Now More Than A Thousand Hate Groups In U.S.

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has released its annual intelligence report on hate groups in the United States, and it paints a pretty grim portrait of America. Hate groups are still proliferating in this country, and as the chart shows, for the first time since the SPLC began keeping tabs on them the number of different hate groups has topped 1,000. These groups grew from 932 of them in 2009 to 1002 of them in 2010 (a rise of 7.5% in the last year and a rise of 66% since the year 2000).

The SPLC says the reasons for this continued growth is "resentment over the changing racial demographics of the country, frustration over the lagging economy, and the mainstreaming of conspiracy theories and other demonizing propaganda aimed at minorities and the government."

Mark Potok, editor of the SPLC Intelligence Report, said, "Far-right extremists remain highly energized, even as politicians across the country co-opt many of the radical ideas and issues that are important to them. This success in having their voices heard in the political arena, where they have long occupied the fringe of conservative thought, might eventually take the wind out of their sails, but so far we're not seeing any sign of that."

While there are hate groups in all states, some have many more than others. You can go here to see the numbers for all states. The states with the most hate groups are:

California...............68
Texas...............59
Florida...............48
New Jersey...............47
Mississippi...............40
Georgia...............39
Pennsylvania...............36
Tennessee...............35
Michigan...............35
Alabama...............33
Ohio...............32
New York...............31
South Carolina...............30

In addition the the groups designated as hate groups, the SPLC also tracks two other kinds of groups -- "nativist extremist" groups and "patriot" organizations (including militias). The nativist extremist groups are defined as those "organizations that go beyond mere advocacy of restrictive immigration policy to actually confront or harass suspected undocumented immigrants or their employers." These groups grew from 309 groups in 2009 to 319 in 2010 -- an increase of 3%.

But the Patriot movement groups, who see the federal government as their primary enemy, had the most explosive growth in the last year. They grew an astounding 61% -- from 512 groups in 2009 to 824 groups in 2010. The militias, a part of this movement, grew from 127 groups in 2009 to 330 groups in 2010 -- a growth of 160%.

When the hate groups, the nativist extremist groups and the patriot groups are added together, we have a pretty scary scenario.   Collectively these groups grew from 1,753 in 2009 to 2,145 in 2010 -- a frightening increase of 22% in just the last year.

None of this is happening in a vacuum. With the election of an African-American president and the growth of the minority population far outpacing the white establishment, these groups have seized on these things to once again come forward with their hate-filled agenda. The really sad part is that this agenda has been embraced by many on the right -- especially the teabaggers and the Republican Party (who are using these people in an effort to return to power).

There is a discussion to be held on immigration, the deficit, and other issues, but appealing to the darkest side of human nature is not the way to hold that discussion. An immigrant nation such as ours must never abandon its goal of tolerance and diversity.