The club has chapters nationwide, and another member, Willem van Spronsen, was killed by authorities in 2019 when he tried to blow up an ICE detention center by igniting a propane tank and throwing Molotov cocktails at the building. 

“You know, we’re totally comfortable with the fact that many people disagree with us, and that’s what a university is supposed to do,” said McInnis. “It’s supposed to sharpen ideas based on what people disagree with. But it’s not until I saw this poster early this morning that I ever felt directly threatened. I mean, this poster is directly calling for the death of conservatives on this campus.” 

The club is named for militant slave abolitionist John Brown, who in 1856 orchestrated the Pottawatomie Massacre. He and fellow abolitionists dragged five Kansas settlers suspected of having pro-slavery sympathies out of their homes and executed them. 

In October 1859, Brown led a 21-man raid on a federal armory in Harper’s Ferry, part of Virginia at the time. His goal was to start a slave uprising, but few slaves joined the fight. A local militia confronted Brown and his men and fought back. Four townspeople, including freed slave Heyward Shepherd, were caught in the crossfire and killed in the skirmish.  

After 10 of his men were killed, Brown was captured. He was later tried for treason and eventually hanged. 

“Georgetown University has no tolerance for calls for violence or threats to the university,” a spokesperson for the school told Fox News Digital. “The flyers have been removed and the university is investigating this incident and working to ensure the safety of our community.”