人兽性交

In both the Southern Poverty Law Center (人兽性交) and the field of extremism research as a whole, analyses of the far right have often neglected to fully account for the innumerable ways gender, misogyny and gender-based violence manifest within and operate alongside other forms of racially and religiously motivated hate. Organizations like the have done pioneering work monitoring and defining misogynistic hate ideologies, but this area of extremism is still not widely recognized or accurately understood.

The 人兽性交 has been adapting how we monitor hate and extremism to more accurately reflect ideological distinctions. Our efforts to better capture organized misogyny began in 2018, when we started monitoring male supremacist hate groups. Male supremacist groups vilify women along paradoxes: manipulative yet incompetent; genetically inferior, yet the progenitors of the white race; and deserving of violent punishment both for having sex and denying sex to men. Many of these narratives about the inferiority and subjugation of women underpin the beliefs of nearly all extremist groups. The manifestations and rhetoric can be different across ideologies, however the resultant verbal, psychological and physical violence that such views motivate against women and trans people remains steadfast.

Dangerous Manifestations: Extremism and Domestic Violence

In order to effectively and thoroughly research gender in extremism, we must examine each intersection of these issues. While the ubiquity of misogyny and gender-based violence is hard to overstate in the far right, and our broader society, we began this research by examining domestic violence鈥攁n issue that surfaces regularly in the lives, actions and discussions of far-right adherents鈥攁nd extremism.

Anecdotes of abuse abound, from white nationalist being accused of emotional and physical abuse in 2018 divorce filings to allegations that Stewart Rhodes鈥攆ounder of the antigovernment Oath Keepers鈥攅ngaged in听emotional and manipulative abuse aimed at limiting his family鈥檚 freedoms, a type of behavior calls coercive control. These harmful acts, if true,听are the physical embodiment of violent rhetoric and narratives from groups like the Proud Boys, who claim, 鈥渓eftist women are more third-wave feminist and less feminine than ever and now, you鈥檙e not even women anymore鈥� either your [sic] women, and if you are, please stop fighting men, or you鈥檙e not women and your face is now punchable.鈥�

Domestic violence has been reported and alleged across a spectrum of hate and antigovernment groups. However, misogyny and rigid gender roles are a common ideological pillar for most groups, and harm not only cisgender women, but trans people as well, along with 人兽性交 identified people more broadly.

To better understand these issues with an eye towards more effectively confronting and interrupting violence, the 人兽性交 convened a group of researchers, practitioners, academics and activists in far-right extremism, male supremacism, domestic violence, grassroots organizing and journalism earlier this fall. Across the six 90-minute panel discussions, speakers addressed the intersection of issues including gun violence, anti-人兽性交 bigotry, the continuing impact of colonization, discriminatory immigration policy and comprehensive interventions as they pertain to violent extremism and domestic violence. Consistent throughout these discussions was a need to move away from criminal justice solutions to build upon victim-centered approaches grounded in education and in restorative and transformative justice.

Patriarchal Violence: An Apt Descriptor for Pervasive Oppressions

As the 人兽性交 seeks to increase its efficacy at rooting out hate and extremism in all its forms, we must also practice humility and flexibility. During our few years fully considering gender-based violence, and the handful of times our department has published articles on the subject, we have used the term 鈥渄omestic violence.鈥� While this term, as well as 鈥渋ntimate partner violence,鈥� accurately define the specific type of relational harm that is being enacted, these terms largely fail to capture the roots of this cyclical violence at the intersections of race, class, religion and gender.

While the term 鈥減atriarchal violence鈥� has existed to describe structural inequities for decades, , , . and recently convened the to resituate patriarchal violence within a comprehensive context. Their definition reads, 鈥淧atriarchal Violence (PV) is an interconnected system of institutions, practices, policies, beliefs, and behaviors that harm, undervalues, and terrorize girls, women, femme, intersex, gender non-conforming, 人兽性交, and other gender-oppressed people in our communities. PV is a widespread, [normalized] epidemic based on the domination, control, and colonizing of bodies, genders, and sexualities, happening in every community globally. PV is a global power structure and manifests on the systemic, institutional, interpersonal, and internalized level. It is rooted in interlocking systems of oppression.鈥�

The Abolishing Patriarchal Violence Innovation Lab鈥檚 definition provides continuity from the genocide of indigenous populations, forced removal and lack of tribal jurisdiction to the high rates of missing and murdered indigenous women today. It contextualizes the gravity of the Supreme Court鈥檚 recent ruling in the history of , like the Dawes Act, and cases limiting tribal sovereignty, such as . This understanding of patriarchal violence shines a light on the through-lines from an increase in militia members working at the and the subsequent uptick in violence perpetrated against local indigenous women and girls.

