Explaining the Geographic Distribution of White Supremacist Activities, 2013-2015

• In Event: Radicalization and Violent Extremism

Abstract

Much of the prior research on domestic extremism focuses on very rare outcomes that are the culmination of an often-lengthy process – criminal events, especially violent ones – without as much attention devoted to the more common or fundamental activities that often mark the beginning of the mobilization process for extremist groups and the individuals associated with them. Broadly, the goal of the current study is to fill this gap in knowledge by integrating prominent criminological theories and themes drawn from the social movement literature in order to explore the geographic distribution and macro-level correlates of ideologically-motivated white supremacist activities. Specifically, we implement content analysis techniques of open source and news media materials in order to geo-locate a wide variety of different white supremacist events expected to signify support and/or mobilization (e.g., rallies), which we then aggregate and pair with demographic and structural measures drawn from the United States Census. We conclude by discussing the contributions of the current study relative to the broader far-right extremist literature, as well as suggest avenues for future research.

Authors

• Drew Cormac Medaris, University of Arkansas

• Casey Taggart Harris, University of Arkansas