By Susan Nembhard and Lily Robin

Differential treatment on the basis of race is well documented in the US criminal legal system. Definitions of criminality and criminal activity are rooted in structural inequalities between people of color and white people, and racist policies and practices have been used to control and separate communities of color. In addition, discretion given to individual system actors at each decision point in the system creates opportunities for racial biases to influence practices toward and outcomes for system-involved people. Racial biases are so deeply embedded in the criminal legal system that disparities based on race exist at each decision point, impacting subsequent decision points and resulting in negative outcomes for Black people and other people of color. It is imperative that researchers approach their work with an understanding of how racist policies and implicit biases interact within and throughout different aspects of the criminal legal system if they want to identify and promulgate more equitable policies and research.

Washington, DC: Urban Institute, 2021. 14o,

By Charlene Collazo Goldfield, Gabriela Chambi and Amanda Torres

Statistics show that policing disproportionately affects communities of color; police are more likely to use force against Black and brown people. Data from non-violent encounters (e.g., reason for the stop, type of force used, and presence of witnesses) is rarely collected or disregarded altogether. Video evidence can publicize police violence. Bystander video during George Floyd’s murder led to arrests and a global racial reckoning because it depicted the reality of police encounters for people of color. Although technological advancements have led to positive developments for civilian safety (e.g., body cameras and in-car videos), data collection consistency and accountability are barriers to progress. Can society benefit from innovative yet simple tools to promote safety and accountability during police encounters? Our phone application aims to support social justice and safe policing by focusing on consistent and efficient data collection. Our goals with this paper are to: (1) lay out existing policing data collection practices and current issues involving tech and policing; (2) explain and distinguish our app’s functionality; (3) describe the importance of public and private partnerships; (4) examine potential privacy and data limitations; and (5) summarize how our app can magnify law enforcement accountability and reduce race-based policing.

Unpublished paper, 2021. American University Washington College of Law

By Naomi Murakawa

Racial innocence is the practice of securing blamelessness for the death-dealing realities of racial capitalism. This article reviews the legal, social scientific, and reformist mechanisms that maintain the racial innocence of one particular site: the US carceral state. With its routine dehumanization, violence, and stunning levels of racial disparity, the carceral state should be a hard test case for the willful unknowing of obvious devastation. Nonetheless, the law presumes “no racism,” condones racial profiling, and interprets racial disparity in policing and imprisonment as evidence of true racial difference in criminality, not discrimination. Prominent social science research too often mimics these practices, producing research that aids in the collective erasure of racism.

Annu. Rev. Law Soc. Sci. 2019. 15:473–93

By Desmond Ang

This paper documents the impact of popular media on racial hate by examining the first American blockbuster: 1915’s The Birth of a Nation, a fictional portrayal of the KKK’s founding rife with racist stereotypes. Exploiting the film’s five-year “roadshow”, I find a sharp spike in lynchings and race riots coinciding with its arrival in a county. Instrumenting for roadshow destinations using the location of theaters prior to the movie’s release, I show that the film significantly increased local Klan support in the 1920s. Roadshow counties continue to experience higher rates of hate crimes and hate groups a century later.

HKS Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP20-038, November 2020 (Updated July 2022)

By Amy Farrell and Sarah Lockwood

Hate crimes, often referred to as bias-motivated crimes, have garnered greater public attention and concern as political rhetoric in the United States and internationally has promoted the exclusion of people based on their group identity. This review examines what we know about the trends in hate crime behavior and the legal responses to this problem across four main domains. First, we describe the legal framework and recent attempts to expand hate crime protections beyond historically disenfranchised groups. Second, we examine recent trends and patterns of hate crime victimization. Third, we review what is known about those who perpetrate hate crimes and those who experience hate crime victimization. Finally, we examine the efficacy of efforts to respond to and prevent hate crime. This review examines a wide range of bias-motivated harms and suggests how future research and policy can be more inclusive of victimization extending beyond traditionally understood hate crimes.

Annu. Rev. Criminol. 2023. 6:107–30

By Mirjana Lazarova Trajkovska, Marharyta Zhesko

The Analysis includes in depth review of the case-law of the European Court on Human Rights (ECtHR), in regards to hate speech and hate crimes. Considering the ever-growing jurisprudence of the ECtHR in this area, it looks into the most significant and impactful decisions and the recent landmark judgments on the topics.

Vienna: Austria: OSCE, 2021. 108p.

