Southern Poverty Law Center: Difference between revisions
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To deal with hate at a more fundamental level, in 1991, it set up the "Teaching Tolerance, an educational program to help K-12 teachers foster respect and understanding in the classroom. Teaching Tolerance is now one of the nation's leading providers of anti-bias resources – both in print and online. | To deal with hate at a more fundamental level, in 1991, it set up the "Teaching Tolerance, an educational program to help K-12 teachers foster respect and understanding in the classroom. Teaching Tolerance is now one of the nation's leading providers of anti-bias resources – both in print and online. | ||
==Scope== | |||
Recently, there have been questions about SPLC opposition to merely conservative groups, or its avoiding criticism of groups that may demonstrate hatred but have other political connections. <ref name=HuPo>{{citation | |||
| author = [[Carol M. Swain]] | |||
| title = Mission Creep and the Southern Poverty Law Center's Misguided Focus | |||
| url = http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carol-m-swain/mission-creep-and-the-sou_b_255029.html | |||
| date = 10 August 2009 | journal = Huffington Post}}</ref> SPLC had designated, in 2000, the [[New Black Panther Party]] as a hate group. During the November 2008 elections, the [[U.S. Department of Justice]] filed charges of voter intimidation against it. The Justice Department, in the [[Obama Administration]], dropped charges without SPLC comment. | |||
SPLC, however, has been critical of [[American conservative]]s such as [[Lou Dobbs]] and the [[Center for Immigration Reform]]. | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
{{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
Revision as of 17:31, 13 January 2010
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) was formed as part of the U.S. civil rights movement in 1971. Its first site was Montgomery, Alabama, where a number of major protests had begun. Its co-founders were attorneys Morris Dees and Joe Levin, and its first president was Julian Bond.[1]
It has increased its scope beyond legal assistance on precedent-setting activities. Its Intelligence Project was created in 1981, to track hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan. Today the SPLC Intelligence Project monitors hate groups and tracks extremist activity throughout the U.S. It provides comprehensive updates to law enforcement, the media and the public through its quarterly magazine, Intelligence Report. Staff members regularly conduct training sessions for police, schools, and civil rights and community groups, and they often serve as experts at hearings and conferences.
To deal with hate at a more fundamental level, in 1991, it set up the "Teaching Tolerance, an educational program to help K-12 teachers foster respect and understanding in the classroom. Teaching Tolerance is now one of the nation's leading providers of anti-bias resources – both in print and online.
Scope
Recently, there have been questions about SPLC opposition to merely conservative groups, or its avoiding criticism of groups that may demonstrate hatred but have other political connections. [2] SPLC had designated, in 2000, the New Black Panther Party as a hate group. During the November 2008 elections, the U.S. Department of Justice filed charges of voter intimidation against it. The Justice Department, in the Obama Administration, dropped charges without SPLC comment.
SPLC, however, has been critical of American conservatives such as Lou Dobbs and the Center for Immigration Reform.
References
- ↑ About Us, Southern Poverty Law Center
- ↑ Carol M. Swain (10 August 2009), "Mission Creep and the Southern Poverty Law Center's Misguided Focus", Huffington Post