Shining the Spotlight on Injustice: An Interview with Morris Dees

Abstract

First of all, I’d say that if you have individuals that are espousing hateful messages in a community, then it’s important to shine the spotlight on them so people can understand what they’re doing. To ignore them would be like ignoring a cancer, because it can grow. People ignored Adolf Hitler and his little gang as they had their little parties in beer gardens around Munich, figuring that they’d just go away. I’m not saying that’s what would happen today in America if some hate group in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho was left simmering in the quiet of the woods without anybody ever knowing about it. But we cannot take the chance. It’s important to expose not only that hate groups exist, but also the fallacies of the ideas they espouse.

Keywords

• ku klux klan
• aryan nation
• nazi
• hate