By The Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry.at Tel Aviv University,

The Antisemitism Worldwide Report for 2022 informs of both increases and decreases, some more meaningful than others, in the number of antisemitic incidents in different countries. The United States, where the largest Jewish minority in the world lives, saw a particularly alarming rise in anti-Jewish violence and slander. These data are not encouraging. The record-levels of 2021 were attributed in part to the exceptional social tensions created by the Covid-19 epidemic and the political tensions created by the Guardian of the Walls operation in Gaza. The data for 2022 suggest that the motivations for present-day antisemitism are not transient as some may have hoped. Despite the investment of substantial legal, educational, and political efforts, thousands of antisemitic incidents took place across the globe in 2022, including hundreds of physical assaults. Everyone who cares about human dignity and justice must recognize the need to prevent this reality from becoming normalized. Antisemitic incidents are not an abstract phenomenon. Whether physical or virtual, they affect real people in the real world. As with other hate crimes, fighting them requires a combination of broadly applied agendas along with tailor-made, targeted initiatives. It requires establishing who is attacked, who are the attackers, where the attacks occur, and what motivates the offenders. These questions must be treated with great caution and sensitivity. But they cannot be ignored if we are to achieve results. This year’s Report examines the location and affiliations of victims of antisemitic physical assaults in several cities that were major theatres for such incidents (p. 23). Our comparative study suggests physical attacks tend to occur in specific areas in major urban centers on streets and public transportation (rather than in or outside synagogues); usually do not appear to be premeditated; and target in the vast majority of cases visibly-identifiable Jews, particularly ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) Jews. Whether attackers are motivated by strong antisemitic sentiments, by hatred of Israel (which, ironically, in some cases preys on anti-Zionist Jews), or by a bullying impulse that targets those who appear most different and vulnerable, their offenses fall under the category of antisemitic hate crimes.

New York: Anti-Defamation League; The Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry.at Tel Aviv University, 2023. 86p.

By Lu-In Wang

The concept and naming of “hate crime,” and the adoption of special laws to address it, provoked controversy and raised fundamental questions when they were introduced in the 1980s. In the decades since, neither hate crime itself nor those hotly debated questions have abated. To the contrary, hate crime has increased in recent years—although the prominent target groups have shifted over time—and the debate over hate crime laws has reignited as well. The still-open questions range from the philosophical to the doctrinal to the pragmatic: What justifies the enhanced punishment that hate crime laws impose based on the perpetrator’s motivation? Does that enhanced punishment infringe on the perpetrator’s rights to freedom of belief and expression? How can we know or prove a perpetrator’s motivation? And, most practical of all: Do hate crime laws work? This Essay proposes that we reframe our understanding of what we label as hate crimes. It argues that those crimes are not necessarily the acts of hate-filled extremists motivated by deeply held, fringe beliefs, but instead often reflect the broader, even mainstream, social environment that has marked some social groups as the expected or even acceptable targets for crime and violence. In turn, hate crimes themselves influence the social environment by reinforcing recognizable patterns of discrimination. The Essay maintains that we should broaden our understanding of the motivations for and effects of hate crimes and draws connections between hate crimes and seemingly disparate phenomena that have recently captured the nation’s attention.

112 J. CRIM. L. & CRIMINOLOGY 847 (2023)

By Margo Kitts

The Proud Boys are an opportunistic hate group whose message of white male chauvinism is infused with religious and nationalist symbols. They fit into the global trend of religious nationalism in that they are driven by a reaction to religious pluralism, entertain atavistic yearnings, and celebrate a founding hero, Donald Trump. Enthralled with fistfighting, in both their initiatory rituals and their engagements with antifa groups, they delight in offending the genteel sensibilities they associate with the “white liberal elite.” They are proudly antiSemitic, Islamophobic, and anti-feminist, but their list of enemies appears to be ever shifting, suggesting a toxic virility run amuck. While they are but one expression of an enduring European-American chauvinism, their celebration of masculinity resembles the masculinism and misogyny that arose in response to the Victorian era in the US.

Journal of Religion and Violence 8:3, 2020.

By Mary Pipher

From the Preface: “Reviving Ophelia is my attempt to understand my experiences in therapy with adolescent girls. Many girls come into therapy with seri­ous, even life-threatening problems, such as anorexia or the desire to physically hurt or kill themselves. Others have problems less danger­ous but still more puzzling, such as school refusal, underachievement, moodiness or constant discord with their parents. Many are the vic­tims of sexual violence.” And from a review: “ “With sympathy and focus she cites case histories to illustrate the strug­gles required of adolescent girls to maintain a sense of themselves.... Pipher offers concrete suggestions for ways by which girls can build and maintain a strong sense of self.” —Publishers Weekly.

NY. Ballantine. Putnam and Sons. 1994. 288p.

