Nick Gillespie’s remembrance of Brian Doherty captures Brian’s spirit: Remembering Brian Doherty, Chronicler of and Participant in Wild and Wonderful Subcultures.
From PEOPLE: Journalist and Leading Libertarian Historian Found Dead 1 Day After Suspected Fall in Park.
The body of Brian Doherty, 57, was found on March 13 in Battery Yates park.
I met Brian several times over the years. I liked his alternative vibes. Hanging with him felt like hanging with my angsty artsy friend on a gloomy rainy day during ‘Varsity. Somehow, your soul turned a little goth around him.
The first time I met him in person, I sat down with him at Murphy’s Taproom on Elm Street in Manchester for his book on Ron Paul.
“Paul’s greatest weapon in the Granite State is the Free State Project, which has been promoting the migration of libertarian-minded Americans to New Hampshire since 2003. With about 1,000 new residents to its credit, the group wields measurable political influence, having placed 12 Free Staters in New Hampshire’s 400-member legislature.”
Brian also covered my 2010 First Amendment arrest for filming police and subsequent civil rights case, which I won on appeal in the First Circuit in 2014.
Brian struck me as the kind of man who had secrets. Falling from a cliff seems fitting. R.I.P. Brian, you were one of a kind!
Summary of REASON coverage of FSP/me over the years:
Free State Project Leader Wins Victory Against Cops Trying to Punish Filming Them (May 23, 2014) – Written by Brian Doherty. Covers Gericke’s win in Gericke v. Weare, where the 1st Circuit Court upheld her right to film a traffic stop.
Link: https://reason.com/2014/05/23/free-state-project-leader-wins-victory-a
Another Blow Against Cops Who Think They Have a Right Not to Be Filmed (May 29, 2014) – References Doherty’s earlier post on Gericke’s case and discusses the broader implications for filming police.
Link: https://reason.com/2014/05/29/another-blow-against-cops-who-think-they
Q&A with the Free State Project President Carla Gericke (November 28, 2011) – A Q&A/profile where Gericke discusses her role as FSP “bus driver” and efforts to recruit libertarians to New Hampshire. (There’s also a related Reason TV video interview from the same date.)
Link: https://reason.com/2011/11/28/keeping-new-hampshire-awesome-qa-with-th
Video version: https://reason.com/video/2011/11/28/carla-gericke-free-state-proje
The Free State Project Grows Up (May 15, 2013) – Features Gericke (as FSP board president) discussing the project’s progress, recruitment goals, and impact in New Hampshire.
Link: https://reason.com/2013/05/15/the-free-state-project-grows-up
While Politicians Call for Restricting Freedom After NYC Attack, Don’t Forget the Diversity Visa Lottery (November 3, 2017) – Quotes Gericke on her immigration via the Diversity Visa Program and her FSP background.
Link: https://reason.com/2017/11/03/while-politicians-call-for-restricting-f
Free State Project Participants: It’s Time to Move to New Hampshire (February 2, 2016) – Quotes Gericke on reaching the 20,000-signer goal and the project’s success.
Link: https://reason.com/2016/02/02/free-state-project-participants-its-time
New Hampshire’s Free State Project Eschews Presidential Politics (February 9, 2016) – Mentions Gericke as FSP president discussing signer commitments.
Link: https://reason.com/2016/02/09/new-hampshire-free-staters-presidential
If and When New Hampshire Becomes Its Own Nation, Blame Carla Gericke (May 25, 2016) – Covers her role in a secession-related group post-FSP presidency.
Link: https://reason.com/2016/05/25/if-and-when-new-hampshire-becomes-its-ow
Free State Project Crosses 90 Percent Threshold, Gets Ready to Activate (January 3, 2016) – Quotes Gericke on nearing the recruitment goal.
Link: https://reason.com/2016/01/03/free-state-project-crosses-90-percent-th
find the part about the Free State Project in the Ron Paul book
The part about the Free State Project (FSP) in Brian Doherty’s book Ron Paul’s rEVOLution: The Man and the Movement He Inspired (2012) appears in the context of Ron Paul’s 2012 campaign strength in New Hampshire, where the FSP has been a key organizing force for libertarians.Doherty highlights how the FSP—launched in 2003 to encourage 20,000 liberty-minded people to relocate to New Hampshire and influence its politics—served as Paul’s “greatest weapon” in the Granite State. He notes that by around 2012, the project had brought in about 1,000 new residents (often called “Free Staters” or “porcupines”) and achieved tangible influence, including electing 12 Free Staters to New Hampshire’s 400-member legislature. A direct reference from Doherty’s reporting (tied to the book’s themes and his contemporaneous Reason coverage) describes the FSP’s role in grassroots activism for Paul:
“Paul’s greatest weapon in the Granite State is the Free State Project, which has been promoting the migration of libertarian-minded Americans to New Hampshire since 2003. With about 1,000 new residents to its credit, the group wields measurable political influence, having placed 12 Free Staters in New Hampshire’s 400-member legislature.”
This ties into broader discussions of Paul’s overlap with libertarian migration efforts and activist networks in NH, where many Paul supporters (including anarchists and “free-staters”) were active on the ground—knocking doors, organizing events, and boosting his second-place finish in the 2012 NH primary.The book doesn’t devote a full chapter to the FSP but uses it as an example of how Paul’s message resonated with pre-existing libertarian experiments in place-building and activism. Ron Paul himself endorsed the FSP multiple times (including speaking at events), which helped cross-pollinate supporters during his campaigns.
Catch more on my First Amendment lawsuit on The Independents HERE (with William Kostric) and HERE (with my attorney Seth Hipple), where Seth mention’s Bill Alleman’s case and apology below.
