Key Points
- Blood Tribe is a growing neo-Nazi group that claims to have chapters across the United States and Canada.
- Blood Tribe members are followers of Christopher Pohlhaus, whose white supremacist beliefs include elements of Esoteric Hitlerism (which exalts Hitler as a deity) and Wotanism, a variant of Norse Paganism.
- Blood Tribe presents itself as a hardcore white supremacist group and rejects white supremacists who call for softer “optics.”
- Blood Tribe members emphasize hyper-masculinity; the group does not allow female members.
- Blood Tribe sees themselves as both the last remaining bulwark against enemies of the white race and the only path to a white ethnostate.
- Since becoming a membership organization in 2021, Blood Tribe has been increasingly active, holding anti-LGBTQ+ demonstrations and private gatherings.
Origins
Blood Tribe is a neo-Nazi group founded and led by Christopher Pohlhaus, aka Hammer, a former U.S. Marine turned tattoo artist. In 2020, while living in San Antonio, Texas, Pohlhaus cultivated an online following by selling white supremacist propaganda and gear and posting video podcasts during which he lectured followers about fitness and the need for them to participate in “a last stand, a righteous war” against those who “call for the destruction of their birthright and posterity.”
As his following grew, Pohlhaus began referring to them as the “Blood Tribe.” In 2021, as Pohlhaus networked with other white supremacist groups and recruited new followers, Blood Tribe evolved into a membership organization.
In May 2022, Pohlhaus moved from Texas to Maine, where he purchased 10 acres of land and attempted to build an encampment for white supremacists. In late October 2023, he sold the land claiming militant leftist had made the location too dangerous “to fulfill its purpose.”
In March 2023, Blood Tribe held their first public demonstration, protesting a drag queen story hour in Wadsworth, Ohio. The attendees, including Pohlhaus, wore matching red sweaters, waved swastika flags and held a banner that read, “There will be blood.” Blood Tribe expanded in the months following this demonstration, establishing chapters across the U.S. and Canada.
Christopher Pohlhaus
Ideology
Blood Tribe’s goal is to normalize the swastika, usher in a resurgence of Nazi ideas and ultimately build a white enthnostate occupied, controlled and led by “Aryans.” As a group, Blood Tribe subscribes to common white supremacist beliefs – white people are superior, stronger -- with a heavy neo-Nazi emphasis, and a significant Odinist slant. Odinism—called Wotanism by some, including Blood Tribe members—is a white supremacist variant of modern Norse paganism that worships the mythical Norse deity Odin/Wotan. Pohlhaus refers to himself as a “son of Wotan” and has a facial tattoo spelling “Wotan” in the runic alphabet.
Some members – Pohlhaus in particular -- dabble in “Esoteric Hitlerism,” a phrase used to describe variations of neo-Nazism in which Adolf Hitler is considered divine or godlike. Pohlhaus has claimed that Hitler was a reincarnation of Wotan; other Blood Tribe members have asserted a similar connection between Wotanism and Hitler, including one who announced in a July 2023 Telegram post, “I believe he [Hitler] was an incarnation of Wotan.”
Blood Tribe members are heavily invested in hyper-masculinity; the group does not allow female members. Its social media accounts uses masculinity-themed images and memes to promote and elevate Blood Tribe, while denigrating rival extremist groups, such as the Proud Boys, as weak and effeminate.
Blood Tribe presents itself as a hardcore white supremacist group, rejecting white supremacists who lean into more palatable “optics” by eschewing swastikas and other explicit neo-Nazi symbols. As the group’s Ohio chapter posted in May 2023, referring to the radicalization pipeline, “We’re the end of the pipeline type group.” As such, Blood Tribe tends to recruit from among people already committed to white supremacy rather than people new to the movement.
Pohlhaus has decried the strategy of softening optics as conforming to enemy expectations. In some instances, he has even called out other white supremacists as “pedophile protectors,” asserting that these groups are aiding the LGBTQ+ movement by not being extreme enough.
Membership
Since transitioning to a membership organization in 2021, Blood Tribe has grown considerably, claiming seven regional chapters across the U.S. and two in Canada. In 2023, Blood Tribe has several dozen members and thousands of online followers.
In its short existence, Blood Tribe has cultivated a militant and exclusive ethos that appeals to hardcore white supremacists. The group’s earn-your-way-in process begins with “The Camps,” a series of tiered vetting chat rooms on Telegram, in which potential applicants harshly haze one another, a process created to weed out the “snakes and the fragile people.”
