https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_citizen_movement
The sovereign citizen movement is a loose grouping of American[Note 1] litigants, commentators, tax protesters, and financial-scheme promoters. Self-described "sovereign citizens" see themselves as answerable only to their particular interpretations of the common law and as not subject to any government statutes or proceedings.[2] In the United States, they do not recognize U.S. currency and maintain that they are "free of any legal constraints".[3][4][5] They especially reject most forms of taxation as illegitimate.[6] Participants in the movement argue this concept in opposition to the idea of "federal citizens", who, they say, have unknowingly forfeited their rights by accepting some aspect of federal law.[7] The doctrines of the movement resemble those of the freemen on the land movement more commonly found in the Commonwealth, such as Australia and Canada.[8][9][10][11]
Many members of the sovereign citizen movement believe that the United States government is illegitimate.[12] JJ MacNab, who writes for Forbes about anti-government extremism, has described the sovereign-citizen movement as consisting of individuals who believe that the county sheriff is the most powerful law-enforcement officer in the country, with authority superior to that of any federal agent, elected official, or local law-enforcement official.[13] The movement can be traced back to white-extremist groups like Posse Comitatus and the constitutional militia movement.[14] It also includes members of certain self-declared "Moorish" sects.[15]
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) classifies some sovereign citizens ("sovereign citizen extremists") as domestic terrorists.[16] In 2010, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) estimated that approximately 100,000 Americans were "hard-core sovereign believers", with another 200,000 "just starting out by testing sovereign techniques for resisting everything from speeding tickets to drug charges".[17]
In surveys conducted in 2014 and 2015, representatives of U.S. law enforcement ranked the risk of terrorism from the sovereign-citizen movement higher than the risk from any other group, including Islamic extremists, militias, racists, and neo-Nazis.[18][19] The New South Wales Police Force in Australia has also identified sovereign citizens as a potential terrorist threat.[20]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_citizen_movement
The sovereign citizen movement is a loose grouping of American[Note 1] litigants, commentators, tax protesters, and financial-scheme promoters. Self-described "sovereign citizens" see themselves as answerable only to their particular interpretations of the common law and as not subject to any government statutes or proceedings.[2] In the United States, they do not recognize U.S. currency and maintain that they are "free of any legal constraints".[3][4][5] They especially reject most forms of taxation as illegitimate.[6] Participants in the movement argue this concept in opposition to the idea of "federal citizens", who, they say, have unknowingly forfeited their rights by accepting some aspect of federal law.[7] The doctrines of the movement resemble those of the freemen on the land movement more commonly found in the Commonwealth, such as Australia and Canada.[8][9][10][11]
Many members of the sovereign citizen movement believe that the United States government is illegitimate.[12] JJ MacNab, who writes for Forbes about anti-government extremism, has described the sovereign-citizen movement as consisting of individuals who believe that the county sheriff is the most powerful law-enforcement officer in the country, with authority superior to that of any federal agent, elected official, or local law-enforcement official.[13] The movement can be traced back to white-extremist groups like Posse Comitatus and the constitutional militia movement.[14] It also includes members of certain self-declared "Moorish" sects.[15]
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) classifies some sovereign citizens ("sovereign citizen extremists") as domestic terrorists.[16] In 2010, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) estimated that approximately 100,000 Americans were "hard-core sovereign believers", with another 200,000 "just starting out by testing sovereign techniques for resisting everything from speeding tickets to drug charges".[17]
In surveys conducted in 2014 and 2015, representatives of U.S. law enforcement ranked the risk of terrorism from the sovereign-citizen movement higher than the risk from any other group, including Islamic extremists, militias, racists, and neo-Nazis.[18][19] The New South Wales Police Force in Australia has also identified sovereign citizens as a potential terrorist threat.[20]
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