More Than 50 Hate Groups Currently Being Tracked in Texas
The Southern Poverty Law Center is currently tracking 917 hate groups across the country, with 55 of them being in Texas, and even one in Wichita Falls.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center website,
The Southern Poverty Law Center is dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of our society. Using litigation, education, and other forms of advocacy, the SPLC works toward the day when the ideals of equal justice and equal opportunity will be a reality.
Using group publications, reports from citizens and law enforcement agencies, and news reports, the SPLC identifies hate groups as having "beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics," and engage in hate activities such as criminal acts, marches, rallies, speeches, meetings, leafleting or publishing.
The SPLC also reports a major rise in hate groups over the past few years, including a 197% increase in anti-Muslim groups since 2015, 130 active KKK groups in 2016, 663 anti-government groups in 2016, and 193 Black Separatists groups in 2015.
The 55 tracked hate groups in Texas include Black Separatist, Neo-Nazi, Anti-Muslim, Neo-Confederate, Holocaust Denial, White Nationalists, KKK, Anti-LGBT, Christian Identity, Skinhead, Hate Music, and General Hate groups:
One of these tracked groups includes one in Wichita Falls, a chapter Neo-Nazi group 'The Daily Stormer' whose website was recently banned by GoDaddy and Google after its publisher made derogatory statements against Heather Heyer, who was killed during the protests in Charlottesville, VA this weekend.