4180 Results

League of the South (LoS)

Backgrounder

Key Points: The League of the South (LoS) is a white supremacist group that advocates for southern secession and an independent, white-dominated South. The LoS espouses racist and anti-Semitic rhetoric. It organizes white supremacist rallies, conferences and flash demonstrations, and attends events organized by other white supremacist groups. Founded in 1994, the LoS has been stagnant until recently, but is raising its public profile, holding multiple public events and quickly…

April 19, 2018

National Socialist Movement

Backgrounder

National Socialist Movement logo Key Points: The National Socialist Movement is a neo-Nazi group. Burt Colucci has led the NSM since March 2019. In decline for several years, the NSM’s core membership has fallen to one or two dozen. The NSM is known for holding public rallies and protests dressed in Nazi-styled uniforms. Overview: The National Socialist Movement (NSM) is a neo-Nazi group with membership scattered around the country. Once the largest and most…

April 19, 2018

Israel's Conflicts in Gaza - 2008/2012/2014

Backgrounder

Since Hamas forcibly took over Gaza from the Palestinian Authority in 2007, the terrorist organization has repeatedly attacked Israeli cities and towns in the Southern and Central parts of the country using an arsenal of missiles, rockets and other projectiles. In 2008, 2012 and 2014 Israel launched military operations in Gaza after it determined it had no choice but to respond to intensifying rocket and missiles attacks launched by Hamas and other terrorist organizations in Gaza. During…

April 02, 2018

Israel-Lebanon Wars

Backgrounder

There have been two major wars between Israel and Lebanon in 1982 and 2006. In 1982, Israel’s longest and most controversial wars began when Israel sought to wipe out PLO positions in Southern Lebanon. The First Lebanon War did not officially come to an end until May 2000 when Israel unilateral withdrew its forces from Southern Lebanon. The so-called Second Lebanon War between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah was sparked by Hezbollah’s July 12, 2006, cross border…

April 02, 2018

Kelly Yang

Kelly Yang is the New York Times best-selling author of Front Desk, winner of the 2019 Asian Pacific American Award for Children’s Literature, Three Keys, the sequel to Front Desk, Room To Dream, and the young adult novel Parachutes. Front Desk also won the Parents’ Choice Gold Medal, was the 2019 Global Read Aloud, and has earned numerous other honors including being named a best book of the year by Amazon, The Washington Post, Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, Publishers…

Author

Jerry Craft

Jerry Craft, author and illustrator, is the New York Times best-selling and Newbery Medal winning author of the graphic novel, New Kid. His second graphic novel, Class Act, is a sequel to New Kid. Craft is also the creator of Mama’s Boyz, an award-winning comic strip which won the African American Literary Award five times. He is a co-founder and co-producer of the Schomburg Center’s Annual Black Comic Book Festival. Jerry received his BFA from the School of Visual Arts.

Author

Meg Medina

Meg Medina is a Newbery award-winning and New York Times best-selling author who writes picture books, as well as middle grade and young adult fiction. Her works have been called “heartbreaking,” “lyrical” and “must haves for every collection.” She was the recipient of the 2019 John Newbery Medal for her middle grade novel, Merci Suárez Changes Gears. Some of her other books, which have won a variety of awards and honors, include Mango, Abuela and Me,…

Author

Kwame Alexander

Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, and the New York Times best-selling author of 34 books, including Caldecott-Medal and Newbery-Honor winning picture book The Undefeated, illustrated by Kadir Nelson, How to Read a Book, illustrated by Melissa Sweet, Swing, Rebound, which was shortlisted for prestigious Carnegie Medal, and his Newbery medal-winning middle grade novel, The Crossover. Some of his other works include Booked, a National Book Award Nominee, The Playbook: 52 Rules to Help You Aim,…

Author

Republic of Florida (ROF)

Backgrounder

Key points ROF is a Florida-based white supremacist group whose goal is to form a white ethno-state in Florida. ROF borrows paramilitary concepts from the militia movement and engages in paramilitary training. ROF attends events organized by other white supremacist groups and spreads its hateful and anti-Semitic propaganda online. The Republic of Florida Militia (ROF) is a small, Tallahassee-based, white supremacist group that borrows paramilitary concepts from the anti…

February 15, 2018

Traditionalist Worker Party (TWP)

Backgrounder

Update: TWP remained active through early 2018, when the group dissolved into chaos after co-founder and leader Matthew Heimbach was arrested for domestic battery for allegedly assaulting his wife and father-in-law. In February 2021, Heimbach supposedly renounced his white supremacist beliefs, but reversed course in July 2021, returning as a “white socialist” and host of “National Bolshevik Public Radio.” Key Points: • TWP is a neo-Nazi…

February 02, 2018

Rise Above Movement (R.A.M.)

