ADL Experts And Online Resources On National Alliance And Anti-Racist Organizations Available To Media

8/19/2002

From: David C. Friedman, 202-452-8310 Brittanie Zelkind Werbel, 202-452-8310 both of the Anti-Defamation League

News Advisory:

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a leader in the fight against extremism and organized hate groups, has experts available for comment and analysis on issues related to the scheduled August 24 "Rock Against Israel" rally and hate rock concert by the neo-Nazi National Alliance at the United States Capitol Building, and on the violent Anti-Racist Action, which will be protesting the rally.

Contact ADL for information on:

-- Hate groups, including the National Alliance -- Anti-Racist Action and their history of violence -- Hate rock as a recruiting tool for young people -- Extremist groups' post-September 11 agenda, message, and methods

Additional background on extremists, including reports and current information, is available online at www.adl.org. Included are one-page descriptions of the National Alliance and Anti-Racist Action.

To arrange an interview with an ADL expert, contact the Washington, D.C. Regional Office at 202-452-8310 or visit www.adl.org.

--- The National Alliance

What is the National Alliance? -- The National Alliance (NA) is the largest and most active neo-Nazi organization in the United States. -- Founded by the recently-deceased William Pierce and based in West Virginia, the NA's goal is "to build a better world and a better race" and to create "a new government...answerable to White people only." -- The group has grown in the last decade, and has recently focused its attention on recruiting young racists through white power music and video games. -- NA has also continued trying to bring middle-class professionals into the racist fold. -- Over the last several years, dozens of violent crimes around the country - including murders, bombings and robberies - have been traced to NA members or appear to have been inspired by the group's propaganda. -- Following William Pierce's July 23, 2002 death, Erich Gliebe, 39, became NA Chairman. Gliebe considers his war against non-whites "a lifelong and never-ending struggle," and believes "it is not important how" he and his followers fight the "coming battle," only that they win. He has expressed admiration for both foreign and domestic terrorists. -- William Pierce wrote The Turner Diaries, thought to have inspired Timothy McVeigh's bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building. It is also the inspiration behind the early 1980s crime spree by the white supremacist gang The Order, whose crimes included murders, robberies, counterfeiting and the bombing of a synagogue.

Why is the NA holding a "Rock Against Israel" rally at the U.S. Capitol and concert afterwards? -- On August 24, the NA is holding a "Rock Against Israel" rally at the U.S. Capitol. In an effort to disguise its identity and elicit support from an unsuspecting public, the NA is calling itself "Taxpayers Against Terrorism." -- The August 24 rally will be the fourth anti-Israel rally that the group has held in Washington DC since September 11, 2001. The other rallies were in November, 2001; December, 2001; and May, 2002. -- Since September 11, the NA has been pushing a particularly aggressive anti-Israel campaign, and has tried to co-opt the Palestinian cause by holding rallies and distributing numerous anti-Israel flyers. -- The NA and other groups feel that this is a time when they can exploit anti-Israel/anti-Jewish feeling in the U.S.

How many people will attend the rally? -- The May anti-Israel rally attracted about 250 white supremacists, mostly from the East Coast. The August 24 rally might attract an even greater number because it is also being touted as a memorial to William Pierce. As with the May rally, a white power rock concert will be held afterwards, and the only way to gain admission to the concert is to attend the rally. -- Other white supremacist groups planning to attend the rally include the World Church of the Creator, the National Socialist Movement, Aryan Nations, and several racist skinhead groups. -- Anti-racist groups -- including various chapters of Anti-Racist Action and the Anti-Fascist Network -- and several anarchist groups are planning a counter-rally. -- The past year has seen several violent confrontations between NA supporters and the anti-racist groups. There is some potential for violence at this demonstration.

--- Anti-Racist Action

The Anti-Racist Action Network is a large, occasionally violent and loosely organized protest group with chapters in a number of cities in the United States and Canada. Founded by non-racist skinheads and punks in the late 1980s in reaction to the growing threat of hate groups, ARA chapters are usually far left-wing; many members are anarchists; some are non-racist skinheads. Animal rights activists and "straight edgers" (those who adhere to a lifestyle of self-control, abstention from alcohol, drugs and promiscuous sex) are also common.

ARA has clashed with white supremacist groups like the KKK, National Alliance, and World Church of the Creator, and has counter-demonstrated against anti-immigration groups. ARA members have also taken part in "anti-globalization" protests. According to the Web site of the de facto "headquarters" chapter, in Columbus, Ohio, ARA members "organize a resistance to any fascist groups like the KKK or any component of Neo-Liberalism such as the WTO, IMF, FTAA, etc."

ARA members are often virulently anti-law enforcement as well as anti-racist. According to one of the group's four principles, "the legal and policing institutions themselves are clearly corrupted by racism." From the group's main Web site, one can purchase bumper stickers stating sentiments such as "Cops are Assholes" and "I (image of handgun) Cops." A California-based publication dedicated to the activities of the ARA called "Turning the Tide: Journal of Anti-Racist Action, Research & Education" often includes coverage of alleged police misconduct.

By confronting racist groups directly, the ARA gives them gratuitous publicity and makes the job of law enforcement considerably more difficult. On Jan. 12, 2002 a violent confrontation broke out between the ARA and white supremacists holding a rally in front of the public library in York, PA. ARA members smashed the windows of a neo-Nazi's pickup truck, pepper-spraying the driver. Another white supremacist drove his truck into a crowd of protesters, which injured several people, including a 12-year-old girl. 25 people were arrested.

To arrange an interview with an ADL expert, contact the Washington, D.C. Regional Office at 202-452-8310 or visit www.adl.org.

--- What is the Anti-Defamation League? We are an 89-year old non-profit civil rights organization that seeks to counteract hate and bigotry through advocacy and education. Since 1913, we have been monitoring and exposing extremist groups. ADL's A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE(c) diversity education project has provided programming for area schools, and ADL has trained law enforcement officers from throughout the country about hate crimes and extremism.

To arrange an interview with an ADL expert, contact the Washington, D.C. Regional Office at 202-452-8310 or visit www.adl.org.

------ The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.