Global Project Against Hate and Extremism

Last updated
Global Project Against Hate and Extremism
AbbreviationGPAHE
Formation2020
FoundersHeidi Beirich, Wendy Via
TypeNonprofit organization
PurposeCombating hate and extremism
Location
  • Montgomery, Alabama, United States
Area served
Worldwide
MethodResearch, advocacy, education
Key people
Heidi Beirich (Co-founder)
Website Official website

The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to studying and denouncing initiatives of extremism and hate worldwide. Founded in 2020 by Heidi Beirich and Wendy Via, GPAHE utilizes research, advocacy, and education to expose extremist movements, their tactics, and their impacts. [1]

Contents

History and mission statement

GPAHE was established in response to a growing international threat of extremism and hate speech. Recognizing the transnational nature of these movements, its stated goal is to create a global network to monitor, analyze, and counter extremist activities. [2]

The organization's mission is to strengthen and educate a diverse global community committed to exposing and countering racism, bigotry, and hate, and associated violence; and to promote the human rights values that support flourishing, inclusive societies and democracies. [3]

Activities

GPAHE's work focuses on several key areas:

Reports

Extremist groups in social media in Brazil

The GPAHE issued, in 2024, a report identifying over 20 active extremist groups in Brazil, many of which utilize social media platforms to spread hate speech. The report highlighted the lack of regulation and moderation on these platforms as a contributing factor to the growth of these groups. It specifically named groups like the Instituto Conservador-Liberal and the Liberal Party (PL) for promoting harmful content. It also detailed how these groups target vulnerable communities, particularly the LGBTQIA+ community, with hate speech and disinformation. The report further identified various extremist groups across different states in Brazil, detailing their online activities, ideologies, and the platforms they use to spread their messages. Additionally, it questioned the moderation policies of platforms like Meta, Google, and YouTube, raising concerns about their lack of action against these extremist groups. [6]

Far-eight extremism in Portugal

A 2023 report by GPAHE identifies the Chega party as a central force in radical far-right movements in Portugal. The report compares Chega to groups like the Proud Boys and Hammerskins, highlighting its role in fostering a rhetoric of racism, anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments, anti-immigration, anti-islam [7] and anti-Roma discrimination. Chega, under the leadership of André Ventura, has increasingly dominated the far-right landscape, drawing comparisons to other European populist parties while aligning with nationalist, identitarian, and conspiratorial movements. [8]

The report notes a rise in conspiracy and anti-government movements during the pandemic, which later aligned with Chega and similar groups. It highlights a significant increase in hate speech and far-right street mobilization accompanying Chega's rise, with a concerning level of racially motivated hate crimes and violence against women in Portugal. [9] Additionally, the report points to the internationalization of Portuguese far-right extremism, influenced by neofascist and supremacist ideologies from other countries. [8]

Chega's structure is described as highly centralized around Ventura, with the party's youth wing being even more radical, supporting white supremacy, misogyny, and fascism. The GPAHE emphasizes that Chega's rapid growth serves as a warning of the potential for far-right parties to quickly expand their influence. [8]

Report on Antisemitism and Extremism on X

A 2023 report from GPAHE highlights the role of major figures like Elon Musk and Tucker Carlson in mainstreaming antisemitic conspiracy theories, particularly the "great replacement" theory, on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). This theory falsely claims a covert effort to replace white populations, often attributing this to Jewish people. [10]

Despite Musk's aggressive responses to critics, including suspending and reinstating extremist accounts, white nationalists and other far-right extremists have celebrated Musk's role in shifting the Overton Window on antisemitism. The GPAHE report underscores the significant increase in hate content and the alignment of prominent personalities with extremist views, further demonstrating the platform's growing role in fostering such narratives. [10]

The GPAHE, co-founded by extremism expert Heidi Beirich, emphasizes the failure of X's moderation policies under Musk's ownership, noting that the platform has become one of the largest sites for hate content globally. This trend reflects the broader rise of rightwing extremism in the US, facilitated by influential social media platforms. [10]

Related Research Articles

Extremism is "the quality or state of being extreme" or "the advocacy of extreme measures or views". The term is primarily used in a political or religious sense to refer to an ideology that is considered to be far outside the mainstream attitudes of society. It can also be used in an economic context. The term may be used pejoratively by opposing groups, but is also used in academic and journalistic circles in a purely descriptive and non-condemning sense.

