Key Figures
Nick Fuentes
A holocaust denier and former YouTuber, Nick Fuentes is the host of the ‘America First’ podcast and considered to be the leader of the Groypers. Fuentes first rose to prominence when he left Boston University after he reported receiving threats in response to his attendance at the 2017 Charlottesville Unite the Right Rally. He went on to establish the America First Political Action Conference (AFPAC), a rival to the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).
Patrick Casey
Patrick Casey is the former leader of the American Identity Movement (formerly Identity Evropa), a white supremacist organization disbanded in November 2020. In February 2021 Casey split from the Groyper movement over the fear of federal informant infiltration.
Michelle Malkin
Michelle Malkin is a conservative political commentator and self-described “mommy” of the Groypers. The former Fox contributor, who joined Newsmax TV in May 2021, has spoken at America First events.
Jacob Lloyd
Jacob Lloyd is a former YouTuber and Infowars contributor. He spoke at the Groyper Leadership Summit in 2019 and claims to have had a leading role in formulating the questions asked by Groypers at conservative events.
Baked Alaska
Real name Anthime Gionet, Baked Alaska is a neo-Nazi live streamer and Groyper follower who was arrested for his role in storming the US Capitol building on January 6 2021. During the riot, he wore Pit Viper sunglasses, which have since been adopted as a symbol by the Groypers.
Jaden McNeil
Jaden McNeil is the former President of the Kansas State University chapter of Turning Point USA (TPUSA). McNeil left TPUSA because of their “culture of censorship” and founded Groyper rival organization America First Students.
Vincent James
Vincent James is a former YouTuber with the second-highest following of the Groypers on Telegram after Fuentes, with over 41,400 users following his channel. He has also spoken at AFPAC events.
Identifiable symbols
Pit Viper sunglasses
Pit Viper sunglasses were first associated with the Groypers on 6 January 2021, when Baked Alaska (see Key Figures) wore them during the US Capitol riot, which he livestreamed on Twitch. In July 2021, Nick Fuentes and others wore Pit Viper shades when they crashed a CPAC event in Dallas.
Groyper meme
Groypers derive their name from the ‘Groyper’ toad image, which became popular in 2017 as an explicitly racist-coded variation of the Pepe the Frog meme often affiliated with the alt-right.
America First logo
‘America First’ is the name of Nick Fuentes’ pod-cast. In 2020, Fuentes founded the America First Political Action Conference (AFPAC).
https://www.isdglobal.org/explainers/groypers/