MSNBC reporter Morgan Radford profiled an armed black militia group for a report she gave during the Monday broadcast of “Morning Joe.”
Radford reported that the group was formed to defend black people because of, according to their leader, the “deterioration of race relations in the U.S,” with their ultimate goal to create a “black ethno state.” (RELATED: PHOTOS: Armed Proud Boys, Militias And Black Panthers Gather To Protest In Richmond)
“The bottom line is this group says that the U.S. Government, as well as law enforcement, simply does not do enough to protect black Americans in this country, which is why they say they’re taking matters into their own hands,” Radford began in the report. “This is a group that is growing. They say they now boast recruits in nearly every single state. So we decided to go and embed with them and see exactly what they’re doing and why.”
Radford went on to play various video clips of the group training with firearms, marching, and taking part in protests. She explained the group is called the NFAC, and their mission is “to defend the black community by any means necessary.” She introduced the leader of the group, John “Grandmaster Jay” Johnson, who explained that NFAC stands for the “Not F’ing Around Coalition.”
“The NFAC was born out of the last four years under the Trump administration. The deterioration of racial relations in this country. It means that we are preparing yourself to defend yourselves,” Johnson explained.
Radford noted the group’s style resembles the Black Panther party in the 1960’s, but with the ultimate goal of a “black ethno state.” She asked Johnson if violence was an option for the group to reach its goals, to which he responded that the U.S. “was built on violence being an option,” but that it “should be the last option.”
“When you talk about January 6th, and we saw those rioters storm the Capitol, what do you say to critics who say, you’re no different from them? They’re extremists, you’re extremists,” Radford asked.
“Show me where we have done those things. They’ve killed people. They’ve disrespected the government to the point where they have invaded its sacred halls. Show me where we’ve done those things, because we have done none of them,” Johnson responded.
Radford then showed footage of a secret NFAC training facility in Georgia where militia members trained with various weapons on firing ranges. She asked one female militia member about the backgrounds of other group members, as well as what they’re training for. The member explained that everyone comes from a variety of career fields, including doctors and lawyers, and that their training is for “self defense.”
“We asked the group several times to give us an exact number of their membership. They refused to do so, but it appears to be in the thousands based on the number of people who have come to their marches, and also based on the number of people we saw at one individual training session,” Radford continued.
She concluded by explaining the NFAC has had no record of violent incidents, but that Johnson was indicted on federal charges in an ongoing case for allegedly pointing a rifle at police officers during a Breonna Taylor demonstration in Kentucky.