Dear Friend,

One of the powerful lessons we must take away from this week's
coup attempt by President Trump and his supporters is that 2021 is not
a time for half measures in the fight against hate and extremism.

Yes, Wednesday began with hope. The results of the Senate runoff
elections in Georgia offered proof that the South can help lead the
way into a new political era. But the events at the U.S. Capitol
reminded us of the racist violence that continues to threaten our
country. This violence is bolstered by the infrastructure of white
nationalist movements that the Southern Poverty Law Center has been
tracking and fighting for decades.

The images from Wednesday's coup attempt will be seared into
people's memories. Extremists stormed Capitol Hill and incited a
riot that resulted in five deaths, including the killing of a Capitol
Police officer who physically engaged with rioters as he attempted to
secure the building. The mob of Trump's supporters endangered
the lives of thousands as they flew the Confederate flag - a
symbol of racism and violence that did not even enter the halls of
Congress during the Civil War. This attempted coup on our democracy
comes as no surprise since white nationalist groups have been
energized by Trump since he was a presidential candidate.

The weeks of planning that went into this attack underscore why
organizations like the SPLC, which celebrates its 50th anniversary
this year, remain critical in the fight against hate and extremism. We
will remain vigilant in 2021, ensuring that the necessary actions are
taken to put an end to this siege that Trump has both unveiled and
advanced.

There is simply no way to overstate the gravity of what took
place in the Capitol this week. While these extremists failed in their
mission to prevent the counting of Electoral College votes, this
attack can - and will - become a recruitment tool for
white nationalist movements across the country and around the world.

This nationally coordinated coup attempt revealed highly organized
networks of white supremacist organizations, extending beyond the
Capitol and into statehouses around the U.S. that have been the target
of protests. Unsurprisingly, statehouses in the South - a region
with high populations of communities of color - have been
particularly targeted.

These hate groups, emboldened by the president, pose a direct threat
to the lives of millions of Black and Indigenous people, as well as
other people of color around the country. They will not go away after
President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration. 

In the face of hate, we must transform

We also must realize that the violence in Washington was predictable
and preventable. In 2019, the number of white nationalist groups
identified by the SPLC rose for the second straight year, a 55%
increase since 2017. Given the severity of the issue, in 2020, the
SPLC published recommendations for confronting hate and threats to our
democracy. There are a number of steps the federal government can take
to combat white nationalism and its threat to our political systems,
transform institutions that reflect dangerous ideologies and rebuild
trust in our democracy.

Read more here.

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Sincerely,

Margaret Huang
SPLC President & CEO

 

 


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