weber, Peter (January 5, 2016). "The Bundy militia cites Mormon scripture for Oregon standoff. The Mormon Church disagree". The Week. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
59. Dalrymple II, Jim (January 4, 2016). "You Need To Understand Mormonism If You Want To Understand the Oregon Standoff". Buzzfeed News. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
60. Beam, Alex (January 5, 2016). "Oregon standoff has roots in Mormon fanaticism". Boston Globe. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
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63. Peacher, Amanda (January 3, 2016). "Militiamen Plan For What's Next As The Hammonds Head To Prison". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
64. "Harney County Committee of Safety". hccommitteeofsafety.org. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
65. T. H. Breen, American Insurgents, American Patriots: The Revolution of the People (Macmillan, 2010), pp. 162, 186–89.
66. "'Every gun in house is loaded' -- scare tactics rattle residents near Oregon occupation". The Oregonian. January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
67. Zaitz, Les (January 2, 2016). "Burns residents confront the militia over fears of violence". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. ISSN 8750-1317. Archived from the original on January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
68. "Anti-gov't protesters march through Burns". KOIN-TV. January 2, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
69. ^ Zaitz, Les (January 2, 2016). "Militia takes over Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. ISSN 8750-1317. Archived from the original on January 3, 2016. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
70. Zaitz, Les (January 3, 2016). "Oregon militant leader Ammon Bundy exudes calm as he presides over occupation". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. ISSN 8750-1317. Archived from the original on January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016. {{cite news}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; January 4, 2016 suggested (help); Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
71. ^ House, Kelly (January 4, 2016). "As militant occupation continues in Oregon, sheriff says 'go home'". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
72. "Law Enforcement Prepares For Possible Protest Outside Harney County Courthouse". Oregon Public Broadcasting. January 8, 2016. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
73. ^ Johnson, Kirk; Pérez-Peña, Richard; Eckholm, Erik (January 4, 2016). "Cautious Response to Armed Oregon Protest". The New York Times. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
74. Whitnall, Adam (January 3, 2016). "'Oregon Under Attack': Anger over limited response to hostile militia takeover of US government building". The Independent. London. ISSN 0951-9467. Archived from the original on January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
75. Mesh, Aaron (January 2, 2016). "Militia Group Takes Over Federal Building in Eastern Oregon Because 'The Lord Was Not Pleased'". Willamette Week. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
76. Zaitz, Les (January 3, 2016). "Oregon militant leader Ammon Bundy exudes calm as he presides over occupation". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. ISSN 8750-1317. Archived from the original on January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016. {{cite news}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; January 4, 2016 suggested (help); Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
77. Zaitz, Les (January 3, 2016). Militant leader explains intentions on Oregon refuge takeover. The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon: YouTube. ISSN 8750-1317. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
78. ^ Berry, Harrison (January 3, 2016). "Militia Group Seizes Malheur National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters". Boise Weekly. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
79. House, Kelly (January 7, 2016). "At Bundy encampment, outsider says militants 'attacked' his group". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
80. Allen, Jonathan (January 8, 2016). "Militia groups meet with leaders of Oregon occupation, pledge support". Reuters. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
81. ^ Levin, Sam (January 10, 2016). "Oregon standoff tension mounts as so-called '3%' groups refuse to leave". The Guardian. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
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84. "Oregon militia in standoff with feds names themselves". CBS News. Associated Press. January 4, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
85. Taylor, Phil (January 6, 2016). "Ore. town fed up, but not afraid of militants". Environment and Energy. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
86. Sepulvado, John (January 4, 2016). "Bundy: We'll Leave Occupied Buildings If Community Wants Us To". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
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88. "Harney County, OR, USA". worldatlas.com. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
89. Zaitz, Les (January 7, 2016). "Sheriff, Bundy meet on neutral ground to discuss ending refuge occupation". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
90. Bailey, Everton (January 4, 2016). "Oregon ranchers at center of militant standoff report to federal prison in California". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
91. Hammill, Luke (January 10, 2016). "Oregon standoff: Unsolicited help flocks to Burns to 'assist' law enforcement". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
92. Levin, Sam (January 11, 2016). "Pressure grows on Oregon militia as former Bundy backers call for retreat". The Guardian. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
93. Terkewitz, Julie (January 11, 2016). "Protesters rip out fence at refuge in Oregon". The New York Times. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
94. Conrad, Wilson (January 11, 2016). "Federal Agency Condemns Militants Removing Refuge Fences". OPB. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
95. "Oregon rancher says he didn't let armed group remove fence". Yahoo! News. Associated Press. January 13, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
96. Hammill, Luke (January 13, 2016). "Rancher: 'I didn't know anything' about Bundy entering property, destroying fence". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
