Bill Riccio
Encyclopedia
Bill Riccio is a former leader in the white power skinhead movement in the United States. He gained public notoriety for his appearance in the 1992 documentary Skinheads: Soldiers of the Race War. He has been convicted numerous times on illegal weapon possession, the most recent of which was in 1992.
white power skinhead group composed of mostly male teenagers, many of them runaways. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center
, Riccio "systemically indoctrinated them in racial hatred and his own special brand of neo-Confederate Hitler worship." Two of Riccio's followers committed at least two murders in Alabama, one of which was the April 1992 fatal beating of a homeless man under a railroad trestle, hours after they had attended a birthday party at the War House for Adolf Hitler
.
The group had originally been called White Aryan Resistance. Although he later changed it to avoid confusion with another group of the same name, he continued to call the house he rented as the organization's headquarters and social gathering place the "WAR House". He funded the War House with his small auto parts business.
Riccio also led a network of white supremacists in Alabama, Florida and Georgia, working closely with the Confederate Hammerskins
, and attracting followers from as far away as Pennsylvania. In November 1991, he and Alabama Ku Klux Klan
(KKK) leader Roger Handley co-hosted a large gathering on Handley's farm, and co-organized a white power march by 150 of their members through downtown Birmingham in June 1992.
Riccio came to public attention when he was profiled in the 1992 HBO America Undercover
documentary Skinheads: Soldiers of the Race War, during which he explained that his goal was to reclaim the Southern United States as a haven "pure Aryans". According to a 2006 report by the Southern Poverty Law Center, Riccio continues to attend KKK events with followers, including some of those who first joined his cause as teenagers.
. In 1981 he was convicted of violating his probation by illegally possessing a firearm. In 1985, he was convicted of the same crime, along with possession of marijuana. In August 1992, the War House was raided by police as part of a multi-state sweep of white supremacist
groups. The discovery of guns and grenades on Riccio's property resulted in another arrest and conviction for illegal weapons possession, with the judge who sentenced him commenting, "It is [Riccio's] apparent ability to organize and mobilize disenchanted young white males even to acts of violence that makes him dangerous."
After serving 15 months in prison, he returned to the War House, and became Imperial Kludd (national chaplain) of the North Georgia White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
. When KKK leader Roger Handley was later charged with sodomy
with a teenaged boy, Riccio defended him, claiming the accusations were false, and part of a law enforcement defamation conspiracy.
Activism
Riccio was the organizer of the Aryan Youth Front, a Birmingham, AlabamaBirmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
white power skinhead group composed of mostly male teenagers, many of them runaways. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center
Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center is an American nonprofit civil rights organization noted for its legal victories against white supremacist groups; legal representation for victims of hate groups; monitoring of alleged hate groups, militias and extremist organizations; and educational programs that...
, Riccio "systemically indoctrinated them in racial hatred and his own special brand of neo-Confederate Hitler worship." Two of Riccio's followers committed at least two murders in Alabama, one of which was the April 1992 fatal beating of a homeless man under a railroad trestle, hours after they had attended a birthday party at the War House for Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
.
The group had originally been called White Aryan Resistance. Although he later changed it to avoid confusion with another group of the same name, he continued to call the house he rented as the organization's headquarters and social gathering place the "WAR House". He funded the War House with his small auto parts business.
Riccio also led a network of white supremacists in Alabama, Florida and Georgia, working closely with the Confederate Hammerskins
Hammerskins
The Hammerskins, are a white supremacist group formed in 1988 in Dallas, Texas.The Hammerskins' primary focus is the production and promotion of white power rock music, and many white power bands were affiliated with the group. The Hammerskins were affiliated with the record label 9% Productions...
, and attracting followers from as far away as Pennsylvania. In November 1991, he and Alabama Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
(KKK) leader Roger Handley co-hosted a large gathering on Handley's farm, and co-organized a white power march by 150 of their members through downtown Birmingham in June 1992.
Riccio came to public attention when he was profiled in the 1992 HBO America Undercover
America Undercover
America Undercover is a television series of documentaries that airs on the cable television network HBO. Within the series are several sub-series, such as "Autopsy", "Real Sex" and "Taxicab Confessions". The series began in 1983 and, after a brief time being broadcast weekly in 2001, is now...
documentary Skinheads: Soldiers of the Race War, during which he explained that his goal was to reclaim the Southern United States as a haven "pure Aryans". According to a 2006 report by the Southern Poverty Law Center, Riccio continues to attend KKK events with followers, including some of those who first joined his cause as teenagers.
Legal troubles
In 1979, Riccio was convicted of possessing a sawed-off shotgunSawed-off shotgun
A sawed-off shotgun also called a sawn-off shotgun and a short-barreled shotgun , is a type of shotgun with a shorter gun barrel and often a shorter or absent stock....
. In 1981 he was convicted of violating his probation by illegally possessing a firearm. In 1985, he was convicted of the same crime, along with possession of marijuana. In August 1992, the War House was raided by police as part of a multi-state sweep of white supremacist
White supremacy
White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...
groups. The discovery of guns and grenades on Riccio's property resulted in another arrest and conviction for illegal weapons possession, with the judge who sentenced him commenting, "It is [Riccio's] apparent ability to organize and mobilize disenchanted young white males even to acts of violence that makes him dangerous."
After serving 15 months in prison, he returned to the War House, and became Imperial Kludd (national chaplain) of the North Georgia White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
. When KKK leader Roger Handley was later charged with sodomy
Sodomy
Sodomy is an anal or other copulation-like act, especially between male persons or between a man and animal, and one who practices sodomy is a "sodomite"...
with a teenaged boy, Riccio defended him, claiming the accusations were false, and part of a law enforcement defamation conspiracy.