US white supremacist propaganda efforts up 182% in 2018, ADL says

White supremacists dramatically stepped up their propaganda distribution efforts targeting residential neighborhoods and campuses in 2018, the Anti-Defamation League says.

White supremacists’ propaganda distribution efforts — incidents in which members of the group handed out or posted their literature and messages — increased 182 percent, with 1,187 incidents across the US in 2018, up from 421 total incidents reported in 2017, according to an ADL count.

The number of racist rallies and demonstrations also rose last year, with 91 white supremacist rallies or other public events attended by white supremacists held in 2018, up from 76 the previous year. Hate groups also increasingly used so-called “flash mob” tactics to avoid advance publicity and scrutiny.

In most cases the identities of individual members were successfully hidden, according to ADL.

“Posting fliers is a tried-and-true tactic for hate groups, one that enables them to spread hateful ideas and sow fear across an entire community,” says ADL head Jonathan Greenblatt. “Hate groups were emboldened in 2018, but their increasing reliance on hate leafleting indicates that most of their members understand this is a fringe activity and are unwilling to risk greater public exposure or arrest.”

— JTA