White supremacy propaganda and activity at an all-time high in Texas, US, according to the ADL.

FILE – People attend “WITHOUT FEAR: Rally of Solidarity with the Jewish People” in Washington DC, Sunday, July 11, 2021, with the support of the Alliance for Israel, the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, B’nai B. rith International, and other organizations. The ADL released its 2022 report showing a 38% increase in white supremacy propaganda. Incidents in Texas have increased by 61%.

According to the Anti-Defamation League’s annual advocacy assessment, white supremacist propaganda and events increased by 38% in 2022. In Texas, it increased by 61%.

The assessment recorded 6,751 incidents, 527 of which occurred in Texas.

Mark Toobin, regional director for ADL Southwest, said it was disappointing and worrisome. He said he thinks Texas is so high-profile because there are white supremacist groups in the state.

“The Patriot Front, which is responsible for a large number of militants, is based in Texas,” he said. “The Goyim Defense League launched a propaganda campaign in 2022 that appeared to be focused primarily on Texas. And the Aryan Freedom Network, based in northeast Texas…seems to be more organized than it used to be.”

Three white supremacist groups are responsible for 93% of the activity: the Patriot Front, the Goyim Defense League (GDL), and White Lives Matter. Patriot Front was responsible for 80% of the distribution in 2022.

Toobin said he thinks these groups feel like they’re gaining strength and are using propaganda because it only takes a few people to have more influence, and it doesn’t technically break any laws.

“One of the reasons they use propaganda is because they don’t break the law,” he said. “There may be technical violations in terms of penetration or debris. These are efforts that are largely protected by the First Amendment. Their goal is to sow dismay, make marginalized groups feel threatened, and make a huge impact by trying to normalize their hate messages.”

Toobin said there were 50 incidents in the Greater Houston area in 2022. In January, Houston doctor Dr. Peter Hotez said he received a leaflet in the mail with photos of the swastika.

Propaganda was reported in every state except Hawaii, with the highest levels of activity also seen in Massachusetts, Virginia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, California, Utah, Florida, Connecticut, and Georgia.

The ADL Center for Extremism monitored activities such as the distribution of anti-Semitic, racist and anti-LGBTQ+ leaflets; distribution of stickers, banners, graffiti and posters, a gathering of white supremacists, and even hateful laser projections on buildings and stadiums.

Toobin said one encouraging thing about these incidents was how communities rallied against them. According to him, the neighbors each time helped to clean up and reported on incidents.

“They spoke up and said, ‘Look, we don’t want this in our area,'” he said. “We’ve seen it in every situation where a neighborhood has been affected.”

But he added that this should not be commonplace.

“Those who disagree and scorn this hateful message being spread by these extremists cannot rely on others to speak out,” he said. “It is the duty of every man.”

The report also documented 167 cases of white supremacists, up 55% since 2021. 219 cases of propaganda dissemination occurred on campuses in 29 states. The most activity on campus has occurred in Texas, Arizona, California, Florida, Idaho, Ohio, Illinois, and Michigan. The study also found that in 2022, groups used banners draped over flyovers at least 252 times.

One way to help these incidents is to report the intrusion, vandalism, or harassment to law enforcement and not reach out to white supremacists who are actively involved in the protests or distribution.

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