By United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency

From the document: "I am pleased to share the 2023 Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program and Policy Guide (HMA Guide) as FEMA's updated comprehensive policy handbook to govern mitigation grant programs. This document replaces the 2015 HMA Guidance and HMA Guidance Addendum. Since the last update and publication, many developments have impacted our mitigation grant programs. They include the passage of the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018; the rollout of a new hazard mitigation grant program--Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC); significantly increased funding and accessibility to mitigation programs via the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act of 2021; and prioritization of new resilience concepts to accelerate and advance mitigation investment, such as those outlined in the National Mitigation Investment Strategy and FEMA's Building Codes Strategy. [...] FEMA's Hazard Mitigation Assistance grant programs provide funding for actions that address risks to and reduce disaster suffering from events like wildfires, drought, extreme heat, hurricanes, earthquakes and flooding. The updated HMA Guide provides helpful information for state, local, tribal and territorial governments seeking to successfully navigate the application and grant lifecycle processes. And with the unprecedented funding that has been made available for mitigation over the past few years, it has never been more important to reduce the barriers to accessing these grant dollars and get them into the right hands for the most impactful mitigation projects."

Washington DC. United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency. 2023. 623p.

By United States. White House Office

From the document: "Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are asteroids and comets that orbit the Sun but have orbits that can bring them into Earth's neighborhood--within 30 million miles of Earth's orbit. Planetary defense encompasses all the capabilities needed to detect and warn of potential 10-meter and larger NEO impacts with Earth, and to either prevent such an event or mitigate the possible effects of an impact. This 'National Preparedness Strategy and Action Plan for Near-Earth Object Hazards and Planetary Defense' (2023 Planetary Defense Strategy) updates the United States' first comprehensive Near-Earth Object Preparedness Strategy and Action Plan, released in 2018. The 2023 Planetary Defense Strategy builds on existing efforts by Federal Departments and Agencies to address the hazard of NEO impacts, includes evaluation of where progress has been made since 2018, and focuses future work on planetary defense across the U.S. government."

Washington DC. United States. White House Office. 2023. 38p.

By United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency

From the document: "This Nuclear Detonation Response Guidance: Planning for the First 72 Hours (herein, 'the 72-Hour Nuclear Response Guidance') delineates Missions and Tactics that should be executed by first responders, emergency managers, and other state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) response organizations during the first minutes, hours, and days following a nuclear detonation in or near their jurisdiction. The document includes guidance on how to protect the lives of first responders and the public, develop a common operating picture, establish a coordinated multi-jurisdictional response, and prepare for the integration of support arriving from other jurisdictions, states, and federal agencies across the country. This guidance is intended to be implemented by the jurisdiction(s) where a detonation occurs, as well as those surrounding jurisdictions that are less affected and will mobilize to provide support."

United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency. 2023. 104p.

By Williams, Heather J.; Mcculloch, Caitlin

From the document: "This Perspective serves as a preliminary examination of the many roles and the complex intersection of Truth Decay and national security; in it, we examine how eroding confidence in facts and fact-finding institutions can affect U.S. national security. In addition to framing these intersections, we examine whether Truth Decay's role in national security has changed over time and the impact of the changing definition of 'national security.' [...] This work is intended to serve multiple purposes. The first is understanding: to better explain the broad impacts of Truth Decay on American national security. The second is to frame future research: both to highlight areas where gaps exist and future research could be most fruitful and to provide a framework for how that work would connect to the overarching strategic question. The third is response: to suggest what actors are best positioned to address Truth Decay in national security and potential mitigating initiatives. It is our hope that this work will demonstrate the importance of improving our understanding of Truth Decay in national security and combating the national security vulnerabilities it creates."

RAND Corporation. 2023. 43p.

By  Quentin Liger and  Mirja Gutheil

This study, commissioned by the Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee, provides a discussion on the distinctive features of right-wing extremism as well as of violent actions perpetrated by right-wing extremists in the EU. It gives an overview and analysis of definitions, recent trends and responses to these actions and concludes with recommendations. In particular, the study highlights the need to develop a working definition of right wing-extremism in order to provide a better framework for understanding, studying and measuring the phenomenon.

Brussels: Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs Directorate-General for Internal Policies, 2022. 172p.

By Samantha Walther

The growing threat of far-right extremism in the United States has become more rampant and violent in recent years. The internet provides an easily accessible means to spread far-right ideologies, as well as inspire violence against minorities and those with opposing political views. This study used content analysis of 208 pieces of far-right content from 20 different social media platforms to discern which sites contained or hosted the most far- right content. The study also analyzed patterns in themes, linguistics, hashtags, and symbols. The study found that there is a current shift away from mainstream social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, to platforms that directly challenge mainstream social media platforms and cite free speech and privacy justifications for hosting far-right extremist content, such as 4chan, Bitchute, Gab, and Parler. Common linguistical patterns largely related to Americanism and American values, such as patriotism, war, and an “us” versus “them” mentality. The “us” versus “them” mentality elucidated that online conversations are highly polarized, with evidence of groupthink and group polarization taking place. The results of this study are intended to better inform Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) stakeholders tasked with creating effective counternarratives against the growing far-right movement in America.

