Armed militias traveled to the historic battlefield in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, in response to rumors that antifa planned a rally there to burn American flags.
But the hundreds of counterprotesters who showed up appear to have been duped by a social media hoax.
“Let’s get together and burn flags in protest of thugs and animals in blue,” a Facebook page called Left Behind USA wrote in mid-June. The post noted that organizers would “be giving away free small flags to children to safely throw into the fire.”
It’s unclear who runs the account that promoted the event. The person who responded to the Washington Post‘s inquiries identified himself as Alan Jeffs, 39, but the outlet could not confirm his identity or find evidence this person exists.
A regional group called Central PA Antifa said they were not “remotely involved” with the apparent flag burning event and called it a “right wing hoax,” according to Snopes.
As word of this apparent event spread in alternatively conservative circles, people began organizing to stop the event.
There was no large gathering of people who showed up to burn the flag. Christopher Blakeman, 45, of West Virginia, was one of a group of dozens of bikers who traveled from Maryland.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s a hoax or not,” he said, according to the Washington Post. “They made a threat, and if we don’t make our voices heard, it’ll make it seem like it’s okay.”
Trent Somes, a seminarian and associate pastor at First United Methodist Church, went to Gettysburg National Cemetery to pay respects to an ancestor and found himself surrounded by about 50 people who questioned him about the Black Lives Matter shirt he was wearing. Law enforcement deescalated the situation.
“For his own safety, federal law enforcement made the decision to remove him, and he was escorted out of the cemetery,” said Jason Martz, acting public affairs officer for the Gettysburg National Military Park.
