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| Symbols of hate were prominent at the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. |
OPINION
Our country is in a rough patch right now as it struggles to redefine itself and what it means to be an "American." Unfortunately, it might mean it is going to get worse before it gets any better, according to several reports.
The "worse" part lies at the feet of whites. as people of color tippy-toe around the fears of whites who see their privileges and status being whittled away.
Several years ago, when asked about the future of race relations in this country -- my country -- my response was: Don't ask me. Ask white people to give an honest answer.
White people don't like to talk about race. It's a topic of great discomfort for them because -- try as they might -- they have no idea what it is like to be a person of color in a culture that has been painted, written, taught and lauded from a white perspective.
Intellectually, they can perhaps understand the trials and tribulations of a POC, but they can't feel the pain and angst of always being slightly out of place, of being that square peg trying to fit in that round hole designed and created by white people.
More recently, with the massive demographic changes that is occurring in the next few decades, a defense mechanism kicks in for white people, often taking the form of white supremacy.
There is a direct link between white supremacists and the insurrectionists who forced their way into the Capitol on Jan. 6. It was not coincidence that the Confederate flag and references to Nazism were on display during that failed coup attempt.
As white supremacists became bolder, violence towards Asian Americans is rising. Connecting the dots is not difficult.
The question law enforcement agencies should be asking themselves is not what AAPI could be doing to protect themselves, but how do you shove white extremism back into a dark chest, lock it and then throw away the key.
The administration of President Joe Biden has made fighting domestic terrorism a top priority for the Department of Justice.
Make no mistake, the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6 was led by white supremacists who easily absorbed the anti-government rhetoric into their value system. Stopping Biden from taking office was stopping in line with stopping the loss of white power, privilege and status.
The extremist armed militias, which the government allows to exist, the racist sympathizers who we have allowed to seep into our armed forces and law enforcement are a clear and present danger to our country.
An internal FBI report that was written before Jan. 6 and was published days after the attack at the Capitol predicted the violence to come, saying the events in 2020 were “likely to embolden US domestic violent extremists in 2021.”
The right-wing extremists view tje Capitol coup attempt as a success -- white supremacists are stepping up their propaganda campaign attempting to lure in more recruits among the disaffected whites who see their privileged position in this society in danger.
Between public displays of propaganda like banners and graffiti, in-person events and incidents of anti-Semitic language, the growth of white supremacy hit an all-time high in 2020, according to a new report from the Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism.
The group, which has worked to record incidents of racist, anti-Semitic and anti-LGBTQ propaganda for years, has reported 5,125 instances of white supremacy propaganda in 2020 — nearly twice the number recorded in 2019.
“Hate propaganda is a tried-and-true tactic for white supremacists, and this on the ground activity is now higher than we’ve ever previously recorded,” said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO. “White supremacists appear to be more emboldened than ever, and the election year, the pandemic and other factors may have provided these extremists with additional encouragement.”“As if a pandemic, social justice protests and a polarizing election were not enough, one of the other things we’ve been dealing with is a significant increase in efforts by white supremacists to spread their messages around the country,” Segal said in an interview with Carless. “What the numbers suggest is a doubling down on what they view as a successful tactic.”
“Three organizations were responsible for more than 90% of the propaganda incidents,” Carless reported. “The most active group by far was Texas-based Patriot Front, headed by white supremacist Thomas Rousseau, which was behind 4,105 of the incidents. Patriot Front masks its racism in vague phrases like ‘America First’ and ‘Reclaim America,’ but the group’s official manifesto makes its white supremacist goals clear.”
The racist signs and symbols and graffiti on temples and Asian-owned businesses and houses of worship can impact both POC and whites.
Sarah Vinson, a forensic psychiatrist and associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Morehouse School of Medicine told USA Today: “When you see these signs up, it can make you less trusting of the white people you’re around, because you don’t know who it is that put it up, and you don’t know who is tolerating that,” she said. “White people who harbor those beliefs may also find those signs validating and reassuring.”
“Propaganda gives white supremacists the ability to maximize media and online attention while limiting their risk of exposure or arrest,” said Oren Segal, vice president of ADL’s Center on Extremism. “The literature helps to bolster recruitment efforts and spreads fear by targeting specific groups, including the Jewish, Black, Muslim and LGBTQ+ communities, as well as non-white immigrants.”
The "Unclassified Summary of Assessment on Domestic Violent Extremism" a joint report by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warned of the growing threat in the 2021.
The report assesses that "domestic violent extremists (DVEs) who are motivated by a range of ideologies and galvanized by recent political and societal events in the United States pose an elevated threat to the Homeland in 2021. Enduring DVE motivations pertaining to biases against minority populations and perceived government overreach will almost certainly continue to drive DVE radicalization and mobilization to violence. Newer sociopolitical developments—such as narratives of fraud in the recent general election, the emboldening impact of the violent breach of the US Capitol, conditions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and conspiracy theories promoting violence—will almost certainly spur some DVEs to try to engage in violence this year."
The report came out the day after a deadly shooting spree at three spas in the Atlanta area, killing eight people, including six women of Asian descent. Although the shooting might not meet the legal requirements to be classified as a hate crime, it's impact and the way it is perceived by AAPI communities, especially the Sikh community, is as it was an attack motivated by hate. Crimes against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have been on the rise at an alarming rate.The bill co-authored by Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, and Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., would instruct the Justice Department to speed up the review of Covid-19 related hate crimes. It also aims to give local law enforcement more support to respond to violence against Asian Americans and curb the use of discriminatory language on the rise since the pandemic started last year and assign a point person in the Justice Dept. to keep tabs on hate incidents.
“We will vote on the bill on Wednesday. And I dare any senator to vote against this legislation,” the Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said during a rally in New York. “If they do, shame on them, shame on them. Because this is what America is all about. We will pass this legislation, and the bill will address the rise in hate crime.”
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