Distribution of white supremacist propaganda reached new heights in 2020

By Alyssa Wilson Published: March 17, 2021

Distribution of white supremacist propaganda reached new heights in 2020

Mississippi state flag flying outside the Capitol in Jackson, Miss. Mississippi will surrender the Confederate battle emblem from its state flag, more than a century after white supremacist legislators embedded it there a generation after the South lost the Civil War. Mississippi's House and Senate voted in succession Sunday, June 28, 2020, to retire the flag, with broad bipartisan support. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves has said he will sign the bill, and the state flag would lose its official status as soon as he signs the measure. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

White supremacist propaganda reached new heights, according to a report released by the Anti-Defamation League Wednesday.

The total propaganda in 2020 was the highest number the organization has ever recorded, the report said.

The propaganda includes the distribution of racist, antisemitic and anti-LGBTQ flyers, stickers, banners and posters.

According to the ADL’s Center on Extremism, propaganda gives white supremacists “the ability to maximize media and online attention, while limiting the risk of individual exposure, negative media coverage, arrests and public backlash.”

The white supremacist propaganda appeared in every state except Hawaii.

Texas, Washington, California, New Jersey New York, Massachusetts, Virginia and Pennsylvania saw the highest levels of activity in 2020.

At least 35 white supremacist groups distributed propaganda, but 92 percent of the activity was conducted by the Patriot Front, New Jersey European Heritage Association and Nationalist Social Club.

Although there was an increase in distribution overall, college campuses saw a decline with 303 incidents compared to 630 incidents in 2019.

You can read the full report here.