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Deseret Nationalism, popularized online as#DezNat,[1][2] is a far-right[3]Mormon nationalist movement in the United States. It originated in 2018, following theUnite the Right rally by Logan Smith, a member ofthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), who is known as "JP Bellum" onTwitter.[4] While the term originated as a Twitterhashtag, collecting upwards of 114,000 original posts, its significance goes beyondsocial media.[5] DezNat represents a loosely affiliated group of LDS Church members who share common ideals and values,[6][7] despite the church's negative stance on the concept.[8][5]
Media outlets such asThe Daily Beast andThe Daily Utah Chronicle have described DezNat as an extremistalt-right,white nationalist movement,[9][10][7] Similarly, journalists atThe Guardian consider the group right-wing with elements of thefar-right andeugenics.[11][12][2][13] In contrast, theSalt Lake Tribune described it as "a little bit more ambiguous than that."[5] DezNat participants have typically insisted that their sole purpose is to gather orthodox Latter-day Saints and defend the church against critics. Correspondingly, they see the term "alt-right" as inaccurate and even defamatory.[14]
Logan Smith suggested that although DezNat operates independently of official LDS Church endorsement, it fosters a community dedicated to supporting LDS doctrines and its members. However, some within the DezNat community have advocated for the restoration of the historicalState of Deseret as an independent state outside of U.S. jurisdiction.[2][15] As well as thesecession of atheocratic Mormon state, some DezNat commentators have suggested this should be awhite ethnostate using bothneo-Nazi andfar-right accelerationist imagery.[2][16][11] Users of the hashtag say they are not alt-right but are simply unapologetic about their beliefs.[10][17][7] Smith says the hashtag recognizes faithful LDS Church members as "a unique people and should be united spiritually, morally, economically, and politically behind Christ,the prophet, and the church" adding that DezNat "is the idea that devout members ought to work together to support the church, its doctrines, and each other, on social media and in their communities to further build the Kingdom of God".[9][18][1][19][20]
The community has been criticized for promotingbigotry and harassment against members of theLGBTQ community, non-Mormons andex-Mormons,feminists,abortion-rights advocates, andpornographic film actors.[21][22] Some have criticized theMormon blogBy Common Consent for being toopolitically progressive.[9][23][24] Members also usebowie knife imagery as a homage toBrigham Young. Controversially, some within DezNat advocate for violent actions under the pretext ofblood atonement for certain sins,[9] a practice the LDS Church leadership has disavowed.[25] According to the feminist writer Mary Ann Clements, DezNat proponents regard themselves as being in line with the actions of former church presidents, therefore not supportingpolygamy today but referencing it regarding the past (e.g., by portraying Young as a polygamous "chad" or powerfulalpha male).[26][27][28][29]
In August 2017, many alt-right groups, including white nationalists and white supremacists alongside individuals accused of supporting a "Deznat ideology", gathered inCharlottesville, Virginia, "to protest the planned removal of a statue ofConfederateGeneral Robert E. Lee." For theUnite the Right rally, however, due to the violence at the rally, Ayla Stewart was unable to participate. When the church started on August 13, 2017, condemning the racial violence at Charlottesville, Ayla Stewart retweeted it, commenting, "The #LDS church teachings are clear, you cannot be anti-white and a follower of Christ. We are ALL God's children!" This prompted the church to amend its statement on August 15, clarifying that "Church members who promote or pursue a 'white culture' orwhite supremacy agenda are not in harmony with the teachings of the Church."[8] This underscored the church's stance againstextreme political views and the perceived misalignment with its teachings.[30][31][32] Subsequent Timothy Ballard's books, "Hypothesis" and "American Covenant", reflected a Mormon perspective onWhite Christian Nationalism, distinct from Deseret Nationalism.[33]
In July 2021, investigative journalists atThe Guardian identified Matthias Cicotte, anAlaska Assistant Attorney General, as a poster of racist andantisemitic Deseret Nationalist content using the Twitter account @JReubenCIark.[11][a] Following the release of the report, civil rights organizations, including theNAACP, called for the termination of Cicotte from his position and the reopening of his cases. This prompted an investigation from theAlaska Department of Law and Cicotte was removed from his caseload.[34] A Department spokesperson confirmed Cicotte was no longer working for them, stating: "However, although we cannot talk about personnel matters, we do not want the values and policies of the Department of Law to be overshadowed by the conduct of one individual."[35] Shortly thereafter, the deans ofJ. Reuben Clark Law School, of which both Cicotte and Alaska Attorney GeneralTreg Taylor are graduates, released a statement condemning the "venomous and hateful Twitter messages against a variety of vulnerable groups" from the @JReubenCIark account.[36]