Telegram message inviting new members to be vetted through the Blood Tribe Camps.
Once vetted by The Camps, Blood Tribe hopefuls work their way up through the group’s membership levels. The first membership level is Blood Nation, a network of vetted people who are invited to the private Blood Tribe online chat after someone vouches for them. The second level is occupied by Blood Nation Activists, individuals who are vetted and approved to attend on-the-ground Blood Tribe demonstrations. The pinnacle membership tier is Blut Stamm, German for Blood Tribe. These are individuals who have been heavily vetted and hand-selected by other members.
To add to the group’s mystique, accepted members take part in an initiation ceremony during which they cut themselves using the group’s ceremonial spear and then rub their blood on the shaft of the spear, symbolically joining their blood with that of the collective tribe.
Events
The group has focused its on-the-ground activity on counter-protesting LGBTQ+ events, which involves Blood Tribe members, armed with rifles and carrying swastika flags, shouting militaristic call-and-respond chants including, “Us or the pedophiles,” “There will be blood, blood, blood!” and “Pedophiles get the rope!”
With group members masked and dressed in red or black, these aggressive demonstrations are designed to scare and intimidate event organizers and attendees. In a March 2023 Telegram post, Pohlhaus wrote: “The only optics we need is to be the only ones putting horror in these people’s hearts.”
Madison, Wisconsin, November 18, 2023: Approximately 20 individuals associated with Blood Tribe marched through downtown Madison performing Sieg heil salutes, carrying swastika flags and chanting “Israel is not our friend” and “There will be blood.” During the march, the group made stops at the statehouse and Gates of Heaven, the oldest synagogue in the state of Wisconsin.
Altamonte, Florida, September 2, 2023: Over the summer of 2023, GDL and the neo-Nazi Blood Tribe promoted and solicited donations for a “march of the redshirts” event in Florida. On September 2, approximately 50 individuals associated with the GDL, Blood Tribe, White Lives Matter, Dixieland Nationalists and Vinland Rebels marched around Cranes Roost Park in Altamonte, Florida before demonstrating on the Central Parkway I-4 overpass. The participants wore matching uniforms (red shirts, black masks and black pants), waved swastika flags, performed Hitler salutes and shouted, “white power” and “Jews will not replace us.” Known participants include individuals from California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Missouri and Texas.
Watertown, Wisconsin, July 29, 2023: Approximately 14 individuals associated with Blood Tribe protested a Pride in the Park event carrying swastika flags and a banner that read, “Stand with us or stand with pedophiles.” They also performed "Sieg Heil" salutes and chanted: “No pedos in our streets,” “There will be blood, blood, blood,” “Us or the pedophiles” and “Pedophiles get the rope.” Two members were observed openly carrying rifles.
Toledo, Ohio, July 15, 2023: At least 20 individuals associated with Blood Tribe protested Love Fest, Toledo’s annual LGBTQ+ event. Led by Pohlhaus, the group wore matching red pullovers, performed Sieg heil salutes and carried tiki torches and a swastika flag. At least one individual was armed. Later that evening, the group demonstrated outside the Toledo Jewish Community Campus, which is home to two synagogues and a Jewish Community Center.
Hudson, Wisconsin, June 17, 2023: Approximately 13 individuals associated with Blood Tribe, as well as individuals associated with white supremacist networks Goyim Defense League (GDL) and White Lives Matter (WLM), protested outside an LGBTQ+ Pride event at Lakefront Park. Christopher Wood, a Wausau, Wisconsin, mayoral candidate, led the group, which chanted, "Pedophiles get the rope," "Groom dogs not our kids" and "Access to white people is not a human right." They also held signs that read, "White lives matter,” “No pedos leave kids alone" and "Reject degeneracy."
Columbus, Ohio, April 29, 2023: Approximately 26 individuals associated with Blood Tribe protested an adult drag show. Participants wore matching red pullovers and held a banner titled, “There Will Be Blood.” Pohlhaus attended the event wearing all-black with a red suit jacket. Multiple members were visibly armed.
Blood Tribe members led by Pohlhaus demonstrate in Columbus, OH, April 2023.
Wadsworth, Ohio, March 11, 2023: Approximately 10 individuals associated with Blood Tribe, 14 individuals associated with the white supremacist Patriot Front, along with members of White Lives Matter protested a Drag Queen Story Hour. Blood Tribe members, led by Pohlhaus, wore matching red sweaters and held a banner that read, “There Will Be Blood.”
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