Hate Crimes Nourish Domestic Terror in the United States and Europe

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper provides cross-cultural application of the iceberg model of political extremism 1 conceptualizing hate crimes as reflecting the dangerous base that gives rise to mass casualty right-wing extremist attacks. Evidence is reviewed demonstrating that both offenses are motivated by the same prejudices and that right-wing violent extremists are more likely than other extremists to have engaged in pre-radicalization crime. 2 This discussion goes beyond previous considerations of the iceberg model by applying it across societies and showing its relationship to democratic backsliding. Comparison of the United States with countries in western and east-central Europe is centered on hate crime and far-right anti-government white supremacist extremism. The importance of recognizing hate crimes as a national security issue 3 overlapping domestic violent extremism is demonstrated as are the consequences of current limitations on the availability of data on both problems. 4