Pete Simi

UNDERSTANDING MUSIC IN MOVEMENTS: The White Power Music Scene

Relying on the analysis of ethnographic and documentary data, this article explains how U.S. White Power Movement (WPM) activists use music to produce collective occasions and experiences that we conceptualize as the movements music scene. We use the concept “music scene” to refer to the full range of movement occasions in which music is the organizing principle. Members experience these not as discrete events, but as interconnected sets of situations that form a relatively coherent movement music scene. We emphasize three analytically distinct dimensions of this scene—local, translocal, and virtual—and specify how each contributes to emotionally loaded experiences that nurture collective identity. Participants claim that strong feelings of dignity, pride, pleasure, love, kinship, and fellowship are supported through involvement in the WPM music scene. These emotions play a central role in vitalizing and sustaining member commitments to movement ideals.

Why Study White Supremacist Terror? A Research Note

This article discusses how the current neglect of white supremacist violence impedes the development of terrorism scholarship. The decentralized organization of contemporary white supremacists is often confused with disorganization that has led some observers to claim that white supremacist terror (WST) poses a relatively benign threat and is essentially irrelevant. In contrast, I argue that white supremacist violence is part of a broader social movement strategy. Lastly, I discuss how four hot-button issues may contribute to a new large-scale wave of WST.

Narratives of Childhood Adversity and Adolescent Misconduct as Precursors to Violent Extremism A Life-Course Criminological Approach

Objective: We examined how nonideological factors such as childhood risk factors and adolescent conduct problems precede participation in violent extremism (VE). Methods: We conducted in-depth life-history interviews with former members of violent White supremacist groups (N = 44) to examine their childhood and adolescent experiences, and how they explain the factors that led to the onset of VE. Results: Based on self-reports, we found substantial presence of childhood risk factors and adolescent conduct problems as precursors to participation in violent extremist groups. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that pathways to VE are more complex than previously identified in the literature and that violent extremists are a heterogeneous population of offenders whose life histories resemble members of conventional street gangs and generic criminal offenders. We conclude our article with implications related to criminological theory, directions for future research, and limitations.

Military Experience, Identity Discrepancies, and Far Right Terrorism: An Exploratory Analysis

The relationship between far right extremism and military involvement is a complex problem and the dynamics that explain this relationship are not well understood. The present article addresses this gap by discussing the relationship between military experience, identity discrepancies, and far right terrorism. This article proposes that identity discrepancies occur when individuals experience involuntary role exits from the military or when individuals perceive that personal achievements earned while enlisted are unrecognized or unappreciated. Identity discrepancies may facilitate a change in behavior toward far right extremism and eventually terrorism. Case study examples are provided to illustrate this relationship.

From Punk Kids to Public Enemy Number One

Using an in-depth case study, we examine the origins and development of the Southern California–based racist skinhead gang known as Public Enemy Number One (PENI). Unlike many racist skinheads who view themselves as part of a political movement, members of PENI view themselves as part of a racist street gang with relatively little interest in traditional forms of political activism. Instead and contrary to the focus of most scholarly research on racist groups, PENI is involved in profit-oriented criminal activity such as the distribution of methamphetamine, identity theft, and counterfeiting. We examine how members of PENI attempt to balance a white supremacist and street gang identity.

Addicted to hate: Identity residual among former white supremacists

The process of leaving deeply meaningful and embodied identities can be experienced as a struggle against addiction, with continuing cognitive, emotional, and physiological responses that are involuntary, unwanted, and triggered by environmental factors. Using data derived from a unique set of in-depth life history interviews with 89 former U.S. white supremacists, as well as theories derived from recent advances in cognitive sociology, we examine how a rejected identity can persist despite a desire to change. Disengagement from white supremacy is characterized by substantial lingering effects that subjects describe as addiction. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of identity residual for understanding how people leave and for theories of the self.

Leaving the World of Hate Life-Course Transitions and Self-Change

The topic of hate group membership and radicalization toward extremist ideologies has received substantial attention in recent years; however, relatively less is known about the process of disengagement and deradicalization. This is troubling because the number of hate groups in the United States has increased and some are known to engage in a variety of violent and criminal behavior. This exploratory study relies on life history interviews with 34 former white supremacists, one of the oldest types of hate groups in the United States, to examine the process of exit from these groups. Findings suggest that exiting is a multifaceted process with a variety of factors that influence a person’s decision to leave. The results also highlight a number of difficulties associated with exiting such as ongoing emotions of guilt, ideological relapse, and maintaining social ties with current members of the white supremacist movement.

Disillusionment and Change: A Cognitive-Emotional Theory of Gang Exit

Exit from street gangs has received increased attention in recent years; however, a number of important questions regarding the process of leaving remain unanswered. Relying on identity theory, we present a cognitive-emotional theory of gang exit that emphasizes functional dimensions of anger in terms of motivating individuals to pursue identity change related to gang membership. Specifically, anger provides gang members with an opportunity to identify the gang as a major source of their problems. According to identity theory, anger is generated when there is an inability to meet an identity standard. This article argues that an inability to meet identity goals produces disillusionment and anger, which reduces the relative importance of the gang identity and facilitates exit from gangs.

Putting the “O” in VEOs: What makes an organization?

Violent extremist organizations differ from other ideologically based groups that do not necessarily meet formal criteria to be considered organizations, and distinguishing between these types of collective arrangements is critical in understanding their strengths and weaknesses. We identified three arrangements of individuals with varying levels of sophistication: groups, simple organizations, and complex organizations. Each arrangement is discussed in terms of its influence on fundraising, recruiting, and attack execution, with particular emphasis being placed on exemplars from the white supremacist ideology. Despite their shared ideology, white supremacists illustrate marked performance-related differences that are influenced by organizational factors such as leadership, structure, and formalization. Analyzing those differences led us to conclude that organizations are unique from groups, different structures are best suited for certain strategies, leadership matters a great deal in the context of violent extremist organizations, and organizations are not static.

The [Un]Surprising Alt-Right:

Robert Futrell and Pete Simi on the simmering sentiments and political fortunes of White supremacists.