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New York, NY, August 9, 2018 … In advance of the first anniversary of the violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., that shook the nation, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today launched the ADL H.E.A.T. (Hate, Extremism, Anti-Semitism, Terrorism) Map ™ -- a first-of-a-kind interactive map detailing extremist and anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. The map is a visual reflection of select proprietary datasets developed by ADL experts in its Center on Extremism.
“It’s important to remember that extremist activity is not just confined to a historic town in Virginia, but rather an issue faced by communities every day across the country,” ADL CEO and National Director Jonathan Greenblatt said. “As extremists continue to spread hate and incite violence using any and all means that they can, ADL is committed to exposing their efforts and fighting to prevent the hate they aim to spread.”
The ADL H.E.A.T. Map ™ is accompanied by a report that evaluates the ways the white supremacist movement — and the “Alt-Right” in particular — has changed in the year since the Charlottesville and provides a full overview of the complicated current state of white supremacy. Among the trends observed, the Alt-Right has embraced podcasts as a way to reach followers. White supremacist podcast audiences are not large by the standards of mainstream podcasts but represent significant audiences for white supremacists.
Additionally, white supremacists have increased on-campus and off-campus propaganda efforts in the past year. Since the beginning of 2017, ADL’s Center on Extremism has tracked more than 900 white supremacist propaganda incidents, from distributions of white supremacist literature to display of white supremacist handbills, posters, and more. The 2017-18 school year saw a 77 percent increase of incidents on campus from the previous academic year, with 292 cases reported, compared to 165 in 2016-2017.
The initial data in the new map consists of more than 4,500 data points representing a range of extremist activities, including:
- Extremist-related murders (2008-2017)
- Terrorist plots and attacks (2002-2017)
Right-wing: 2002-2017
Islamist: 2002-2017
Left-wing: 2008-2017
- Extremist shootouts with police (2008-2017)
- White supremacist propaganda on and off campus (Fall 2016-to date)
- White supremacist rallies (2017-2018)
- Anti-Semitic incidents (2016-2017)
The map allows users to see the types of tactics extremists use, read details on specific incidents, compare activity by type and or state, and access and download raw data.
“As extremism and hate increases its reach, so too will our efforts to expose them locally and nationally,” said George Selim, ADL’s Senior Vice President of Programs. “These resources are educational tools for all who are committed to fighting hate. We look forward to working with partners to strengthen our research and capabilities to prevent hate from spreading further.”