Building off the work of online researchers, The New York Times has come up with a newly detailed view of the Proud Boys’ role in instigating the chaos that consumed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. After months of studying video footage of the attack and poring over internal communications by the Proud Boys, The Times has determined that members of the group maneuvered in a coordinated fashion that day in a way that was not previously known and in a manner that was unlike that of the hundreds of other rioters who stormed the building.
The analysis by The Times found a pattern in how the Proud Boys moved on the ground. Over and over, at key moments when the Capitol was breached, the group used the same set of tactics: identifying access points to the building, riling up other protesters and sometimes directly joining in the violence. When met with resistance, leaders of the group reassessed, and teams of Proud Boys targeted new entry points to the Capitol.
Moreover, members of the Proud Boys, following the orders of their leaders, did not wear their typical black-and-yellow uniforms that day.
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