The number of hate groups in the U.S. in 2016 doubled for the second consecutive year, reaching an almost historic high, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s annual census of hate groups and other extremist organizations. The SPLC points to Donald Trump’s rise to power as the main culprit.

“Trump’s run for office electrified the radical right, which saw in him a champion of the idea that America is fundamentally a white man’s country,” said the SPLC.

Trump’s way of talking about immigrants; the selection of openly racist, anti-LGBT, and anti-Muslim appointees for his cabinet; the tweeting of inaccurate facts; and his threats to ban Muslim immigration are all contributing factors, says the SPLC.

According to the nonprofit civil rights organization, the radical right was more successful in entering the political mainstream last year than it has been in almost 50 years. In 2016 there were 917 documented hate groups, which is only about 100 fewer than the all-time high of 1,018 that was recorded in 2011. Unsurprisingly, most of the hate groups created were specifically anti-Muslim–from 34 in 2015 to 101 last year, a 197 percent increase.

The most dramatic growth in the number of hate groups was the near-tripling of anti-Muslim hate groups: from 34 in 2015 to 101 last year pic.twitter.com/4NKwfbHW3h

— SPLC (@splcenter) February 15, 2017

Immediately after the election there was also a surge in hate crimes; 1,094 incidents were reported in the first 34 days of the Trump Administration. Approximately 37 percent of those incidents directly referenced either Donald Trump, his campaign slogans, or his remarks about sexual assault. Noticeably, the largest share of Trump-related incidents by far were anti-woman at 82 percent.

Heidi Beirich, director of the SPLC’s Intelligence Project, told NBC News that hate groups have been on a steady rise since 2014. According to Beirich, it’s easy nowadays to find the groups thanks to the internet, and the fact that they want to spread their message.

On the topic of Trump’s immigration ban, Ibrahim Hooper, national communications director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said, “What used to be a fringe, extremist ideology of anti-Muslim ideology has now moved from the fringe of society to the center of powers in the White House.”

“With a president whose policies reflect the values of white nationalists, extremists think they finally have a voice in the White House” pic.twitter.com/Sm1IrZTDXO

— SPLC (@splcenter) February 15, 2017

The survey also found that schools were also negatively affected by the campaign. After the election, the group’s researchers interviewed 10,000 educators and found that eighty percent said they had noticed more fear and anxiety among their students, particularly immigrants, Muslims, and African Americans. Many teachers reported that students used slurs, derogatory language and extremist symbols in school as well.

Only time will tell what the long term effects of Trump’s politics and presidency will be, but the short term ones are already proving to be quite scary.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Hate crimes and anti-Muslim or anti-Semitic vandalism have surged in libraries lately. Authorities say that they have rarely seen anything like this–vandalism specifically targeting libraries, employees, and books. At a public library in Evanston, Illinois, a librarian discovered that someone had written “bullsh*t hatred cover to cover” inside the cover of a copy of the book “The Koran for Dummies.” They had also drawn a swastika and written a derogatory comment about the Prophet Muhammed.

It turned out that at least six more books were vandalized in a similar way. But it would be very difficult to figure out who did it—any damage done while the books were out on loan would have been discovered and reported on their return, but as that didn’t happen, someone must have vandalized them while in the library. Though the library does have some security cameras, they don’t cover the whole place and nothing suspicious was found on the footage.

In a show of ignorance, Quran and Islam-themed books are defaced at library in Evanston, Illinois. https://t.co/aVGOwVGevN

— Voto Latino (@votolatino) November 27, 2016

According to the American Library Association, there has been an increase in harassment and vandalism at libraries over the past month. At the University of New Mexico, a man approached a young woman who was studying in the library and tried to pull off her hijab. And administrators also found swastikas and anti-Semitic graffiti on the walls of Reed College in Portland.

These crimes are unusual for libraries–they’re supposed to be peaceful places for education and discussion. The ALA is now starting to keep track of every xenophobic incident that is reported. “We hope to track the details, locations and frequency, the better to stay on top of it, develop training or webinars, and support our members,” said James LaRue from the ALA.

This uptick coincides with the 2016 election, which was divisive to say the least. According to several hate crime monitors, verbal and physical abuse aimed at minorities in schools, mosques, and other public places have increased dramatically since the election. A November report from the FBI supports that narrative, showing 5,818 documented hate crimes in 2015. That was a rise of 6 percent compared to the year before, and included assaults, bombings, threats, and property destruction against minorities, women, LGBT individuals, and others. (It’s important to note as well that hate crimes are notoriously underreported.)

The largest increase was in the rise of hate crimes against American Muslims. There were 257 reported cases of assault, or attacks on mosques in 2015, which marks a rise of 67 percent from 2014. That is a high that hasn’t been seen since the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. “We need to do a better job of tracking and reporting hate crime to fully understand what is happening in our communities and how to stop it,” said FBI director James Comey to the New York Times.

But some supporters of Donald Trump say that they have also been victimized, claiming that they also need a “safe space” where they can express their opinions. Maybe the best solution would be for the opposing sides to communicate more openly, to try to understand each other’s point of view.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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While you were grinding away last week, you might have missed these three great articles. The #1 story of the week came from Anneliese Mahoney with her take on Fox News guest Steven Emerson’s totally fabricated “facts” about Muslim residents of Birmingham, England; Alexis Evans made her debut with the #2 article of the week–a smart takedown of rapper 2 Chainz debate with TV host Nancy Grace over marijuana policy; and the #3 article of the week came from Morgan McMurray’s coverage of anti-Muslim sentiment on Twitter. ICYMI, check out the best of the week from Law Street.

#1 No Surprise: Fox News Just Makes Up Facts Now

We all know that Fox News interprets the second part of its name very loosely, but it hit a new low this weekend when it allowed guest Steven Emerson to blatantly make stuff up. Read the full article here.

#2 2 Chainz vs. Nancy Grace: Rapper Wins Debate Over Legalizing Pot

Is this real life? HLN viewers were gifted TV comedic gold the other night in the form of a marijuana debate between the always controversial Nancy Grace and “Fed Watching” rapper 2 Chainz. Grace, whose Wikipedia controversy section alone is cause enough for pause, brought 2 Chainz, who was arrested in 2013 for possessing a weed grinder, on her show to discuss the legalization of marijuana. Funnily enough, it was 2 Chainz who upstaged Grace with actual valid points while she rebutted by showing him irrelevant videos of parents forcing toddlers to smoke pot. Read the full article here.

#3 J.K. Rowling Has Perfect Response to Anti-Muslim Tweets

We are now nearly two weeks into the new year and have already had a heavy dose of tragedy. Unless you have been cut off from internet and television over the past few days, you’ve heard about the Charlie Hebdo shootings. Regardless of what your opinion is of that publication, the murder of those people was an act of terror and an infringement on their rights as humans and French citizens. Read the full article here.

Chelsey D. Goff

Chelsey D. Goff was formerly Chief People Officer at Law Street. She is a Granite State Native who holds a Master of Public Policy in Urban Policy from the George Washington University. She’s passionate about social justice issues, politics — especially those in First in the Nation New Hampshire — and all things Bravo. Contact Chelsey at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

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