Report: Texas once again among top states for white supremacist activity in 2023

Texas remains among the worst states in the nation for white supremacist actions.

Virginia was worse for "white supremacist activity" in 2023, according to the annual assessment from the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism. Texas was second on the list for the most "publicly held white supremacist events."

Despite its high ranking, the most recent numbers actually indicate a small improvement over last year's totals — Texas saw 492 total incidents last year compared to 527 when it was No. 1 on the 2022 list, according to the ADL report.

Texas is home to Patriot Front, a white supremacist group behind most of the incidents recorded last year.

"One of the biggest drivers (of the state's rating) is the fact that one of the largest and most active white supremacist groups is the Patriot Front and they are based in Texas," said Peter Svarzbein, community engagement manager for ADL Southwest. "The fact is that Patriot Front, according to our recording, is responsible for 60% of white supremacist propaganda across the country."

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Nationwide white supremacist propaganda distribution rose 12% over the year to more than 7,500 recorded incidents. Antisemitic propaganda saw a 30% increase while anti-LGBTQ+ propaganda saw a shocking 141% increase, rising from 68 incidents in 2022 to 164 in 2023.

El Paso, meanwhile, was nearly immune to many of the woes plaguing the rest of the Lone Star State. The ADL recorded only two white supremacist incidents in El Paso last year. Two incidents of someone distributing antisemitic and anti-LGBTQ+ propaganda in a residential area were also recorded last year.

"I think that's because of who we are as El Pasoans," Svarzbein said. "We're a very diverse community and have a very welcoming and tolerant community that doesn't really have space to accept hate of any kind."

"That's not to say it isn't here," he added, "but I don't think it's here like it is in other communities in Texas."

College incidents declining but Texas takes action

While the number of white supremacist activities rose overall in 2023, incidents at college campuses dropped for the fourth straight year. Only 59 incidents were recorded last year, which represents the lowest number of incidents since ADL began recording in 2017.

Still, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order on March 27 aimed at fighting what he called "the increase in acts of antisemitism at colleges and universities in Texas."

Abbott's move appears less focused on racist hate speech and more focused on the pro-Palestinian demonstrations that have sprung up at many U.S. colleges and universities. Following the Hamas-led attack on Israel last year that killed over 1,200 people, Israel has led a six-months-long war that has killed thousands of Palestinians, sparking outrage from many liberal activists.

"Antisemitism is never acceptable in Texas and we will do everything we can to fight it," Abbott wrote in a statement. "The state of Texas stands with Israel and the Jewish community, and we must escalate our efforts to protect against antisemitism at Texas colleges and universities and across our state."

"Across the country, acts of antisemitism have grown in number, size and danger to the Jewish community since Hamas' deadly attack on October 7," he continued. "Texas took immediate action to protects Jewish schools, synagogues and other key locations. Many Texas colleges and universities also acted quickly to condemn antisemitism, but some radical organizations on our campuses engaged in acts that have no place in Texas. Now, we must work to ensure that our college campuses are safe spaces for members of the Jewish community."

Abbott's not alone in his assessment — the ADL report noted that last year's rise in antisemitic propaganda was "buoyed by online reactions to the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, as white supremacist leaders applauded the terrorist group and violence against Israelis."

'Words matter'

While El Paso may have avoided the kind of white supremacist activity other cities in Texas experienced last year, Svarzbein was quick to note that El Paso experienced the worst of the movement on Aug. 3, 2019.

The language of the shooter, he said, "directly related to racist and demeaning rhetoric about wanting to stop a Hispanic invasion in Texas" and "mirrored many political leaders."

"We, as El Pasoans, have seen this play out, that words matter," Svarzbein said. "And the language leaders use to talk about different things can lead to real ugliness and violence."

The kind of hateful rhetoric employed by domestic terrorists, Svarzbein said, has been allowed to spread amongst a broad audience thanks to social media, which still lacks stringent monitoring of hate speech.

"Oftentimes, the more extreme the language ... the more viral it becomes," he said. "And people can live in their own world where their perspective, their worldview, is reinforced."

Pushing back against hate speech, whether from mainstream political leaders or people on the street, is the first step toward curbing the rise in white supremacist activity, he said.

"I think, number one, is for good people to speak up," Svarzbein said. "Because bad things happen when good people stay silent. If people don't speak up and say that kind of language is not okay, it can escalate.

"If we don’t have community leadership, political leadership, that pushes against those actions and those words it leaves all of us less safe.”

Adam Powell covers government and politics for the El Paso Times and can be reached via email at apowell@elpasotimes.com.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Report: Texas still among worst states for white supremacist activity