The movement for ages has been interested in getting brighter people into its ranks… What it's really looking for is its future leaders, its tacticians and strategists who can create a second revolution—as opposed to those who can just beat up a few people. And this is something the Net may really be helping with.

Web of Hate, Salon Magazine

Hate groups concentrate their recruiting efforts primarily in high schools (and, to some extent, in colleges and universities). Traditionally, hate groups have had to approach this group with their message by distributing pamphlets on school grounds and in neighbourhood mailboxes. But these tactics are not always successful: too many adults (principals, teachers and parents) are able to intervene to protect the kids.

But the Internet seems tailor-made for reaching disaffected young people: teenagers spend far more time on it than their parents do, and many teens consider the virtual world of the web their "home away from home." Hatemongers now target young people directly, through hate "music" and special web sites.

Potential Targets

Young people may be susceptible to online racist propaganda because they don’t have the experience or facts at hand to refute the lies and myths being fed to them.

Lonely, marginalized youth, seeking a sense of identity and belonging, are both the most attractive targets for racists and their most useful tools, once recruited.

It’s a common belief that youths who join hate groups are mainly poor, uneducated and alienated. But the story of Elizabeth Moore (see sidebar) illustrates the power hate messages can have on educated youth. This former Queen’s University student became one of the top-ranking spokespersons (and a rare female presence) in the Heritage Front, a Canadian neo-Nazi organization. The Elizabeth Moore Case Study, a first-hand account of how any young person can be recruited into the world of hate, is a must-read for senior secondary students.

Recruitment Strategies

Although the Internet is a new way to reach young people, the techniques hatemongers use to attract them are still very traditional. Here are some of the strategies hate groups use to attract young people on the Internet:

Music.  Music is a compelling way to influence young people. When kids surf the Net for music, they may chance on sites that sell hate music, or even offer it free for downloading. Such Web sites often also provide links to hate-promoting brochures, pamphlets, newsgroups, chat rooms or Web sites.

One of the most popular forms of racist music is "white power" rock ‘n’ roll—loud and violent, with hostile lyrics that call for the murder of black people, or the start of a racial holy war. Every year in North America, more than 50,000 white power CDs are sold; and journalist Jay Dixit reports that Resistance Records (the largest North American distributor of hate music) was expected to gross more than $1 million (U.S.) in 2001.

Games. Another strategy used to attract young people is white-power versions of popular computer games. Teens may go online looking for the latest cool game, and may find the "hate version" instead.

For example, Resistance Records has produced Ethnic Cleansing—a computer game whose object is to kill "subhumans" such as Blacks and Latinos, and their "masters," the Jews, who are portrayed as the personification of evil. Players can choose between dressing as KKK members or skinheads.

Activities for kids.  Some hate sites offer special sections for kids containing games and activities. For example, on the "Creativity for Kids" section of the neo-Nazi World Church of the Creator Web site, children can try their hands at crossword puzzles with racist content. The purpose of the children’s section is "to help the young members of the white race understand our fight."

Cartoon spokescharacters.  Some hate sites use cartoon-like or animated characters, similar to (or identical to) those used in children's media to attract young audiences. For example, sites have used characters from Sesame Street, or Barney the purple dinosaur.