Interesting. DW and I were in northern Minnesota last summer. It is remote and sparsely populated. I believe home and land prices are quite reasonable. DW's friend lives 20 miles from the nearest post office. There is no home mail delivery. If you want a low cost life style and live off the land, that is the place. Cold as hell in the winter. Mosquitoes and black flies like crazy in the summer. It takes a hardy individual to want to live there. I went to school in the upper peninsula of Michigan so I am quite familiar with the weather. Building a commune there could work. I suspect the locals will not be too happy.
Oh, I don't know. A long history as a criminal enterprise comes to mind. When a group with allegations and convictions for child rape and other abuse buys secluded land near you, suspicion and alarm seems like a pretty reasonable reaction.
And who (besides you) said he doesn't have a right to buy land?