April 19 marks the 15th anniversary of the bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City - the worst single act of domestic terrorism in our nation's history and a grim reminder of the fruits of right-wing radicalism. The anniversary comes as the antigovernment militia movement is experiencing a resurgence.
Since the SPLC warned the U.S. military about extremist activity among active-duty personnel in 2006, the Pentagon brass has steadfastly denied that a problem existed. Recently, however, the military quietly strengthened its rules to prohibit a range of supremacist activities.
Members of the Hutaree militia in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana were indicted in what authorities described as a plot to murder a police officer, then use explosives to attack other officers at the funeral.
The SPLC’s Mark Potok appeared on “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” to discuss the recent wave of vandalism and threats aimed at members of Congress who voted for health care reform legislation.
Mark Potok discusses the recent explosion of right-wing extremism in an interview with Terry Gross on NPR’s Fresh Air this week, citing the SPLC’s new report.
Will people of good faith – of all races and faiths – stand with Rep. Lewis and reject the politics of hate? Or will the angry mob, fueled by racism and demagoguery, continue to swell?
The SPLC Mississippi Youth Justice Project and other civil rights and mental health advocates sued the state of Mississippi today in an effort to improve the state's mental health system for children, which fails to invest in community-based services and instead pumps the bulk of its resources into ineffective, expensive institutions.
On the eve of the 45th anniversary of the “Bloody Sunday” march that galvanized support for the Voting Rights Act, a congressional delegation led by U.S. Rep. John Lewis laid a wreath at the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery to honor the men and women who sacrificed their lives during the civil rights movement.
Antigovernment "Patriot" groups - militias and other extremist organizations that see the federal government as their enemy - came roaring back to life over the past year after more than a decade out of the limelight.
Since the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, the Southern Poverty Law Center has documented 75 domestic terrorist plots, most of which involved individuals with extreme antigovernment views. One of the plots, if carried out, would have resulted in the deaths of some 30,000 people.
