Eye On Hate

...seeking a kinder and gentler world

The Basics of White Power Recruiting
(Calling All White Kids)
By Nicole Nichols

Teresa and her fifteen year old son had just sat down in their usual church pew last Easter morning. They took their hymnals and pulled out what they believed to be a church bulletin. What they found instead was flyer from the Aryan Nations proclaiming White's as an endangered species.

Seventeen year-old Kevin, removed a book from a shelf in his Northwestern high school to research for a report he was doing on the Civil Rights Movement. Inside the book he found a paper encouraging him to go to a website to learn the "truth" about Dr. Martin Luther King. The site vilifies King as a plagiarist and whore-monger and is hosted by the racist right. It now features a message board, hosted by Stormfront, which encourages students to join with other hate group members and discuss the "truth" about Dr. King.

While taking a break from his computer class at an area Vocational Technical training center, 16 year-old Tommy was sitting alone in the snack area as was his usual custom. He was approached by another young man from another class. They struck up a little conversation and Tommy asked why the other kid shaved his head. This provided just the right opening. The young Hammerskin explained a little of his beliefs to the isolated Tommy and invited him to a party that night.

Teens at a neighborhood skating rink exited to find flyers on their windshields advertising a concert that weekend featuring several bands. Unbeknownst to them, the concert was a White Power gathering replete with hatecore music and lots of information on the skinhead and hate scene.

Marissa, a fifteen year old girl, spent a lot of time on the internet. With a mom who worked two jobs and very few friends, she enjoyed talking to others around the country. Befriended by Carolyn online, Marissa looked forward to seeing her friend sign on. She confided in Carolyn and told her about her lonliness and her longing to belong somewhere - anywhere. A few days later she was invited to join a chat group where she met others who seemed to understand. And they were smart! When they got around to political issues, they really made sense to Marissa. It wasn't long before Marissa's entire life centered around her online friends and she felt loved and wanted. It wasn't long before Marissa became a full-fledged skinbyrd.

Shawn, at seventeen, was disenchanted with his life. He had spent all summer working to earn enough money to buy a car. Three weeks after doing just that, a group of Hispanic thugs flattened all of his tires, broke his windows and sprayed graffiti all around. Shawn told some of his friends on a message board about his situation and was linked to another site where he would "find others who had experienced the same thing." Shawn soon found himself bashing minorities and venting his frustrations in the understanding arms of White Supremacists who knew all to well how to nurture his anger into hate.

These scenarios are played out everyday in every area of our country. Hate group members have become very accomplished at identifying and capitalizing on the vulnerabilities of our youth. Children, especially teens, long to be recognized. They often feel isolated and unwanted. In a society which places much value on extrinsic qualities such as unrealistic beauty, clothing, and materialistic ownership many teens feel unworthy of attention and unloved. Hate groups know to fill the void being experienced by our young people is to recruit a loyal member.

Offering acceptance and a feeling of "family," these people sidle up to our children. They foster "unity" and a feeling of belonging. They give the kids praise and instill them with a false sense of security. They send them out to recruit and to distribute literature, showing them how responsible they believe they are. And they preach - they teach - and they brainwash. They believe that it is not only their right to steal the hearts and minds of our children - but it is their DUTY. After all, they are out to save the white race.

The internet has provided hate groups and racists with yet another avenue in which to indoctrinate our children. A few clicks of the mouse can land your child right in their clutches. Internet filters are helpful, but not foolproof. These groups have become very savvy in the art of circumventing the filtering systems used by parents and school districts. Given that the internet has become such a vital recruitment tool, it is little wonder that such groups spend an enormous amount of time making sure that they are available to our children.

The most important tool, however, in the racists shop is the music. Most people agree that music is the universal language and that it can bring people together from all backgrounds. Most teens have their own brand or genre of music and often, to our chagrin, loose themselves in the rhythms of the day. The racist right realize the potential that music has to bring people to their cause and they are banking on that - literally. White Power music has become big business for the Movement. It is noisy. It is obnoxious. And it is lining the coffers of hate with both money and members.

There is nothing more important, and nothing more precious than our children. Raising them in the world of today, we are faced with many perils. Knowing that there are those who wish to recruit them and exploit them should make us even more vigilant. Realizing that there are those who will go to extraordinary lengths to indoctrinate them into their world of hate should scare the hell out of us.

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