The Australian League of Rights is a far-right and antisemitic political organisation in Australia. It was founded in Adelaide, South Australia, by Eric Butler in 1946, and organised nationally in 1960. It inspired groups like the Canadian League of Rights (1968), the New Zealand League of Rights (1970) and the British League of Rights (1971), with principles based on the economic theory of Social Credit expounded by C. H. Douglas. The League describes itself as upholding the virtues of freedom, with stated values of "loyalty to God, Queen and Country".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Les Identitaires</span> French identitarian political movement

Les Identitaires, formerly the Bloc identitaire, is an Identitarian nationalist movement in France. Like the French New Right, scholars generally consider the movement far-right or sometimes as a syncretic mixture of multiple ideologies across the political spectrum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Institute for Strategic Dialogue</span> Think tank

The Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) is a political advocacy organization founded in 2006 by Sasha Havlicek and George Weidenfeld and headquartered in London, United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hope not Hate</span> Advocacy group against racism and fascism, based in the United Kingdom

Hope not Hate is an advocacy group based in the United Kingdom which campaigns against racism and fascism. It has also mounted campaigns against Islamic extremism and antisemitism. It is self-described as a "non-partisan, non-sectarian organisation." The group was founded in 2004 by Nick Lowles, a former editor of the anti-fascist magazine Searchlight. It is backed by various politicians and celebrities, and it has also been backed by several trade unions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian Protectionist Party</span> Political party in Australia

The Australian Protectionist Party(APP) is a minor Australian far-right political party. Established in 2007, the party stated that it had been formed to fill the void of a pro-Australian party within the political arena based on traditional values.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Counter Extremism Project</span> Nonprofit NGO that combats extremist groups

The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) is a non-profit non-governmental organization that combats extremist groups "by pressuring financial support networks, countering the narrative of extremists and their online recruitment, and advocating for strong laws, policies and regulations".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traditionalist Worker Party</span> Defunct neo-Nazi and white nationalist American political party

The Traditionalist Worker Party (TWP) was a neo-Nazi political party active in the United States between 2013 and 2018, affiliated with the broader "alt-right" movement that became active within the U.S. during the 2010s. It was considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center's list.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The People of Family</span> Italian political party

The People of Family, is a social conservative political party in Italy. Its leader and President is Mario Adinolfi, writer and director of La Croce newspaper and former member of the Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gab (social network)</span> American alt-tech social media service

Gab is an American alt-tech microblogging and social networking service known for its far-right userbase. Widely described as a haven for neo-Nazis, racists, white supremacists, white nationalists, antisemites, the alt-right, supporters of Donald Trump, conservatives, right-libertarians, and believers in conspiracy theories such as QAnon, Gab has attracted users and groups who have been banned from other social media platforms and users seeking alternatives to mainstream social media platforms. Founded in 2016 and launched publicly in May 2017, Gab claims to promote free speech, individual liberty, the "free flow of information online", and Christian values. Researchers and journalists have characterized these assertions as an obfuscation of its extremist ecosystem. Antisemitism is prominent in the site's content and the company itself has engaged in antisemitic commentary. Gab CEO Andrew Torba has promoted the white genocide conspiracy theory. Gab is based in Pennsylvania.

The Marriage Alliance is an Australian lobby group based in Sydney, New South Wales which supports the definition of marriage between a man and a woman as found in the Marriage Amendment Act 2004. According to the group's website, it "is an independent alliance bringing together individuals and organisations supporting a common cause. We exist to voice the opinion of the silent majority of Australians that respect same-sex attracted people, but do not want to change the current definition of marriage." They campaign against same-sex marriage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Love Australia or Leave</span> Political party in Australia

Love Australia or Leave was a far-right Australian political party. The party was founded by Kim Vuga, who is still the head. The party platform includes opposition to mass immigration and Islam in Australia, and support of Australia leaving the United Nations. The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) released a report on October 5, 2022, in which it classified Love Australia or Leave as an "anti-immigrant" and "anti-Muslim" group.

