The recent domestic terror attack on anti-white supremacist protesters fighting for the removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, Virginia has shocked, angered, and saddened many Americans, and thousands around the world. Sadly, this kind of attack is not new, but one in a growing number of other public rallies and/or attacks by white supremacist, neo-Nazi, Ku Klux Klan, and other racist, anti-Semitic, homo/transphobic, and sexist groups (often generalized as the Alt-Right) around the country since Barack Obama was elected to office in 2008, and intensifying during the recent campaign, and subsequent election, of Donald Trump. In fact, in the last week Democracy Now!, a leading independent news program co-anchored by respected veteran investigative journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, episode cited a recent Foreign Policy report showing that our government has been aware of this threat for some time:
“[A] Foreign Policy report revealed that an FBI and Department of Homeland Security bulletin concluded that white supremacist groups were responsible for more homicides ‘than any other domestic extremist movement.’ Despite these findings, the Trump administration recently slashed funds to organizations dedicated to fighting right-wing violence"(democracynow.org).
Along with white supremacist groups, it is also important to include violent acts of terrorism committed by far-Right militant elements of the Pro-Life movement against women seeking reproductive services, as well as doctors and other healthcare providers. The Southern Poverty Law Center, one of the premier national organizations studying and combating hate groups, cited research by the National Abortion Federation, which found “there have been 11 murders, 26 attempted murders, 42 bombings and 182 arsons aimed at abortion clinics and providers since 1977” (splcenter.org).
If the U.S. government, beginning with President Trump, is as truly committed to fighting terrorism as it claims, then the last thing it should be doing is slashing funding meant for combating domestic far-Right terrorism. Unfortunately, this recent move appears to be part of a disturbing trend, beginning with the President’s sordid history of racist and sexist behavior, support for his campaign by factions of the extreme Right, including KKK groups, a rise in the public presence of and attacks by these groups, including Charlottesville, and now President Trump’s much-belated, and utterly superficial, actions in response to the attack on anti-racist activists thus far. If he truly wants justice for the Charlottesville victims, President Trump must attempt to correct his woefully inadequate response to the attacks by immediately reinstating the monies designated for fighting far right-wing terror, demand an immediate status update from the FBI and Homeland Security on violent far-right U.S. hate groups, and direct the Department of Justice to lead an investigation into the Charlottesville attack.
While the President has directed the DOJ to investigate the violence in Charlottesville unfortunately, with former Senator Jeffrey Beauregard Sessions—a man named after two Confederate leaders with his own storied racist history—acting as Attorney General, the government investigation is not likely to bring true justice for the victims and their families, or set the stage for identifying, prosecuting, and dismantling extreme Right domestic terrorist organizations, any time soon. That’s why it’s essential to take action at a grassroots level to keep watch for hate groups and to consistently challenge their presence and activities in our communities.
Toward this end, concerned citizens of Bellingham and Whatcom County, Washington, should familiarize themselves with the “Fortress Of Faith” radio program (fortressoffaith.com), created and hosted by Tom Wallace, and supported by Bellingham Baptist Church (bellinghambaptist.com). While Bellingham Baptist may called itself, “the friendliest church in town,” Wallace’s “Fortress of Faith” radio program has been identified as an anti-Muslim hate group by Southern Poverty Law Center. The show’s website has featured, among other topics, a graphic that equates Islam to Nazism, and articles entitled “Islam: The Religion Of the Devil,” and “America Under Shariah Law.” Click on the link to view a great interactive map created by the Southern Poverty Law Center listing the locations and descriptions of hate groups in your area: https://www.splcenter.org/hate-map .
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