97. "Armed militia says it has accessed government files at Oregon refuge". CBS. January 11, 2016. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
98. ^ "Oregon sheriff accuses armed protesters of intimidating federal employees". Fox News Channel. January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
99. Hammond, Betsy (January 12, 2016). "Self-appointed 'judge' arrives in Burns to ask local residents to charge government officials with crimes". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
100. McGee, Tom (November 18, 2015). "Operation Patriot Rally founder made promises, raised concerns". The Denver Post. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
101. Morlin, Bill (January 13, 2016). "Antigovernment Extremists in Oregon Now Plan Their Own Justice System". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
102. Gettys, Travis (January 15, 2016). "BUSTED: Nevada Republican lied about FBI agents posing as militants at Oregon standoff". Raw Story. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
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104. "Authorities make first arrest in Bundy standoff by nabbing militant driving a federal vehicle to grocery store". Raw Story. January 15, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
105. ^ Heim, Joe (January 16, 2016). "'These buildings will never, ever return to the federal government'". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
106. ^ Yardley, William (January 16, 2016). "Two weeks in, the Oregon refuge standoff is stuck 'in limbo'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
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108. ^ Moore, Wanda (January 14, 2016). "Takeover Day 15: Clash with environmentalists, arrest update". KTVZ. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
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110. O'Connor, Brendan (January 20, 2016). "Oregon Wildlife Refuge Occupiers Rifle Through Native American Artifacts". Gawker. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
111. Hensley, Nicole (January 20, 2016). "Oregon wildlife refuge employees break silence after militiamen crash Burns meeting". New York Daily News. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
112. Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. "An open letter to our friends, our supporters, and many curious about what's going on here". Archived from the original on January 20, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016 – via Facebook.
113. "Wildlife refuge staff: 'We hope to be back soon and pick up where we left off'". KVAL. January 20, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
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115. Ridler, Keith (January 23, 2016). "Armed group plans event to renounce federal land policy". Yahoo! News. Associated Press. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
116. ^ Ford, Dana (January 26, 2016). "Oregon protest leader Ammon Bundy is arrested, says source". CNN. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
117. Siemaszko, Corky (January 4, 2016). "Meet Ammon and Ryan Bundy, the Activists Leading the Oregon Standoff". NBC News. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
118. "Ryan Bundy arrested after allegedly resisting arrest in Cedar City". KSTU. January 28, 2015. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
119. ^ West, Ryan (January 6, 2016). "EXCLUSIVE: Stolen valor: The militiaman bodyguard of ranchers Cliven and Ammon Bundy is falsely posing as a US Marine who served in Afghanistan and Iraq". Daily Mail. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
120. Freeman, Antiphon (January 7, 2016). "Stolen Valor: Men In Oregon 'Militia' Caught Red-Handed Falsely Posing As Marine Veterans". Addicting Info. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
121. Taylor, Phil (January 15, 2016). "Bundy bodyguard -- aka 'Fluffy Unicorn' -- arrested in Ariz". E and E News. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
122. Brosseau, Carli (January 5, 2016). "Who are the Oregon wildlife refuge occupiers?". The Oregonian. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
123. Smith, Brandon (January 3, 2016). "Oregon Standoff a Terrible Plan That We Might Be Stuck With". Alt-Market. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
124. Loew, Morgan (September 25, 2013). "Militia movement rising in Arizona". KPHO-TV. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
125. Gettys, Travis (April 14, 2015). "Militia groups flock to Oregon for Bundy-style standoff with 'government jackboots' over gold mining claim". Raw Story. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
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127. Altman, Alex (January 4, 2016). "Why the Feds Have Not Ended the Oregon Militia Standoff". Time. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
128. "LaVoy Finicum: Cliven Bundys Neighbor on Points of Law of Grazing Rights – Speaks Directly to Glenn Beck". Maggie's Notebook. April 29, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
129. Sepulvado, John; Templeton, Amelia (January 16, 2016). "Militant Says Foster Children Were Pulled From His Home". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
130. "#Tarpman makes his 'Late Night' debut". MSNBC. January 7, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
131. Fountain, Matt (January 22, 2016). "Convicted murderer from Los Osos is holed up with Oregon militia". The San Luis Obispo Tribune. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
132. "Supreme Court of Montana State v. Kirkland". FindLaw. April 1, 2008. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
133. Baumann, Lisa (January 20, 2016). "Oregon standoff leader attends meeting, hears chants of "go"". Deseret News. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
134. "Authorities make first arrest in Bundy standoff by nabbing militant driving a federal vehicle to grocery store". Raw Story. January 15, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
135. Garcia, Arturo (January 26, 2016). "UPDATED: Friend and officials confirm Oregon militant Ammon Bundy's capture". Raw Story. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
136. Bird, Anna; Briquelet, Kate (January 4, 2016). "Ammon Bundy Starts Wingnut Woodstock in Oregon". The Daily Beast. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
137. Bady, Aaron (January 7, 2016). "Libertarian Fairy Tales: The Bundy Militia's Revisionist History in Oregon". Pacific Standard Magazine. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
