Robert E. Miles
Encyclopedia
Robert E. "Pastor Bob " Miles (January 28, 1925 – August 16, 1992) was a White Supremacist leader from Michigan.
A major "dualist" religious leader, Miles allied himself with various groups that constituted the racist and anti-Semitic political-religious movement known as Christian Identity
, including Aryan Nations
. According to Miles, Earth was the site of a battle between a true God and a false God, with Jews acting as agents of the false God against the true "chosen people," white Aryans. [Barkun, 1994]. According to Barkun, "Despite the idiosyncrasies of his theology, the avuncular Miles functioned as a kind of elder statesman of the racial movement."
In 1971, Miles, then the grand dragon of the Michigan Ku Klux Klan
, was arrested for conspiring to bomb school buses in an attempt to stop the integration of public schools in Michigan. He was later convicted and served his sentence.
Following the 1979 "Greensboro Massacre
" of anti-klan activists in 1979, "a number of previously antagonistic White Supremacist groups, including the Posse Comitatus
and various Neo-Nazi and Klan factions, began having discussions about how they could formulate a common ideology. These different groups also conducted joint activities and even began establishing informal means of communication including computer bulletin boards and cable TV programs. Many of these groups embraced Christian Identity
. Gradually, a White racist alliance emerged. Centers of this movement included the Michigan farm of pastor and former Klan leader Robert E. Miles, as well as the Aryan Nations
compound in Hayden Lake, Idaho, the site of Identity Pastor Richard Butler
's Church of Jesus Christ Christian." [Berlet & Lyons, 2000]. In the 1980s, Miles endorsed the "Northwest Imperative", an attempt to establish a separate white state in the Pacific Northwest. Coupled with his increasingly anti-US government position, he was referred to as a "klanarchist". [Kaza, 1987]
A major "dualist" religious leader, Miles allied himself with various groups that constituted the racist and anti-Semitic political-religious movement known as Christian Identity
Christian Identity
Christian Identity is a label applied to a wide variety of loosely affiliated believers and churches with a racialized theology. Many promote a Eurocentric interpretation of Christianity.According to Chester L...
, including Aryan Nations
Aryan Nations
Aryan Nations is a white supremacist religious organization originally based in Hayden Lake, Idaho. Richard Girnt Butler founded the group in the 1970s, as an arm of the Christian Identity organization Church of Jesus Christ–Christian...
. According to Miles, Earth was the site of a battle between a true God and a false God, with Jews acting as agents of the false God against the true "chosen people," white Aryans. [Barkun, 1994]. According to Barkun, "Despite the idiosyncrasies of his theology, the avuncular Miles functioned as a kind of elder statesman of the racial movement."
In 1971, Miles, then the grand dragon of the Michigan 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...
, was arrested for conspiring to bomb school buses in an attempt to stop the integration of public schools in Michigan. He was later convicted and served his sentence.
Following the 1979 "Greensboro Massacre
Greensboro massacre
The Greensboro massacre occurred on November 3, 1979 in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Five protest marchers were shot and killed by members of the Ku Klux Klan and the American Nazi Party...
" of anti-klan activists in 1979, "a number of previously antagonistic White Supremacist groups, including the Posse Comitatus
Posse comitatus
Posse comitatus may refer to:* Posse comitatus , the authority of a law officer to conscript any able-bodied males to assist him* Posse Comitatus , a loosely organized far right social movement that opposes the United States federal government and believes in localism* "Posse Comitatus", a...
and various Neo-Nazi and Klan factions, began having discussions about how they could formulate a common ideology. These different groups also conducted joint activities and even began establishing informal means of communication including computer bulletin boards and cable TV programs. Many of these groups embraced Christian Identity
Christian Identity
Christian Identity is a label applied to a wide variety of loosely affiliated believers and churches with a racialized theology. Many promote a Eurocentric interpretation of Christianity.According to Chester L...
. Gradually, a White racist alliance emerged. Centers of this movement included the Michigan farm of pastor and former Klan leader Robert E. Miles, as well as the Aryan Nations
Aryan Nations
Aryan Nations is a white supremacist religious organization originally based in Hayden Lake, Idaho. Richard Girnt Butler founded the group in the 1970s, as an arm of the Christian Identity organization Church of Jesus Christ–Christian...
compound in Hayden Lake, Idaho, the site of Identity Pastor Richard Butler
Richard Girnt Butler
Richard Girnt Butler was an American aerospace engineer for Lockheed, who later became the leader of the Christian Identity white supremacist group Aryan Nations.-Biography:...
's Church of Jesus Christ Christian." [Berlet & Lyons, 2000]. In the 1980s, Miles endorsed the "Northwest Imperative", an attempt to establish a separate white state in the Pacific Northwest. Coupled with his increasingly anti-US government position, he was referred to as a "klanarchist". [Kaza, 1987]