Friend,
SPLC Intelligence Project Director Susan Corke testified yesterday
before the House Committee on Homeland Security's
"Countering Violent Extremism, Terrorism, and Antisemitic
Threats in New Jersey" field hearing. You can read Corke's full
remarks here - or see below for an excerpt.
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I am Susan Corke, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center's
Intelligence Project. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today
for this important hearing, which comes at a precarious time for
American democracy.
There has been a disturbing rise in antisemitic incidents in New
Jersey and elsewhere in the country. This uptick in hate-fueled
activity is part of a larger hard-right movement that stokes the fires
of antisemitism, promoting racism, fear and extremist violence.
Antisemitism, in addition to being a toxic form of prejudice, is also
an animating feature of white nationalist ideology and often a leading
indicator that a society is more broadly infected and divided by
racism.
Established in 1971, the SPLC has been tireless in finding and rooting
out hate and extremist groups to create a more fair, inclusive and
unified nation. The Intelligence Project, which I direct at SPLC, has
deep expertise in monitoring and exposing - as well as
countering - the activities of hundreds of domestic hate groups
and other extremists across the country - including the Ku Klux
Klan, the neo-Nazi movement, antigovernment militias and others.
White supremacy has gone mainstream, which increasingly threatens
people of color, our communities, our education system and democracy
itself. The "great replacement" narrative has become
mainstream on the political right over the past few years. This racist
conspiracy theory, which says there is a systematic, global effort to
replace white, European people with nonwhite, foreign populations,
provides the central framework, rooted in antisemitic ideology, for
the white supremacist movement. The theory has normalized and fostered
greater acceptance of political violence in America and has motivated
many deadly, terror attacks.
Having lived in New Jersey with my African American, Muslim spouse and
daughter, I can attest that New Jersey exhibits some of the most
incredible benefits of living in a multiracial democracy. However, it
was antisemitism which fueled a December 2019 deadly shooting at a
Jewish market
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in Jersey City, New Jersey, where I was living at the time.
I want to urge the committee to focus on the need to invest more in
the prevention of radicalization. We want to stop hate crimes before
they are committed, and build stronger, more resilient communities.
READ MORE
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In solidarity,
Your friends at the Southern Poverty Law Center
The SPLC is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond,
working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy,
strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of
all people.
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