United Nations is a screamo supergroup whose roots go back to at least 2005. They consider "screamo power-violence" as their main influence.

United Nations was started by Geoff Rickly, the vocalist/lyricist of the band Thursday. Other artists initially involved in the project possibly included Daryl Palumbo, vocalist of Glassjaw and Head Automatica, and Ben Koller, drummer for Converge. However, all members except for Rickly were under contracts with other record labels and were not legally permitted to work in projects released by another label, making it difficult for the official lineup to be well known. Since Rickly is the only member whose primary band is currently not under contract, his name is the only one that can legally appear in press materials. Press photos of the band released in 2008 depict four people wearing Ronald Reagan masks.

The idea of the side project can be traced back to the early 2000s, but it was not until 2008 that United Nations took shape. In 2008, the band recorded enough material for two studio albums, two extended plays, and one parody album that would be released at some point. The band was uncertain if these would be the only releases by the band, or if the band will regroup to record more songs.