Proud Boys

Founding

The Proud Boys is a men's political group founded by Gavin McInnes in New York in 2016. McInnes's September 2016 essay describes group meetings and initiation rituals and its members' self-description as “Western chauvinists.” The group grew from a broadcaster's audience into a collection of local chapters. Civil-rights organizations and Canadian authorities have described it as extremist and documented violence involving members. Those assessments and organizational conduct should not be conflated with criminal responsibility of every past member. Original McInnes article; ADL.

Leadership transition and public activity

After an October 2018 New York street assault involving members following a speech by McInnes, he publicly resigned from the group in November. Enrique Tarrio succeeded him as national chairman. The organization attracted attention at political rallies and during disputes over the 2020 election. The House January 6 investigation documents the group's later leadership and actions; the original founder's 2018 departure is a distinct historical fact. 2018 interview; House report.

Roger Stone connection

Roger Stone recorded himself repeating a Proud Boys membership oath in 2017, appeared alongside members and obtained event security from people associated with the group in 2018–2020. The House January 6 Select Committee also described contact between Stone and Tarrio. Stone denied formal group membership. These records support Stone-to-group and Stone-to-Tarrio links; they do not establish a direct Gavin McInnes–Stone command relationship. Congressional source.

January 6, criminal convictions and pardons

Proud Boys members participated in the U.S. Capitol breach on January 6, 2021. Tarrio was not physically at the Capitol that day, having been barred from Washington after a separate arrest, but prosecutors established remote communications. Four leaders, including Tarrio, were found guilty of seditious conspiracy in May 2023. The Trump administration's January 20, 2025 proclamation commuted the sentences of fourteen specifically named people and pardoned other eligible January 6 defendants, including Tarrio. Those different legal acts do not erase the historical record of convictions. House chronology; DOJ verdict statement; Clemency proclamation.

International designations

Canada listed the Proud Boys as a terrorist entity on February 3, 2021, and reaffirmed its inclusion during a 2025 review. This is a legal listing of the organization, not a criminal conviction of each former member. New Zealand's American Proud Boys designation began in June 2022 but expired on June 19, 2025, as confirmed by its Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The two countries' legal statuses must not be presented as interchangeable. Canadian registry; New Zealand government.

Documented connections

Gavin McInnes — founder in 2016; resigned in 2018.
Enrique Tarrio — national chairman in a later period.
undefined — public political appearances, oath remarks and members' security work.
Donald Trump — 2020 presidential-debate reference to the group and 2025 presidential clemency affecting named January 6 defendants; not a claim of organizational membership.