Neo-Nazism in the United States

Scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed the other day, I saw this provocative and tense image with the caption, "Photo of woman defying neo-Nazi march in Sweden." I had always heard about the neo-Nazi movement, especially through cultural depictions such as in the movie American History X, but I never really knew anything about and wanted to explore it further through this blog post.

Neo-Nazism is a sociopolitical movement that sprung up after World War II to revive the extremely radical ideas of Adolf Hitler's 20th-century German Nazi Party and totalitarian state. The main tenet of this way of thinking was an extreme version of Social Darwinism, which identifies "Aryans" as the master race and superior to all other races. By means of the "survival of the fittest" idea supported by Social Darwinism, there suddenly existed a justification for the isolation and mass killing of minorities such as Jews and blacks, which were considered "inferior" races.

Neo-Nazism borrows many elements from this now-condemned doctrine, most notably antisemitism and racism. In addition, it offers support to the prior Nazi party through the prolific use of Nazi symbols like the swastika, adulation of Adolf Hitler, and even denial of the Holocaust. Indeed, many members of this movement call the Holocaust a "fabrication" and "conspiracy", instead choosing to blame the genocide of millions on disease and famine. The movement is shockingly widespread across the globe, with organized international networks that have prompted nations to impose bans on the expression of pro-Nazi sentiment in order to curtail the effects of the movement.

In the United States, the National Socialist Movement is currently the largest neo-Nazi organization, with 400 members in 32 states. Similar organizations have been present ever since the end of World War II, publishing Nazi-related articles and icons to counter racial integration. Ironically, the First Amendment to the Constitution allows for almost absolute freedom of speech, which allows movements such as these to voice their controversial, racist views. It is a tragedy that the very foundations upon which our country is based are what allow for such discriminatory actions to continue. Although groups like these are in the minority, they definitely do pose a problem to the unification of society under common, peaceful ideals.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36211652
http://www.mintpressnews.com/the-rebirth-of-american-nazism/180286/