Rioters are rebranded as patriots

Right-wing supporters of the ‘‘Jan Sixers’’ have formed prayer chains, instigated letter writing campaigns, organised vigils, and raised millions of dollars for their legal defence – all with the aim of supporting the 932 people facing federal charges, who they see as valiant patriots, prisoners of conscience persecuted for engaging in their First Amendment rights.

Since 2021, January 6 defendants have raised more than US$3.7 million (NZ$5.8m) on the Christian crowdfunding website GiveSendGo, according to a Washington Post review, and millions more have been raised by umbrella groups.

‘‘This movement is really growing by leaps and bounds,’’ said Ned Lang, a former town councilman from Tusten, New York whose son Edward ‘‘Jake’’ Lang has pleaded not guilty to charges of beating police officers with a baseball bat.

The Lang family have raised more than US$335,000 (NZ$527,000) through two GiveSendGo accounts, and Jake has his own personal assistant to manage his interview requests and podcast schedule – from jail. Ned Lang has created a documentary he says clears his son’s name, and has spent more than US$100,000 (NZ$157,000) in right-wing media to promote it.

Dozens of times – nightly during summer – supporters have held a candlelight vigil at the DC jail where 21 defendants are housed in a special wing awaiting trial. Anniversary vigils in defence of those incarcerated were held yesterday in Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Pennsylvania and Texas.

Look Ahead America, a nonprofit formed in 2017 by former Donald Trump campaign staffer Matt Braynard, has seen its contributions jump to US$793,000 (NZ$1.25m) from an average of US$25,000 (NZ$40,000) in previous years. It has taken a prominent role in supporting the January 6 defendants, promoting a nationwide programme of vigils, maintaining a database of court cases, and launching a jobs board to link Jan Sixers with sympathetic employers.