Washington, DC; Marlborough, MA:  American Counterterrorism Targeting & Resilience Institute, 2020. 46p.

Edited by Thierry Balzacq and Elyamine Settoul

The most general aim of this book is to advance, if a little, our understanding of radicalization as it relates to jihadi terrorism. This calls for a word of caution, however. While our empirical cases focus on jihadi manifestations and consequences of radicalization, our conceptual chapters drive home a set of ideas, assumptions, and logics that are not unique to jihadi radicalization or violence. In other words, while the book emphasizes Islaminspired radicalization, it acknowledges that radicalization boasts different meanings and has an equally powerful bearing on other types of beliefs (e.g., political and economic). The book sits, therefore, between conceptual apparatuses with a broader scope and reach and case studies that vet their relevance in specific contexts. A caveat is not a substitute for stating a book’s backbone. This book can also, and most obviously, be read as an attempt to explicate the various ways in which radicalization sometimes leads to violence. Contributors want to account for conditions under which some individuals holding radical views resort to violence. Our cases confirm that many do not. The book is about the others that do, and it draws attention to the diversity of motives and circumstances that push or pull them toward violent action.

Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press,  2022. 297p.

By Anti-Defamation League, Center on Extremism

Extremists are using online crowdfunding platforms like GiveSendGo and GoFundMe to raise millions of dollars for their ideologically driven activities. Through crowdfunding, extremists have generated at least $6,246,072 from 324 campaigns between 2016 and mid-2022. 02 Extremist campaigns found on these platforms espouse hateful rhetoric including antisemitism, white supremacy, QAnon conspiracies and anti-LGBTQ+ extremism, as well as rhetoric from antisemitic sects of Black Hebrew Israelites. 03 Crowdfunding campaigns have been used by extremists to fund direct actions and attacks on their perceived enemies or marginalized communities; legal defenses for extremists who face consequences for these actions; propaganda efforts and other expenses.   

New York: Anti-Defamation League, 2023.  42p.

By Lea Gerster, Richard Kuchta, Dominik Hammer & Christian Schwieter

The ISD Germany study on the extreme right-wing use of Telegram serves as a complementary text to the “Escape routes” report. In it, the research team examined links to other platforms, which were shared on the controversial messenger service and were disseminated in the channels of right-wing extremists, right-wing radicals and conspiracy ideologues in the German-speaking world. The main scope of this research was on smaller platforms that do not fall under the deletion obligation of the NetzDG. Links to larger platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitter were also analysed, given that the collected data set contained almost twice as many links to these platforms than to those not fully covered by the NetzDG.

For this report, the ISD research team collected 659,110 messages from 238 public channels from the extreme right, radical right, Reichsbürger:innen and conspiracy ideology spectrum between 1 January and 12 September 2021. From these messages, 371,988 links were extracted, leading to 8,252 domains. The ISD Germany researchers examined domains that were shared more than 15 times and identified social networks and platforms.

Berlin: Beirut: London: Paris: Washington DC; Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), 2022. 46p.

By Richard Kuchta, Dominik Hammer, Lea Gerster & Christian Schwieter

Since the beginning of 2021, ISD Germany has been researching right-wing extremist actors on alternative platforms on the internet. Three reports were published as part of the German Federal Ministry for Justice (BMJ)-funded project “Countering radicalisation in right-wing extremist online subcultures”. The last report in 2021, “Detours and Diversions – Online Strategies for the Dissemination of Right-Wing Extremist Content”, provides a summary of the projects central findings and presents them in a comparative manner.

This report thus combines the methodological and theoretical groundwork of the report “Wegweiser” with the results of the empirical research of the reports “Fluchtwege” and “Stützpfeiler Telegram”, and puts them into context. The report presents a comparison of data from established platforms and Telegram, and thus helps to gain a better understanding of the behaviour of far-right actors on the selected platforms. It also includes a comparative analysis of the strategies and linkages of far-right and radical right actors on established and alternative platforms.    This research is based on the empirical data collected by the platforms. Given, that data collection is different for each platform, and given that this project also explores alternative platforms, it also furthers the exploration of data collection options, which are described in more detail in this report.

Berlin: Beirut: London: Paris: Washington DC; Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), 2022. 24p.