Fact Check

FALSE: Ammon Bundy Compared Himself To Rosa Parks

A Twitter user claiming to be Ammon Bundy posted a message comparing the takeover of a government building in Oregon with the civil rights movement.

Published Jan. 6, 2016

Claim:
Ammon Bundy posted a message on Twitter comparing himself to Rosa Parks.

On 5 January 2016, a Twitter account purportedly belonging to Ammon Bundy, a Phoenix resident who led a group of armed men in the takeover of a government building at Oregon's Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, posted a message comparing his actions to those of civil rights leader Rosa Parks:

Screenshot 2016-01-06 at 11.04.00 AM

While the above-displayed message was posted by the Twitter account @Ammon_Bundy, it doesn't appear that the rancher has anything to do with the account.

First, this is a brand new Twitter account which was started on 3 January 2016. While it is possible that Bundy would start a new Twitter account to take advantage of the media attention, the rancher has had a Facebook account for more than a year and frequently uses the social network to provide updates from Oregon.

Second, the @Ammon_Bundy Twitter account uses a screenshot from one of Bundy's videos as its profile pic. If the account were real, it's likely that Bundy would have used an actual photo.

Finally, MSNBC reporter Tony Dokoupil, who has been reporting from the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge since shortly after Bundy's men took over the building, confirmed that the account was fake:

Screenshot 2016-01-06 at 11.04.13 AM Screenshot 2016-01-06 at 11.10.57 AM rosa parks

While it's possible that someone associated with the Bundy is operating the @Ammon_Bundy Twitter account, it's more likely that the account is being operated by a remote sympathizer.

Dan Evon is a former writer for Snopes.