138. "Experts: Oregon standoff may be small, but it's tip of militia iceberg". McClatchy News Service. No. January 6, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
139. "The Hammond Family Does NOT Want an Armed Stand Off, and Nobody Has a Right to Force One On Them". oathkeepers.org. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
140. Wolf, Carissa; Berman, Mark; Sullivan, Kevin (January 4, 2016). "In Oregon, frustration over federal land rights has been building for years". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
141. Wilson, Conrad; Haas, Ryan (January 7, 2016). "Oregon residents in packed town hall want armed militia to leave". PBS NewsHour. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
142. Fabian, Jordan (January 4, 2016). "White House calls Oregon standoff a 'local law enforcement matter'". The Hill. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
143. Ford, Dana (January 7, 2016). "Oregon governor tells armed protesters to leave". CNN. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
144. ^ Zaitz, Les (January 6, 2016). "Oregon militants: Walden takes BLM to woodshed (transcript)". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. ISSN 8750-1317. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
145. "Harney County-The Official Site". co.harney.or.us. Harney County, Oregon. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
146. Gettys, Travis (January 12, 2016). "Oregon judge plans to bill Ammon Bundy up to $70,000 a day for security costs to county". Raw Story. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
147. "Tribe Denounces Malheur Refuge Occupation". Oregon Public Broadcasting. January 6, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
148. Jervis, Rick (January 4, 2016). "Sheriff: Militia members used rancher protest as ruse". USA Today. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
149. "Western Sheriffs address situation in Harney County, Oregon" (PDF). oregonsheriffs.org. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
150. "Oregon Cattlemen's Association criticizes militia takeover". Capital Press. January 4, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
151. Edwards, Ashton (January 4, 2016). "LDS church releases stance on armed takeover of federal building in Oregon". KSTU-TV. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
152. "Reporter's notebook: 5 moments from the militant standoff in Burns that made us go, 'Huh?'". The Oregonian. January 6, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
153. "Vegan Jerky Hand-Delivered to Oregon Cattle-Ranching Militia". peta.org. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
154. "Audubon Society of Portland Statement on the Occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge". audubonportland.org. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
155. Chan, Wilfred (January 4, 2016). "Oregon standoff? Call it a 'Y'all Qaeda' attack, say Internet users". CNN. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
156. ^ Weber, Peter (January 4, 2016). "Can you come up with a snarkier name for the militants in Oregon than Y'all Qaeda and Vanilla ISIS?". The Week. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
157. Blakinger, Keri (January 4, 2016). "Twitter users skewer Oregon militia with hilarious hashtags". Daily News. New York City. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
158. Alteir, Nuran (January 7, 2016). "Oregon standoff: Militants lose PR battle, experts say". Oregon Live. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
159. "#OregonUnderAttack: Tweets about militia takeover". KOIN-TV. January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
160. "Oregon Militiamen Receive Fitting Nickname: 'YallQaeda'". Gawker. January 3, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
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162. Warrick, Joby (January 9, 2016). "Islamic State tries to use Oregon takeover to turn Americans against their government". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
163. Hathaway, Jay (January 5, 2016). "Redditors are Sending Glitter-Bombs to the Armed Oregon Militants". New York. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
164. Wallis, Daniel (January 14, 2016). "Oregon occupiers ask public for supplies: get glitter, sex toys". Reuters. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
165. "Headline on Malheur occupation is inaccurate, irresponsible: Letters to the Editor". OregonLive. January 19, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
166. Memmott, Mark (January 9, 2016). "Those Men In Oregon: Troublemakers, Terrorists Or Something Else?". NPR. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
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168. DeVega, Chauncey (January 4, 2016). "They'd be killed if they were black: The racial double standard at the heart of the new Bundy family standoff". Salon. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
169. Ross, Janell (January 3, 2016). "Why aren't we calling the Oregon occupiers 'terrorists'?". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
170. Wright, Crystal (January 4, 2016). "The message from Oregon is clear: black men with guns are thugs, while whites are patriots". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
171. Ali, Wajahat (January 4, 2016). "If the Oregon militiamen were Muslim or black, they'd probably be dead by now". The Guardian. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
172. Cooper, Matthew (January 5, 2016). "IS THE OREGON MILITIA TAKEOVER AN EXAMPLE OF WHITE PRIVILEGE?". Newsweek. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
173. Kirkland, Allegra (January 5, 2016). "Oregon Militia Man: We Face 'Backlash' But Black Lives Matter Doesn't". TPM. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
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• Criminal justice
• Oregon
• Politics

• Current events
• Articles to be merged from January 2016
• 2016 crimes in the United States
• 2016 in Oregon
• 2016 protests
• Anti-Federalism
• Armed standoffs in the United States
• Harney County, Oregon
• Land management in the United States
• Law enforcement in Oregon
• Malheur National Wildlife Refuge
• Occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge
• Occupations (protest)
• Ongoing events
• Protests in Oregon
• United States Fish and Wildlife Service
• United States private paramilitary groups