The Atlantic published a piece Friday that mocked conservatives for expressing concern about Jane's Revenge, a violent pro-abortion group that has targeted churches and pregnancy resource centers for arson and vandalism across the United States.
The article, titled "The Right's New Boogeyman," also has a provocative subtitle: "A mysterious pro-abortion-rights group is claiming credit for acts of vandalism around the country, and right-wing activists and politicians are eating it up."
"A mysterious pro-choice group called Jane’s Revenge has drawn attention to itself in recent months with a short series of strongly worded ‘communiqués’ promising violence," wrote Kaitlyn Tiffany, a staff writer at The Atlantic.
"'We are in your city. We are in every city,' it said. ‘Medical imperialism will not face a passive enemy,’" Tiffany quoted a Jane's Revenge missive as saying.
"Right-wing media outlets have provided ample coverage of this new threat, and anti-abortion politicians have demanded government action to address it," she wrote.
However, Tiffany questioned the validity of the threats. "But the group’s practical significance remains in question. Just how meaningful is Jane’s Revenge?" she asked.
"It has now taken credit for incidents of vandalism and property destruction in 16 cities throughout the U.S., among them the firebombings of a pro-life medical office in Buffalo, New York, and the offices of a Christian-fundamentalist lobbying group in Madison, Wisconsin," Tiffany wrote.
But she contended that there is no evidence the radical group is actually behind the attacks.
"When right-wing outlets began to talk at length about antifa five years ago, that group became ‘a foil for alt-right protestors and activists,’ Patrick Love and Alisha Karabinus wrote in the 2020 book Platforms, Protests, and the Challenge of Networked Democracy," she continued.
"Jane’s Revenge would seem to have the same role," she wrote.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
She quoted another expert saying, "Playing with perceptions and exaggerations of violence is often a way to delegitimize much larger political movements…I think what we saw was the deployment of a useful frame by anti-abortion activists."
Tiffany noted that despite a request by House Republicans to declare Jane's Revenge a terrorist organization, the FBI and Department of Homeland Security has not done so.