Philadelphia — A para-military extremist group has proclaimed its autonomy from the government, and plans to secede. The announcement comes more than a year after troops fired on protestors, leaving 72 people dead, including eight civilians.
In April of last year, Massachusetts Governor Thomas Gage, ordered the National Guard to seize a large cache of weapons from area locals. Soldiers however met armed extremists, the same organization now claiming the government lacks authority over the group.
Sources close to the situation say the rebel leaders voted July 2nd to approve the move to secede from the nation. Two days later the manifesto was formally adopted.
Despite a law prohibiting the distribution of propaganda, several copies the manifesto were handed out by local Philadelphia printer John Dunlap, along Market Street. While he remains free, Dunlap was questioned at length by officials.
Department of Homeland Security officials are currently searching for four Pennsylvania men who are said to have signed the document. John Morton, Robert Morris, George Clymer, and Benjamin Rush, have been identified as “ringleaders” of the extremist faction, and remain at large.
The 37-year-old Clymer is a known radical, who’s still being sought by authorities for inciting riots in Boston three years ago. In one incident, Andrew Oliver, a government tax collector, was threatened with hanging by an angry mob and later was the subject of a mock funeral.
The same mob also went to Oliver’s office, severely vandalized the building. They also set fire to some of Oliver’s property.
Meanwhile, Suffolk County Sheriff William Greenleaf, ordered by Massachusetts Lt. Governor John Penn to end the rioting, was assaulted by the mob, which also looted and destroyed Oliver’s house. So far no arrests have been made in the case.
Morton, 51, a former Justice of the Peace, is believed to be hiding out in the area of Ridley Township, where he has family. 42-year-old Morris, an immigrant has a home in Philadelphia and is thought to be there.
The youngest, 30-year-old Rush is a Princeton University graduate and medical doctor. The Byberry native is accused by DHS to be practicing medicine with out a license.
In December of last year, the government passed the ‘Prohibitory Act,’ in order to put a stop to extremist activities. Then last month there were several attempts to halt boat traffic along the Delaware River leading to shots being fired between extremists and DHS. Extremists have maintained a blockade on the river, preventing DHS from reaching inland ports.
It is expected that the administration will soon issue a directive authorizing military intervention to end the blockade.
The American War for Independence would last for five more years. Yet to come were the Patriot triumphs at Saratoga, the bitter winter at Valley Forge, the intervention of the French, and the final victory at Yorktown in 1781. In 1783, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris with Britain, the United States formally became a free and independent nation.
Happy Independence Day — lest we forget…
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