Patriot Prayer, Three Percenters leaders to speak at WSU

Leaders of two far-right groups are expected to demonstrate Tuesday at Washington State University.

Joey Gibson, who founded Patriot Prayer in Vancouver, Washington, and Matt Marshall, who leads the Washington Three Percenters, plan to speak on the Pullman campus from noon to 3 p.m., according to a Facebook page that bills the event as a “Build the Wall – Bill of Rights Bash.”

Members of Patriot Prayer and affiliated groups, such as the Proud Boys, are known for engaging in violent clashes with counterprotestors in Portland and other cities. The Three Percenters are a militia group who believe 3% of the country’s population would be needed to overthrow a tyrannical government.

Gibson and Marshall were invited by WSU’s chapter of the College Republicans, which earlier raised money to build a second “Trump wall” on campus, hoping to repeat a 2016 demonstration that drew hundreds of protesting students and sparked intense debate over the president’s immigration policies.

WSU spokesman Phil Weiler said school officials have been working with the College Republicans.

“WSU police prepare public safety plans for all large gatherings on the Pullman campus and tomorrow’s is not different,” Weiler said in a text message Monday.