Patriarchal violence recognizes the centuries of oppression on the same land that connects the forced sterilization of indigenous women, through James Marion Sims鈥� unanesthetized gynecological surgeries performed on enslaved black women, to allegations of in ICE detention centers. It subsequently accounts for the injustice of memorializing as the 鈥渇ather of gynecology鈥� when the for Black women in America is two to three times that of their white counterparts. It draws upon iterations of misogyny, racism and homophobia across generations to contextualize and bring visibility to the on average 30- to 听

This definition of patriarchal violence also helps explain the dichotomous role of white women in hate groups that bolster a racist, self-serving ideology while simultaneously subjecting them to rigid gender roles, sexual assault and physical violence. It undergirds the precarious bargain that many white women have made in upholding institutions of white supremacy while forfeiting safety from misogyny and gender-based violence. The intersectional framing of patriarchal violence also opens a space for domestic violence intervention to be an impetus for deradicalization processes.

The Trump Administration and coronavirus pandemic, a confluence of patriarchal violence

The weight of patriarchal violence in this year of upheaval provided a particularly motivating catalyst to evolve our department鈥檚 framing of extremism. Four years of the Trump administration have proven exceedingly difficult for many women, particularly women of color and trans women. The innumerable assaults on fundamental human rights include decimating for members of the 人兽性交 community; appointing , federal judges, quietly gutting the Department of Justice鈥檚 Office on Violence Against Women鈥檚 and a concerted effort to fleeing gender-based violence.

In addition to the obvious concerns around illness and death during a pandemic that has further exposed structural inequities, domestic violence rates have also increased due to necessary stay-at-home measures. During the first two months of the pandemic, the reported a 9% increase in calls and said that 10% of all callers 鈥渃ited COVID-19 as a condition of their experience.鈥�

Contributing to this increase in domestic violence calls is an exponential increase in financial instability. This financial crisis has had a much worse impact on women than men, with roughly in September alone, compared to 216,000 men. In November, the overall for women was 6.1%, with a 9% unemployment rate for Black women and 8.2% for Latinas. impacts rates and severity of domestic violence. An increased financial dependency on an abusive partner can also greatly limit a survivor鈥檚 ability to leave a dangerous relationship.

Hate groups are taking advantage of this unprecedented moment; an increased amount of time online, compounded by feelings of uncertainty, a lack of meaningful social engagement and decreased supervision has increased young people鈥檚 susceptibility to radicalization. Deeply entrenched in the predation and propaganda of hate groups is misogyny and ideations of gender-based violence. As a driver to radicalization, misogyny works alongside racism, antisemitism and perceptions of waning civil rights in the face of increasing equality.

To further complicate these issues in the United States, 鈥�.鈥� With the incoming Democratic presidency, that gun sales will spike due to fears of increased gun control measures that may accompany a liberal administration. With a pandemic continuing to spread out of control, domestic violence concerns become all the more dire.

Moving forward under the Biden-Harris Administration

As our framing of extremism expands to better encompass these understandings of misogyny, so too do our efforts to confront and build resilience against radicalization. The newly elected Biden-Harris administration offers a step towards progress with to bolster culturally specific domestic violence services and plans to increase the safety of survivors through housing initiatives and sensible gun laws. A coordinated effort to disseminate the COVID-19 vaccines and provide financial assistance to all those suffering under the economic burden of a pandemic will also help. However, all of these steps must be taken with an antiracism and victim-centered approach to uplift those who are most vulnerable.

The criminal justice system is particularly ill-suited to handle both domestic violence and radicalization. As Dr. Leigh Goodmark writes in Decriminalizing Domestic Violence: A Balanced Policy Approach to Intimate Partner Violence, 鈥渢he traumatic effects of the inhumane conditions and exposure to violence within prisons feed a destructive cycle of violence when those who abuse are released into the community and resume their intimate relationships.鈥� While this line is written specifically about domestic abusers leaving prison, the same could be said about those who have been radicalized while incarcerated. A system built on violence and control will only breed the same.

To root out extremism and build resilience to radicalization at its source, significant investment needs to be made in education around , critical assessment of online sources and online security for young people. Parents, teachers and caregivers also need to be equipped with the tools to recognize and confront online radicalization. Key to this education is the eradication of harmful constructions of masculinities in boys and young men, to move away from violence as a substitute for emotional literacy.

The has begun making a concerted effort to integrate the 鈥渁gendas on women, peace, and security, counter-terrorism and countering violent extremism.鈥� In contrast, reflective of the convergence of oppressions described under patriarchal violence, the U.S. has long maintained an America First militarism couched in misogyny, colonization and racism. Over the past 20 years, this foreign policy has resulted in the killing of and blocking refugees fleeing conflicts and asylum seekers fleeing gang violence in Central America, escaping domestic violence, and 鈥渇leeing persecution on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.鈥� To move forward with meaningful policy to prevent patriarchal violence, the Biden-听听听听 Harris administration will first have to radically reassess the country鈥檚 past approach.

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