Stories by Mark Potok

Mark Potok is the editor of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Report. subscribe to Mark Potok's feed

Antigovernment ‘Patriot’ Movement Expands for the Fourth Year in a Row

Posted on: Mar 7, 2013, Source: SPLC Intelligence Report

Hate groups remain at near-historic highs.

Why Bogus Hate Crimes Are All the Rage

Posted on: Oct 24, 2012, Source: SPLC's Hate Watch

A La. woman's phony assault is one of a rash of recent incidents of its kind. A look at why they're so dangerous.

Once America’s Leading Hate Group, the Neo-Nazi National Alliance Now Considered 'a Joke'

Posted on: Jul 23, 2012, Source: Southern Poverty Law Center

Ten years after the death of its founder, the Alliance has turned into tiny band of small-time propagandists, criminal thugs and attention-seeking losers.

The Anti-Government 'Patriot' Movement Is Exploding in Size and Reach

Posted on: Mar 20, 2012, Source: SPLC Intelligence Report

Hate groups of all kinds are climbing in numbers, but the swelling of the Patriot movement since late 2008 has been astounding.

America the Vulnerable: Government Does Nothing as Right Wing Violence Surges

Posted on: Jun 27, 2011, Source: Other Words

Home-grown terrorism is on the rise, but the Department of Homeland Security is scaling down intelligence units that might catch the next Timothy McVeigh before it's too late.

Number of Radical Right-Wing Hate, Patriot, and Militia Groups Exploded in 2010

Posted on: Feb 28, 2011, Source: SPLC Intelligence Report

The three strands of the radical right — the hatemongers, the nativists and the antigovernment zealots — grew by 22% last year and 40% the year before.

Heritage of Shame: Events Celebrating Secession Glorify the South's Defense of Slavery

Posted on: Jan 21, 2011, Source: Other Words

The events are effectively glorifying the South's defense of slavery and the white supremacist doctrine that underpinned it.

Is Jared Loughner a Right-Wing Extremist?

Posted on: Jan 9, 2011, Source: Southern Poverty Law Center

While it's hard to say, there are some clues to Loughner's worldview in his writings.

Gays Remain the Minority Most Targeted by Hate Crimes

Posted on: Dec 31, 2010, Source: SPLC Intelligence Report

The religious anti-gay right has been knocked back on its heels by gay rights advances. But its hardest core angrily presses on.

Right-Wing Rage: Hate Groups, Vigilantes and Conspiracists on the Verge of Violence

Posted on: Mar 2, 2010, Source: Southern Poverty Law Center

The radical right has caught fire, as broad-based anger over the past year has ignited an explosion of new extremist groups and activism across the nation.

Report: Latino Immigrants in Suffolk County, N.Y Living in a Climate of Fear

Posted on: Sep 11, 2009, Source: Southern Poverty Law Center

Report details violent attacks, harassment and abuse driven by a virulent anti-immigrant climate, that has been fostered by community leaders and law enforcement practices

The Top Three Anti-Immigration Groups Share Extremist Roots

Posted on: Feb 4, 2009, Source: Southern Poverty Law Center

A nasty web of racism lies behind three D.C. organizations that work against immigration reform.

Neo-Nazis and White Supremacists Publish Ominous Threats to Obama's Life

Posted on: Feb 22, 2008, Source: SPLC's Hate Watch

The most heated anti-Obama talk appears to be on Internet sites that allow people to post messages anonymously.

Computer Hackers Allege That Notorious Neo-Nazi Radio Host Is on FBI Payroll

Posted on: Jan 18, 2008, Source: SPLC's Hate Watch

After allegations emerge that key white supremacist figure Hal Turner may be a government informant, experts warn FBI crossed the line.

Lou Dobbs Persists in Promoting Lies about Immigrant Leprosy Cases

Posted on: Jun 14, 2007, Source: SPLC Intelligence Report

For more than four years, CNN's Dobbs has spread one one-sided -- and in some cases outright false -- information to attack undocumented migrants.

A Split In the Racist Right

Posted on: Aug 15, 2006, Source: SPLC Intelligence Report

A rift has opened between those who see blacks, Hispanics and Muslims as the primary enemy, and those who blame Jews for every evil.