The League of the South is a far-right political party in France founded by Jacques Bompard with former members of the National Front in 2010. The party is established in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, particularly in the department of Vaucluse. Orange, the department's second most populated commune, as well as Piolenc, both have League of the South mayors. The party currently has one representative in the National Assembly: Marie-France Lorho, who sits for the 4th constituency of Vaucluse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AGRIF</span> French Catholic association

The General Alliance against Racism and for Respect for French and Christian Identity is a French organization tied to the far-right and Catholic integralism that fights against speech it considers to violate French hate speech laws by being hateful towards Christians or the French people. Recognized as an anti racism organization by the French court system, the organization has brought several cases before court and won a few cases in the Court of Cassation in the 1990s, but has had little legal success more recently. On February 14, 2023, the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) released a report in which it classified l'AGRIF as an "anti-muslim" group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terre et Peuple</span> French neo-pagan association

Terre et Peuple is a far-right and neo-pagan cultural association in France founded by Pierre Vial and launched in 1995. Its positions are close to the Identitarian movement, although it precedes that movement and its terminology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chega (political party)</span> Right-wing populist political party in Portugal

Chega is a national conservative, right-wing populist political party in Portugal formed in 2019 by André Ventura. It is characterized as being between the right-wing and far-right of the political spectrum.

Algorithmic radicalization is the concept that recommender algorithms on popular social media sites such as YouTube and Facebook drive users toward progressively more extreme content over time, leading to them developing radicalized extremist political views. Algorithms record user interactions, from likes/dislikes to amount of time spent on posts, to generate endless media aimed to keep users engaged. Through echo chamber channels, the consumer is driven to be more polarized through preferences in media and self-confirmation.

GiveSendGo is a Christian crowdfunding website. GiveSendGo has attracted controversy for allowing far-right extremists to fundraise, including neo-Nazis, white supremacists and hate groups.

The counter-jihad movement in France consists of various organisations and individuals such as Riposte Laïque and Republican Resistance, led by Pierre Cassen and Christine Tasin respectively, Observatory on Islamisation, and other groups such as those founded by Alain Wagner. The movement has cooperated with the Bloc Identitaire, Daniel Pipes and the Middle East Forum, Stop Islamisation of Europe, and has organised events such as the "Apéro Géant: saucisson et pinard", a happy hour gathering of wine and deli meat cold cuts whose ingredients include pork.

StoneToss is a pseudonymous American neo-Nazi political cartoonist who publishes a webcomic of the same name. Launched in June 2017, the comic espouses racist, sexist, transphobic, homophobic, and antisemitic views, including Holocaust denial, under what the author claims is "edgy humor", using "simple and colorful imagery".

References

  1. ↑ "Global Project Against Hate and Extremism – INACH" . Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  2. ↑ "About GPAHE". Global Project Against Hate and Extremism. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  3. ↑ "Global Project Against Hate and Extremism". www.idealist.org. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  4. ↑ Beirich, Heidi (2020-02-11). "Written Testimony of Heidi L. Beirich, Ph.D. Co-Founder Global Project Against Hate and Extremism Before the Congress of the Un - Congress.gov" (PDF). US Congress. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  5. ↑ Beirich, Heidi; Via, Wendy (2020). "Generation Identity // International White Nationalist Movement Spreading On Twitter And Youtube" (PDF). Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  6. ↑ Queiroz, Danilo (2024-04-29). "Grupos espalham ódio nas redes sem moderação das plataformas". Agência Pública (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  7. ↑ "ONG alerta para risco de violência de ação anti-islâmica em Lisboa". Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  8. 1 2 3 "Chega "é o vetor comum para movimentos mais radicais da extrema-direita", aponta relatório norte-americano". CNN Portugal (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  9. ↑ "Os movimentos de ódio portugueses estão a copiar as ideias da extrema-direita internacional – e isso é "bastante preocupante"". Expresso (in Portuguese). 2023-06-27. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  10. 1 2 3 Wilson, Jason (2023-11-21). "Rightwing personalities use X to bring antisemitic theories to light in US". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2024-05-16.
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