As we reported this morning, a group of armed ‘militiamen’ have broken into and occupied a federal building as part of a protest against the prosecution of two ranchers.

They’ve seized a remote building that houses the offices of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, operated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, down in the rural south east of Oregon.

https://twitter.com/jason_a_w/status/683482421778452480

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Now people are taking to Twitter to ask why a group of heavily armed white men are considered ‘militiamen’, and not terrorists – lets be honest, if a group of Muslims had occupied a federal building the army would currently be storming it.

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People also wondered how the authorities might have reacted if the perpetrators were black.

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This retired United States Airforce Colonel summed it up nicely.

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Before posting this interesting infographic highlighting who the biggest threat to America is (clue: it’s not Muslims).

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The group have since stated that they would stay there indefinitely, saying: “We pose no threat to anybody. There is no person that is physically harmed by what we are doing” – although one of the militiamen, Ammon Bundy, said he didn’t rule out using violence if law enforcement tried to remove them from the building, and his brother Ryan told local journalists over the phone that they’re willing to ‘kill or be killed’ for their cause.

According to The Independent, Ammon Bundy said the building they’ve taken over represents the ‘tyranny’ of central government control, declaring the occupation was the start of a separatist movement.

A local resident recorded him saying the building would become a ‘base’ for the militia, that the occupation would go for at least ‘several years’, and that they planned to make a nearby fire station part of their base.

Here it is. Please know these men will speak to people civilly. Do not go up there guns blazing. Stay safe and smart. Posted by Sarah Dee Spurlock on Saturday, 2 January 2016