Image Credit: Facts on NewEarth Nation Surgoinsville TN / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative Staff –
Ahead of a planned “solstice event” this past weekend, to consecrate 60 acres of land in Hawkins County with bonfire ceremonial rituals, leaders of NewEarth “Tanasi” met with members of the community for almost three hours where they presented their vision for their project and answered questions.
Organized by United Citizens of Hawkins County, NewEarth representatives “Sacha Stone”, Marcia Willardson, and Ethan Lucas addressed a full house at the Hawkins County Cattlemen’s Association.
Willardson, Trustee of NewEarth Nation Coalition, teaches people how to be “Sovereign Citizens” and according to the IRS, “has a history of involvement with sham trusts used by taxpayers to shift income and avoid tax.”
In February, NewEarth, bought 60 acres of unrestricted land in Hawkins County with plans to build a sovereign micronation made up of 2,000 to 3,000 “divine sovereign citizens.” Critics are concerned that the county was chosen specifically because there is little oversight at the local level and the land is subject to state regulations only.
At the June 17th meeting, Lucas, the project’s director and future leader, suggested that the members of the community would be far fewer in number, less than twenty.
Rather than the “eco-industrial park” that was discussed in the past, greenhouses, a seed bank, and growing organic produce are now possibilities.
Lucas came across as uninterested in building bridges with everyone in attendance, accusing those opposed to NewEarth of being affiliated with George Soros and having Russian connections.
All three NewEarth leaders have made reference at different times to Christianity.
In a rural county, where residents are overwhelmingly Christian, mentioning the Bible, Jesus, and God is no doubt meant to reassure their new neighbors that they share a commonality in their religious beliefs.
The gospel being espoused by NewEarth, however, is not what Hawkins County locals are familiar with.
During the meeting, Stone claimed that NewEarth is not even a religion but according to filings on the Montana Secretary of State website, Stone is the group’s official religious leader. NewEarth Nation Coalition registered as a Domestic Religious Corporation Sole at the beginning of the year enabling them to collect “donations” for memberships of $10,000 each which have come mostly from women.
In an interview with News 5, Lucas, who graduated from Ohio State University with a BS in Psychology, called himself a “minister” although that label is missing from his LinkedIn profile where he is listed as an author, musician, and Naturopath.
Speaking of the NewEarth Tanasi project on X, Lucas wrote that the proposed community being built is “the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth” and in another post alluded to Christians being religious addicts who will have to keep going through the process of being reincarnated before they can attain heaven.
Lucas also runs a website through which 30-day membership packages may be ordered enabling supplements and skin care products to be shipped to members for “free.” No less than 17 additional memberships ranging from “Iron” to “Crown Diamond” give “members” access to a number of consultations a month, presumably with Lucas who offers coaching services here.
The meeting took a belligerent turn when Matthew Williams, a Hawkins County resident, who runs the Facts of NewEarth Nation Surgoinsville TN Facebook page was given time to speak.
Stone and Lucas both made statements at different points that legal action could be taken against anyone they felt had slandered them. Copies of a cease and desist letter that Lucas said he had sent to Williams was passed out that accused the local man of defamation and harassment, and more.