Backgrounder

UPDATE: Following the arrest of several key members in 2018, the Rise Above Movement (R.A.M.) remains largely defunct today. The group’s former co-founder, Robert Rundo, has also dealt with legal issues over the years: After being extradited from Romania, Rundo was charged in August 2023 in connection with a series of physical altercations at political rallies throughout California in 2018. Rundo pled guilty in September 2024 to conspiracy to riot and was subsequently released in…

January 22, 2018

Patriot Front

Backgrounder

Key Points Members of the white supremacist group Patriot Front believe that their ancestors conquered America and bestowed it to them, and no one else. Patriot Front defines itself as an organization of “American nationalists,” justifying its hate and intolerance under the guise of preserving America’s identity as a “Pan-European nation.” Since 2019, Patriot Front has been responsible for the vast majority of white supremacist propaganda distributed in the United…

December 15, 2017

Milo Yiannopoulos: Five Things to Know

Backgrounder

1. Milo Yiannopoulos is a controversial right-wing media personality and provocateur. While he refers to himself as "the world's most fabulous supervillain,” and claims to be a conservative and a fearless bulwark against the encroaching forces of “political correctness,” Yiannopoulos is in actuality a provocateur who specializes in attacking groups he dislikes. He particularly despises the left and promotes what he calls “a new cultural libertarianism.” …

April 11, 2018

Tips & Tricks for Writing an Op-Ed While on Campus

Backgrounder

Op-ed: A section of a publication that publishes personal opinions Usually between 750 and 900 words in length Personal and conversational style — not too verbose What makes for a good op-ed? Writing about an issue that affects your daily life, and/or community A sharp opinion on a current issue that is controversial A call to action How to publish an op-ed Figure out who your audience is — who are you trying to reach? (ex. the…

August 23, 2017

Jerusalem and the Temple Mount Status Quo

Backgrounder

What You Need to Know Background: The Status Quo Arrangement The Temple Mount / Noble Sanctuary in Jerusalem is the holiest site in Judaism and third holiest in Islam. Two Jewish Temples have stood on the site, which is believed to be the place where Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac. It has served as a major symbol of Jewish identity towards where Jews have prayed throughout the millennia. Muslims, who refer to Jerusalem as “al-Quds” (the holy place), believe the holy…

July 28, 2017

Vanguard America

Backgrounder

Update: Vanguard America (VA) splintered shortly after UTR and has shown very few signs of life in the years that followed. Meanwhile, Patriot Front, the VA splinter group formed by UTR participant Thomas Rousseau, is one of the country’s most visible white supremacist groups. In an effort to move away from VA’s neo-Nazi roots, Patriot Front avoids traditional white supremacist language and symbols, presenting their blend of white supremacist and neo-fascist ideology as &ldquo…

July 18, 2017

From Alt Right to Alt Lite: Naming the Hate

Backgrounder

Richard Spencer at the Free Speech Rally in Washington, DC

In just one year, the alt right has gone from relative obscurity to being one of the United States' most visible extremist movements. This stratospheric rise is due in large part to the rhetoric employed during the 2016 presidential campaign, which granted implicit approval to the once-taboo hallmarks of the far right – overt racism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, misogyny, and anti-Muslim bigotry. The alt right capitalized on the moment by amplifying those messages while…

July 12, 2017

Dr. Sharon S. Nazarian

Dr. Sharon S. Nazarian is an Iranian born American who serves as the President of the Younes & Soraya Nazarian Family Foundation, a private family foundation based in Los Angeles, with a regional office in Israel named the Ima Foundation. She is also the Founder and Chair of the Advisory Board of the Younes & Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). In 2017, The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) appointed Sharon as Senior Vice President…

Vice Chair

Price Tag and Extremist Attacks in Israel

Backgrounder

Since 2008, there have been repeated attacks carried out by extremist Israeli Jews against Israeli Arabs and Palestinians, often in reprisal for Israeli government action against illegal settlement activity. These attacks, which are frequently labeled “price tag” incidents, target mosques, churches, Arab and Jewish homes and property, Israeli military bases and vehicles, as well as other Israeli Jews. They involve the desecration of property with anti-Arab and anti-government…

June 20, 2017

Gaza Strip

Backgrounder

Gaza is a 25-mile long, 7-mile wide densely populated coastal strip between Israel and Egypt which is today home to approximately 1.9 million Palestinians. In ancient times, Gaza was considered a strategic area due to its central location for trade between Asia, European and North Africa. Gaza has significance for Jews, though far less than the West Bank, and is mentioned in in the books of Joshua and Judges. From biblical times until 1948, the West Bank and Gaza Strip were occupied by the…

May 15, 2017