EXTREMISMPatriots’ Day: How Far-Right Groups Hijack History and Patriotic Symbols to Advance Their Cause, According to an Expert on Extremism
Extremist groups have attempted to change the meaning of freedom and liberty embedded in Patriots’ Day — a commemoration of the battles of Lexington and Concord – to serve their far-right rhetoric, recruitment, and radicalization. Understanding how patriotic symbols can be exploited offers important insights into how historical narratives may be manipulated, potentially leading to harmful consequences in American society.
Patriots’ Day, a commemoration of the battles of Lexington and Concord – the first confrontations of the American Revolution – holds historical value as a symbol of American resistance to British colonial rule. Over time, however, the holiday has been co-opted by extremist groups.
Capitalizing on ambiguities in the understanding of patriotic symbols, extremist groups have attempted to change the meaning of freedom and liberty embedded in the symbol of the American flag.
Not all states celebrate Patriots’ Day. Massachusetts and Maine observe it as a public holiday on the third Monday in April. Wisconsin observes Patriots’ Day as a state observance – not a public holiday – on April 19, with schools and businesses remaining open. Other states may also mark it informally or through educational activities.
As a scholar of extremism, I have become increasingly concerned by the appropriation of patriotic symbols such as the American flag and Patriots’ Day into narratives for far-right rhetoric, recruitment and radicalization. Patriotic events such as the Fourth of July can be marked by demonstrations, armed protests and calls for militant action by far-right extremist groups.
Just before the Fourth of July in 2019, the Southern Poverty Law Center demonstrated how extremist groups have long adopted symbols of U.S. history to promote white supremacy. A 2010 SPLC report documented extremist calls for “freedom,” including a call from such far-right groups for repeal of all social service spending.
The hijacking of patriotic symbols is part of an effort to create an atmosphere where participants believe they are engaging in a modern-day fight for freedom.
In interviews I conducted with extremists in March 2025, several members of the Patriot Front said they are planning to protest on April 19 in an effort to use the holiday to attract media and public attention to their efforts to create a white homeland.
Extremists are not the only Americans who are planning on using Patriots’ Day as a platform to attract attention to their causes. Mobilization of opposition to President Donald Trump’s policies and deportation efforts are also planned for April 19. Protesters raise concerns about the incorporation of American patriotic symbols by the right wing to support policies that they view as distinctively anti-American and unconstitutional.
The 250th anniversary on April 19 of the first battles of the American Revolution is a fitting time to reflect on the meaning and use of historical symbols.
