The politics of elimination - embodied in nativism, white supremacism, and similar authoritarian ideologies - have long been part of the American political fabric, but in recent years have come bubbling forward in the wave of hate-crime incidents associated with the 2016 election, as well as mass killings such as those in Charleston, S.C., and at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. Historically fueled by dehumanizing rhetoric and belief systems, eliminationism has become a common theme in rising right-wing ideologies around the globe, spread especially through the phenomenon of online radicalization, both among Islamist radicals and alt-right white nationalists. Neiwert’s talk will explore this history, and suggest ways of countering the spread of this kind of hate.
David Neiwert is a Seattle-based freelance journalist and blogger. He received the National Press Club Award for Distinguished Online Journalism in 2000 for a domestic terrorism series he produced for MSNBC.com. He edited the political blog Crooks And Liars from 2008-2012. He is currently a contributing writer for the Southern Poverty Law Center's blog, Hatewatch. His book, And Hell Followed With Her: Crossing the Dark Side of the American Border, won the 2014 International Latino Book Award for general nonfiction. Hi forthcoming book, Alt-America: The Rise and Unreal World of the Radical Right, will be published in June 2017 by Verso Press.
Read More