In her new book, Sisters in Hate, Seyward Darby turns our focus away from the image that often springs to mind when we think of white nationalism—that of angry, often armed white men. As she writes of the men who marched with burning torches in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017, the “iconic images…show illuminated male faces—grimacing, grinning, threatening.”
But in a video posted online from that night, Darby was struck by a woman who stepped from the crowd to confront a counter-protester—using a racial slur to accuse the person of being a race traitor by failing to join the marchers. “She seemed disgusted that someone would debase themselves instead of standing with their own kind.” That moment helped propel Darby to begin reporting deeply on the women leaders in America’s hate groups—the women who, unlike many of the men, do their work quietly and away from the cameras. “The people who are most frightening are always the people who don’t want to talk to the mainstream media.”
In our conversation, we talk about how these women sell their own unique brand of hatred, wrapped tightly in homespun American values—and distributed via YouTube, social media and other channels. “They have always been savvy about communicating with each other and potential recruits outside the eyes of the mainstream media.”
STORIES FROM THE LAST 7 DAYS:
In Episode 3 of the podcast, I talked to Liar’s Circus author Carl Hoffman, who spent months traveling across the country attending MAGA rallies in an effort to understand the people who stick with Donald Trump, no matter what.
At Forbes:
Fauci Tells CNN: President Trump ‘Asking For Trouble’ With Florida Rally
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Vice Presidential Debate Draws 50 Million Viewers
Episode 4: Seyward Darby, 'Sisters in Hate'