White power activists' use of virtual social space and its implications

Although virtual social spaces on the internet have been used to challenge social inequalities, virtual social spaces have also been successfully used to promote a racist agenda. As Simi and Futrell (2009:83) point out: “The Web has given Aryans a new place to assemble in expansive cyber-communities where they preserve racist and anti-Semitic narratives and build virtual social solidarity. Online forums are echo chambers for hate.”   Based on interviews of white power activists in the U.S., we consider their perceptions about the effectiveness of the internet in recruiting members and advancing their beliefs and goals.  For example, Matt Hale, an imprisoned lawyer and leader of World Church of the Creator, found that the internet “substantially has been quite a boom for us.  It has brought us many members and many intelligent members at that.”  On the other hand JM cautions:  “Nothing is a secret anymore. Privacy is non-existent, especially e-mail is NOT safe.” Some movement supporters mention concern about censorship. We consider the theoretical implications of their strategies and possible counterstrategies to “virtual hate” (Simi and Futrell 2009: 83) recognizing that “the transnational character of the internet can make applying normal defamation or anti-hatred laws on the internet extremely difficult” (Gelber 2011:18).