Martin Luther King Day may be a good time to take stock of the issue of prejudice in New Jersey.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, one of the few agencies in the country monitoring hate groups, New Jersey is presently ranked 3rd — having moved up a notch from 4th place. A listing of the groups can be found on the Hate Map.
The number of identified hate groups in the United States has grown from 602 in 2000 to 1002 groups in 2010. A large portion of this increase can be related to a souring economy and the ongoing debate concerning how the country responds to a growing illegal immigrant population. These factors are used to explain California and Florida being the top two contenders for the most hate groups in the country.
Bergen County has recently seen an unsettling number of hate crimes. The recent crimes include vandalism, arson and attempted murder. Local, County, State and Federal agencies have become involved in the investigations; and, local civic and religious organizations have worked to raise awareness and promote unity.
Hate is a relatively common emotion to humans, and an FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin seeks to provide some structured understanding by differentiating between rational and irrational hate. Unjust acts inspire rational hate, but hatred of a person based on race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or national origin constitutes irrational hate.
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The concise report, defines seven stages in the evolution of a hate group. The recent attacks in Bergen County appear to fall into stages five & six, moving beyond hate rhetoric into acts of violence. According to the psychological profile offered in the report, this is a real issue of concern for local communities.
Identifying many members of hate groups to be thrill seekers, the progression into acts of violence provides an adrenaline rush which will eventually lead to even greater acts of violence. According to the report, “Each successive anger-provoking thought or action builds on residual adrenaline and triggers a more violent response than the one that originally initiated the sequence”.
It’s indisputable that when hate rhetoric crosses the border into acts of violence, the term domestic terrorist would appropriately be applied. A thesis authored by Major Nathan Springer in 2009 provides a psychological profile of 3 of America’s most notorious homegrown terrorists – McVeigh, Kaczynski, and Rudolph. His thesis offers insight as to common factors that can be used to help understand the personal evolution of a domestic terrorist.
Links:
List of hate groups in NJ