A neo-Nazi group scattered fliers across lawns and doorsteps in three Waterloo, Iowa, neighborhoods just before Veterans Day. The handouts offered a chilling assessment of the group’s proximity, in capital letters: “We are your neighbors! We are the random stranger holding the door open for you!” it read. “We are everywhere.”
About a week later, about a dozen people marched through a part of Columbus, Ohio, that is known for arts and culture, carrying Nazi flags and using a bullhorn to shout racial slurs against Jews and people of color. A similar scene unfolded in downtown Nashville over the summer.
Flash displays of hate and white power are happening more frequently in the United States, a trend that experts say is a reaction to changing demographics, political turmoil and social catalysts. More than 750 such incidents have taken place since 2020, according to the Anti-Defamation League, with more than half of them occurring in the last 18 months.
National experts describe a familiar pattern: Small groups of mostly masked men chant and wave swastika or white power flags in public and yell racial slurs at targets as varied as immigrants, Black people, Jews and L.G.B.T.Q. people. They unfurl offensive banners over highways or post racist fliers in communities. The demonstrations are typically captured on video and ricochet across social media to large audiences.
The league’s Center on Extremism counted 282 events organized or attended by white supremacists in 2023, a 63 percent increase from the 173 recorded in 2022. And in 2024, from about Memorial Day to Labor Day, there were 64 white supremacist activities in 25 states, the center said. Those included “fight nights” and mixed-martial-arts-style events held for supporters to socialize, recruit members and raise money, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
Almost every week, small white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups have been descending on downtowns, gathering in public parks or rallying on the grounds of state houses and courthouses across the country.