ADL: Rise in White Supremacist hate incidents on U.S. college campuses

Since September 1, 2016, there have been 478 such incidents on 287 college campuses across 47 states and Washington DC.

By JEREMY SHARON
Updated: JULY 7, 2018 02:34
‘Banners of Hate’ placed by US white supremacist groups (photo credit: ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE)
‘Banners of Hate’ placed by US white supremacist groups
(photo credit: ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE)
Incidents of racism, antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred by white supremacist groups on US college campuses increased by a dramatic 77% in 2017/2018, compared to the previous academic year, the Anti-Defamation League has reported.
From September 1, 2017 to May 31, 2018, ADL’s Center on Extremism documented 292 cases of white supremacist propaganda on college campuses, including fliers, stickers, banners, and posters, compared to 165 incidents during the 2016-17 academic year.
In total, since September 1, 2016, there have been 478 such incidents on 287 college campuses across 47 states and Washington, DC.
Distribution of propaganda continues to be a favorite tactic among groups within the alt-right segment of the white supremacist movement, ADL said, pointing specifically to the Identity Evropa organization which was responsible for nearly half (230 of 478) of the incidents while Patriot Front, formed only nine months ago, was responsible for 70 incidents.
Andrew Anglin’s Daily Stormer Book Clubs have been responsible for 16 incidents of hate propaganda on campuses, while tiny, localized alt-right groups, such as the Louisiana-based Identity Acadia, West Virginia-based Patriots of Appalachia, New York’s White Rochester, Idaho’s Boise State Nationalists and New Jersey’s European Heritage Association have also targeted campuses.
Several National Socialist groups have targeted college campuses as well, including the now-defunct Traditionalist Worker Party, Vanguard America, and the National Socialist Legion, a new group founded by former members of VA.
The propaganda, which ranges from veiled white supremacist language to explicitly racist images and words, often includes a recruitment element, and frequently attacks minority groups including Jews, blacks, Muslims, non-white immigrants and the LGBT community.
“College campuses and their communities should be places for learning, growing and the future, not close-minded racism and hate-filled rhetoric from the past,” said ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.
“We’re concerned to see that white supremacists are accelerating their efforts to target schools with propaganda in hopes of recruiting young people to support their bigoted world view.”