However, around the country, barely anyone showed up. Some liberty activists said they wouldn’t attend because they believed the events were federal honeypots designed to gather information about freedom-lovers. Others foolishly believed that exercising their right to bear arms would mean their rights would be more likely taken from them. Luckily, in New Hampshire, five Boogaloo Boys showed up with rifles front slung. They were well-spoken and self-described as Libertarian, with one even talking about the Non Aggression Principle to the large number of reporters that were present.
One Boogalooer even educated the media people on gun safety and basics, with the photographers crazily shooting pictures when the Boogaloo Boy showed a magazine loaded with bullets. The news media was informed on the history of the Boogaloo – the name is based on the Eighties breakdancing movie “Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo”, with the members describing their group as a real-life meme. They also explained the origin of their Hawaiian shirt dress code, which came about after social media sites started to crack down on any groups referencing Boogaloo. The social media crackdown on the term forced them to use code words that were similar, like “Big Igloo” or “Big Luau”, which naturally led to the shirts.
The Boys acknowledged there are also female Boogalooers and said they do not tolerate any white supremacists in the Boogaloo. Their signage and message was pro-peace. Despite describing themselves and their movement as mostly Libertarians, the New York Times reporter Ruth Graham still mislabeled them “far right” in her story. Concord Patch reporter Tony Schinella filed a more detailed report including video.
Vincent from Shire Free Media also filed this package showing excerpts of what was a lengthy discussion between the media and the Boogaloo Boys: