Friend,

Our hearts are with the families of those killed and targeted in this past weekend’s racially motivated massacre of the Black community of Buffalo, New York.

As has now been widely reported, the attack in Buffalo was the direct result of white nationalist propaganda, specifically the “great replacement” conspiracy theory, being promoted and mainstreamed by major public figures. This false notion – that white people are being systematically replaced by Black people, immigrants and Jews – has deep historical roots but has gained traction in recent years. And with that traction has come violence, both physical and political.

The SPLC’s Intelligence Project, which tracks, monitors and analyzes hate and extremism in our nation, has produced two new reports since the Buffalo shooting:

• In “Disinfo Covers for White Supremacy After Buffalo Attack,” we detail how in the immediate aftermath of the killings, online influencers hustled to spread false narratives that ignored the overwhelming evidence showing this attack was an act of white supremacist violence. These disinformation campaigns are just the latest example of a long-term strategy by the far right to deny or distort an alarming truth: White supremacist violence has emerged as the predominant domestic terrorism threat in our nation.
  
  
• In “The Racist 'Great Replacement' Conspiracy Theory Explained,” we trace the evolution of the deadly ideology at the heart of the massacre in Buffalo: a racist conspiracy narrative that falsely asserts there is an active, ongoing and covert effort to replace white populations in current white-majority countries. No longer on the fringe, this narrative now has currency among some of the most powerful and influential actors in right-wing media and politics.

We hope these two articles will help illustrate the true extent of the problem at hand, especially to our leaders and powerful public figures. Politicians and pundits must face serious consequences for their irresponsible, inflammatory and incendiary rhetoric. Governments must hold tech companies and digital media platforms accountable for making meaningful changes to address online radicalization. We owe it to the communities – like the Black community of Buffalo – who often bear the burden of these violent attacks.

In solidarity,

The Southern Poverty Law Center

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