The number of white nationalist, neo-Nazi and anti-government extremist groups across the US fell for a third straight year in 2021, even as some groups were reinvigorated by the January 6 attack on the US Capitol last year and by the continuing culture wars over the pandemic and school curriculums.
In its annual report, the Southern Poverty Law Centre said it identified 733 active hate groups in 2021, down from the 838 counted in 2020 and the 940 counted in 2019. Hate groups had risen to a historic high of 1,021 in 2018, said the law centre, which tracks racism, xenophobia and far-right militias.
The number of anti-government groups fell to 488 in 2021, down from 566 in 2020 and 576 in 2019. Such groups peaked at 1,360 in 2012, the year former president Barack Obama was elected to a second term.
“Rather than demonstrating a decline in the power of the far right, the dropping numbers of organised hate and anti-government groups suggest that the extremist ideas that mobilise them now operate more openly in the political mainstream,” said the Wednesday report, shared with The Associated Press before its release.
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Donald Trump, the president at the time, speaks during a rally protesting the electoral college certification of Joe Biden as president in Washington on January 6, 2021. AP -
A mob loyal to Mr Trump tries to break through a police barrier at the Capitol. AP -
The mob waves pro-Trump flags in front of the Capitol building. AP -
Riot police push back a crowd of rioters at the Capitol building. AFP -
Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as people try to storm the US Capitol building. AFP -
Insurrectionists loyal to Mr Trump try to open a door of the US Capitol building as they riot in Washington. AP -
US Capitol Police push back rioters trying to enter the US Capitol. AP -
Police and rioters confront each other in the Rotunda of the Capitol. US Capitol Police via AP -
Smoke fills the hallway outside the Senate chamber of the Capitol. AP -
Insurrectionists loyal to Mr Trump breach the Capitol in Washington. AP -
Trump supporters, including Doug Jensen, centre, confront US Capitol Police in the hallway outside the Senate chamber at the Capitol. AP -
Newly installed razor wire tops the fence surrounding the US Capitol following the January 6 riot. Reuters -
Security agents and members of Congress barricade the door to the House chamber as the violent mob breaches the Capitol. AP -
Rioter Jacob Chansley holds a sign referencing QAnon as supporters of Mr Trump gather to protest the early results of the 2020 presidential election. Reuters
The Montgomery, Alabama-based law centre cited several examples including Fox News’ Tucker Carlson, whose discussion of a conspiracy likening immigration from non-white countries to a “great replacement” of white Americans last September was welcomed by white nationalists linked to the “Stop the Steal” rally that preceded the January 6 Capitol attack.
The law centre counted 98 active white nationalist groups in 2021.
The report's release comes one day after a federal jury convicted a Texas man of storming the Capitol with a holstered handgun in an attempt to obstruct Congress's joint session to certify the Electoral College vote that cemented President Joe Biden's victory.
Separately on Tuesday, Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, a long-time leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group, was arrested on a conspiracy charge related to his alleged role in co-ordinating the Capitol attack.
Active Proud Boys chapters jumped to 72 in 2021, up from 43 in 2020. The rise in chapters was noteworthy considering that more than three dozen members of the group had been charged in relation to their role in the Capitol attack, the law centre said.
“After January 6, in the immediate aftermath, these groups did lay low,” Susan Corke, SPLC’s Intelligence Project director, told AP.
“I had a moment of hope that was quickly extinguished when I didn’t see more mainstream Republicans condemn these groups.”
Beyond the Capitol attack, the law centre's report details how several factions of the far-right movement have been reinvigorated by political wedge issues.
Issues fuelling active hate and anti-government extremist groups include the banning of critical race theory and books that discuss LGBTQ identity in public schools, coronavirus vaccines and mask mandates, and immigration.
“This movement is working feverishly to undermine democracy, but what’s more startling is that they are also coalescing around a willingness to engage in violence,” Ms Corke said.
Slowing any push towards authoritarianism, according to the SPLC, requires elected leaders to universally embrace democratic institutions, while also protecting the right to vote for communities of colour and other marginalised people.
The law centre has also called for better funding of prevention programmes that interrupt the radicalisation of young people by hate and anti-government groups.
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Protesters march on the Brooklyn Bridge during a demonstration on the first anniversary of the death of George Floyd, in New York. Reuters -
Some streets in Manhattan were closed due to the demonstrations on Tuesday evening. AP -
The musician Common performs with the Sounds of Blackness at George Floyd Square in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Floyd's death in May 2020 led to worldwide protests and calls for police reform or abolition. Getty -
Robin Puttin leads a prayer while kneeling and raising her hand on the first anniversary of George Floyd's death, at George Floyd Square, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Reuters -
Electric and LED candles bearing the names of people killed by police illuminate the fist sculpture as people gather at the George Floyd Square. Reuters -
A man is reflected in a sign during a vigil held to remember George Floyd in Lynn, Massachusetts. Reuters -
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi meets the family of the late George Floyd at the US Capitol in Washington. The family met President Joe Biden and various US politicians, and participated in a memorial at Black Lives Matter Plaza. EPA -
People gather at the sight where George Floyd was killed one year ago, at 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis - an area now called George Floyd Square. EPA -
A man stands next to a mural of George Floyd in Houston, Texas. Reuters -
A family member holds onto Gianna Floyd, daughter of George Floyd, at the White House following their meeting with President Biden in Washington. Reuters -
Gianna Floyd and other family members and lawyers, raise fists after meeting President Biden in Washington. Reuters -
Community organiser Tommy McBrayer leads a chant in solidarity with George Floyd, at George Floyd Square, in Minneapolis. Reuters -
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Reverend Al Sharpton kneel with community leaders for nine minutes and 29 seconds, symbolising Floyd's ordeal at the hands of police. Reuters -
Philonise Floyd, brother to George Floyd, puts his arm around Speaker Nancy Pelosi, near Rep. Karen Bass, as he and other members of the Floyd family meet politicians at the US Capitol. Reuters -
A man places a candle at a memorial in honour of George Floyd, at George Floyd Square in Minneapolis. Reuters -
Black Lives Matter protesters hold placards and shout slogans in Brooklyn, New York. AFP -
People gather at George Floyd Square in Minneapolis. AP -
A man sits in front of the Say Their Names cemetery, close to George Floyd Square, in Minneapolis. AP -
Two women sit on a roof as they listen to a memorial music performance, at George Floyd Square, in Minneapolis. EPA
