Multiple figures claiming to represent white nationalist groups have been promoting or trying to recruit for those groups on online message board sites 4chan and 8chan -- sites that are already in the spotlight for the white nationalism and far-right content that proliferates there.

Posters on 4chan are well-known for their tendency to spread hate speech and far-right conspiracy theories such as Pizzagate. 8chan was recently knocked offline after it was reported that the suspects of mass shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand; Poway, California; and El Paso, Texas, posted manifestos on the site before carrying out the attacks. But 8chan’s owner, who was recently subpoenaed to provide evidence to congressional staffers, has pledged to bring the site back. Additionally, both sites have at one time or another been the centers for the QAnon conspiracy theory, some of whose supporters have been tied to acts of violence, and QAnon has been flagged by the FBI as a potential domestic terrorist threat.

Given these sites’ clear ties to the far-right, multiple users claiming to be with white nationalist groups have apparently seen them as a recruiting ground to add members to their ranks. Those white nationalist groups include the following:

Identity Evropa (now called the American Identity Movement)

Identity Evropa is a white nationalist group that tried rebranding earlier this year as the American Identity Movement (AIM) to downplay its racist beliefs as part of the “Identitarian” white supremacist movement.

Earlier this year, someone claiming to be a member of AIM posted on 8chan, writing, “You guys should consider joining AIM.” The user added that it “only takes a minute to fill out the application” and linked to the organization’s site. One poster responded, “I will pledge some financial support for you guys.” Other users identifying as AIM’s president or AIM’s representatives encouraged people on 4chan and 8chan to “join today” by posting an image of its site or a link to donate (AIM’s president has denied that the group advertised on the chans).