These groups have also played key roles in making society prejudices against immigrants and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) communities, hating people who are “different”. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)—based in Birmingham, Alabama, allows anyone the opportunity to educate him or herself on every aspect of these extremists and hate groups, and to over come their prejudice views of people who are different. Founded in 1971, two civil rights lawyers—Morris Dees and Joseph Levin Junior—believed that all persons should have an equal chance at civil rights, giving birth to the SPLC.
This nonprofit civil rights organization is dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry, and seeks justice for the most vulnerable members of society. From their first documented case, Smith v. Young Men’s Christian Association, in 1969 to a more current case, Hope v. Pelzer, in 2002, this organization has shut down some of the nation’s most dangerous hate groups by winning multimillion-dollar jury verdicts on behalf of their victims. It has dismantled racism in the South, reformed juvenile justice practices, shattered barriers to equality for women, children and the disabled, and protected low-wage immigrant workers from abuse.
Since starting their work, the SPLC has gained international recognition for advocating immigrant justice and LGBT rights—with the successful launch of Teaching Tolerance in school systems. The SPLC is working to stop workplace exploitation and other human rights abuses – filing strategic lawsuits, exposing civil rights violations, educating the public and the media, and pressing the federal government to act. The immigrant justice program of the U. S. is appalling, there are very few lawyers that would take a case involving immigrant affairs—luckily there is the SPLC.
The Term Paper on Why Civil Justice System Needs Reform
Every time an election takes place, those involved in the running promise one thing to the people: change. Those that have come through with sought after changes usually enjoy many terms in office. For many years politicians have promised change in one specific field. However, this area remains twisted and distorted. The civil justice system is abounding with problems. Politicians just do not seem ...
The SPLC takes on many cases every year dealing with immigrants, they believe that the United States welcomes the immigrants cheap and quality of labor, but has a hard time upholding their civil rights. In one case, immigrants paid ten thousand dollars to work in the oil fields, and were “guaranteed” citizenship. Little did these immigrants know that not only were they not granted citizenship, but also were forced into guarded labor camps. The SPLC challenged the H-2 ghostworker program, which gave the employer the power, and has made substantial progress in reforming this program.
The SPLC has taken the LGBT community under their wing, earning their trust in the case, Hoffburg v. Alexander. This case challenged the military’s anti-gay policies, and won. The SPLC has taken hands on approach to the LGBT community, starting in the schools, where they believe the most concern should be focused. Teaching Tolerance is a documentary movie and teaching kit, for both classroom use and professionals, it tells the story of one student’s landmark effort to stand up to his anti-gay classmates.
The SPLC has taken legal action to protect LGBT students in school, prohibiting a hostile atmosphere where the LGBT students would be singled out, and have passed anti-gay policies that allow the LGBT students to freely express their interests and protects the students privacy rights. Immigrants and LGBT’s have the support of SPLC, but with their “differences” there are many extremist and hate groups that would not be supportive in any way. The SPLC realizes that everyone will not agree with how they have helped minorities or the LGBT community.
This being said, the SPLC monitors hate groups and other extremists throughout the United States and exposes their activities to law enforcement agencies, the media and the public. They have 1,007 recorded hate groups over the U. S. including, Klansmen, Neo-Nazis, white nationalists, neo-confederates, racist skinheads, black speremisists, etc. These members have increased by sixty seven percent, since 2002. The groups that are more porminate in the United States are the Ku Klux Klan, the racist skinheads, and the Neo-Nazis.
The Essay on Neo Nazi
Skinheads are a subdivision group of Neo-Nazis. During the late 1960s, skinhead groups organized in Britain. By the 1970s, the British National Front (NF)-the Nation Socialist Party- began to infiltrate skinhead groups. They espoused nationalism, and often staged protests against nonwhite immigration. The trend spread to other countries including the United States, and Canada. Today, skinhead ...
In December 1865, the Ku Klux Klan was founded as a Christian organization. With their long history of violence, it is the most infamous—and oldest—of the American hate groups. Originally the Klan targeted members of the black community, but now targets many groups, such as, Jews, immigrants, the LGBT community, and Catholics. The Klan has been through “3 eras”, meaning that the Klan has faded in and out of our history three times. The SPLC provides the “Klan Dictionary” to help people uncover these people in modern society.
Today, it is estimated there is between 3,000-5,000 Klansmen active in the U. S. , but the Klan has been greatly weakened by internal conflicts, court cases, a seemingly endless series of splits and government infiltration. The Klan has inspired a new generation of hate groups—the skinheads. The racist skinheads seemed like just another rebellious youth subculture. Since 1980s, each decade has brought an abundance of racist skinhead violence splashed across the evening news.
Though there is not a specific set of groups targeted, we are lead to believe that the skin heads will follow the Klan in patterns: blacks, immigrants, and LGBT community.. Once hardly known group, now prominate in most state penitentiaries and juvenile dentation centers. Their violent hate stories now are a consistent part of the crimes in America, causing many large police departments to have a “bias-crime” and “skinhead” department. The Neo-Nazi party embodies the principles and hate, set by Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany.
Though, like Hitler, they view the Jews as their primary enemy, the Neo-Nazi party has also targeted the LGBT community, minorities, and Christians. They keep an eye on the government, ultimately tracing the social problems to a Jewish conspiracy that supposedly controls governments, financial institutions and the media. These Neo-Nazis preside away from most populations, generally making “camps” where they carry on their business undisturbed. Surprisingly, most of the Neo-Nazi groups are not focused on hate, but on the revolutionary creation of a fascist political state.
The Essay on Northern Poverty Southern Slavery
This paper compares the lives of women in NYC in the early 1800's to the slaves on southern plantations. 3+ pages; 2 sources; MLA citation style.IIntroductionMany writers have referred to slavery in the United States as the “peculiar” institution. The use of the word indicates that it is considered almost unique. However, there is a parallel system: that of poor working women in New York City in ...
The Neo-Nazi parties in the U. S. stay connected to the Neo-Nazi parties in Germany, and communicate about the advancement in the fascist politics. When researching this organization, I was shocked to find that, like myself, many people were unaware of this organization and what it has done for civil rights in America. The Southern Poverty Law Center has played a major role in the advancements of civil rights and the gradual downfall of all extremists and hates groups.
They supply every tool, not only for recognizing and keeping informed on these groups, but it also supplies the tools needed to change the way the U. S. , and we, view and treat minority, immigrants, and the LGBT community. Works Cited Fallon, Kevin. “Southern Poverty Law Center: Right-Wing Hate Rises Along With Obama. ” The Daily Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast, 09 Mar. 2013. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Isn’t the Southern Poverty Law Center the Real Hate Group? ” Conservative News, Views & Books. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Southern Poverty Law Center. Hate and Extremism. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Southern Poverty Law Center. ” Hate Map. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Southern Poverty Law Center. ” Immigrant Justice. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Southern Poverty Law Center. ” LGBT Rights. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Southern Poverty Law Center. ” Southern Poverty Law Center. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Southern Poverty Law Center. ” Teaching Tolerance. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013. “Teaching Tolerance. ” Teaching Tolerance. N. p. , n. d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013.
